Student Success Series: Tips for Improving Your Public Speaking Skills

Glossophobia, better known as fear of public speaking, is the most common phobia. It affects as many as 75 percent of people. Sufferers with more intense forms of this phobia may agonize over speeches and presentations for days, experiencing physical side effects such as sweating and a rapid heart rate. These annoying symptoms can intensify the phobia because they make it more difficult to deliver a compelling speech. After all, no one wants to stand in front of a class or board room with a shaking voice and sweaty palms. 

Improving your public speaking skills can propel you to greater heights of student success. You’ll sharpen your communication skills, become more adept at persuading audiences, and enter the workplace prepared to interview well. Before you know it, you’ll be impressing colleagues, and offering compelling speeches in a wide variety of settings, including professional conferences. 

The best speakers may even earn more per year. Successful litigators can persuade judges and juries into better verdicts. Compelling presenters may be able to convince an employer of their worth, negotiating higher salaries and better benefits. And some speakers can even earn a living on their speeches. The highest paid in this elite class of presenters is earning anywhere from several thousand dollars to a million or more per speech. 

Public Speaking: Integral to Most Jobs 

When you’re in school, it’s easy to think of public speaking as a temporary inconvenience irrelevant to your professional life—particularly if you hate public speaking and don’t plan to enter a high-profile career. The reality is that some form of public speaking is important to most professions. You might not ever address a large audience of conference attendees or a cheering crowd at a TED Talk, but you’ll still need to sharpen your presentation skills. 

Some prevalent examples of on-the-job speaking include: 

• Updating your team or your managers about important project developments. 
• Addressing a board to seek funding for a company goal, explain the progress of a corporate undertaking, or answer questions about a recent problem. 
• Speaking in meetings. Classroom settings are very similar to the corporate meetings you might attend. Small business meetings may have anywhere from a few to several dozen attendees with questions about your work. 
• Performance reviews. Depending on how your employer handles performance reviews, you might have to master speech skills to get the best possible review. This might include talking to a group of managers or submitting raise requests to several supervisors. 
• Video conferences. Speaking on the phone or by video can be challenging, especially if you don’t know everyone to whom you are talking. Online learning can prepare you for exactly this scenario. 

Learning to speak well to groups may help sharpen other communication skills too. Organizing your thoughts for a public address can encourage more organized, linear thinking in emails and other written messages. When you prepare to speak to others, you cultivate empathy by assessing which information will be most important to the other parties. This might empower you to develop better workplace relationships and better understand of how your colleagues think. 

Strategies for Improving Public Speaking Skills 

You don’t have to panic your way through public speaking. These tried-and-true strategies can ease your anxiety and impress the audience: 

Manage your fears 

For most public speakers, fear is the biggest barrier to effective delivery. You may worry about your shaking voice, become so anxious you forget key points, or struggle with fidgeting. To gain control over your nerves, try the following: 

• Accept that glossophobia is normal. Don’t judge yourself for your nervousness, or you’ll experience even more stress. 
• Remind yourself that there is no actual danger. The body responds to public speaking with the same fight-or-flight response it would use to escape a tiger. This can make public speaking feel scarier than it actually is.
• Take slow, deep breaths. When you’re scared, you may hyperventilate or stop breathing. Deliberate inhalations and exhalations help you regain a sense of composure and control. 
• Separate your self-esteem from public speaking. It’s normal to fear judgment from your peers. This can make a speech feel like a test of your value as a person. Remind yourself that even if you bomb the address, you’re still a good and worthy human being. 
• Take care of your body. Drink water to prevent dehydration, and use the bathroom. If you like coffee, don’t down a cup right before the speech, because doing so can increase anxiety. 
• Get help. If public speaking anxiety is so overwhelming that you can’t face a class project, talk to a therapist who can help you conquer your fear. The brain is an organ just like the kidneys or heart, and a therapist is an expert in fixing problems with your thoughts and mind. The right treatment can transform your fears into something more manageable. 

Related article: Building Resilience as an Adult Student

Organize your thoughts 

If you know a topic well, it’s easy to go on a rambling rant that misses key points. Prepare with an organized, to-the-point outline. Hit your key points first. Then, if there’s time to dig into specific details, circle back and do so. This ensures that you don’t use up your time or forget to convey the most important facts. 

Get feedback 

Practice your speech in front of an audience before the big day. If you’re afraid of public speaking, this can help dull your fears. And even if you’re not, feedback from a spouse, friend, or your kids can help you knock your performance out of the park. 

Understand your audience

Your audience may not have the same interests or information you do. Don’t subject them to a brain dump or to a dissertation on the topics you find most interesting. Consider what they want to know. Don’t assume they have information they don’t. For instance, in a presentation about a legal issue, provide any relevant background on the law or social customs that might help listeners better understand a recent court decision. 

Use the right type of notes 

Particularly if you’re scared of speaking publicly, it’s tempting to write out your entire speech and read from your notes. This is a recipe for a boring speech that is unresponsive to audience cues. Instead, craft a detailed outline. This helps cue you if you forget a main point, but ensures you won’t annoy your audience with endless reading. 

Speak in front of something 

If you’re a novice speaker, you might fidget with your notes, awkwardly pace, or struggle with shaking legs. Speaking in front of a podium can conceal these symptoms. If you gain momentum and courage as your talk goes on, you can step away from the podium.

Practice makes perfect

If you loathe public speaking, you probably avoid it at all costs. The paradox of public speaking, though, is that the more you do the thing you hate, the better you get at it—and the less frightening it becomes. To get as much experience as possible, sign up for classes that require presentations. Your local Toastmasters also offers a great opportunity to master the art of communication in a supportive setting. 

How SNU Supports Student Success at Public Speaking 

At SNU, we understand that public speaking is a key ingredient in the job success recipe. We also know that many of our students fear addressing large groups. That’s why we integrate public speaking into our curriculum. You’ll gain plenty of experience talking to peers so that speeches become less intimidating when they’re a job requirement. 

Our supportive instructors understand that standing in front of a group or speaking to a large video conference can be tough. That’s why they work with each student to cultivate exceptional communication skills. After all, one of the most powerful antidotes to fear is knowing that you can perform well. 

Interested in seeing how else SNU can help propel you toward the future of your dreams? Reach out to one of our dedicated and caring enrollment counselors to learn more!