If you're worried about having to make a speech soon and you've got a case of stage fright, remember Franklin D. Roosevelt's famous statement "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." In the case of stage fright, you really don't even need to fear the fear. In fact, a little nervousness is actually good for you.
We all know what stage fright is, and I don't know of anyone who has never gotten it sometime in their life. I our worked in radio and TV for more than 30 years, and I can tell you this about stage fright. Even now, if I have to get up and speak in front of a group of people in a live audience, I get nervous--something that never happened when I was looking into a camera or sitting in front of a microphone.
Many of the top entertainers in the world say they've gotten stage fright too, so don't feel as if stage fright only happens to you. Famous people who are known to have suffered from serious stage fright include Barbra Streisand, Donny Osmond, Kim Basinger, and even Sir Laurence Olivier.
Stage fright symptoms are probably caused by adrenalin (a.k.a. epinephrine), which is a hormone commonly associated with fear. When the brain perceives danger or a stressful situation arises, adrenalin starts pumping, and anxiety increases.
Symptoms of stage fright include:
* A general feeling of anxiety before, or during, the beginning of a speech or presentation. * Cold hands, sweating hands, or shaky hands. * Dry mouth. * Fast pulse. * Nausea. * Rapid Breathing * Shaky knees. * Tight throat. * Trembling lips.
Stage fright, and the symptoms that go with it, lessen as you become more accustomed to speaking in front of groups of any size, but even veteran public speakers agree it never goes away completely. So if you're going to enjoy any success making a presentation you have to learn to control stage fright to some degree.
To the best of our knowledge, no one has ever died as a result of stage fright. But you can find plenty of surveys that say most people would rather die than give a speech. If that sounds like you, follow some of the advice and strategies below.
1) Comfort yourself in the knowledge that even veteran speakers get stage fright. If it happens of Barbra Streisand and Kim Basinger, what do the rest of us have to be ashamed of?
2) Understand that a little stage fright is actually good. It gets your adrenalin going--and that will help you keep your energy level up. That's a good thing.
3) Build your confidence with rehearsals. If you practice, practice and practice some more, you'll eventually feel so comfortable with your material that you won't stress out about the possibility of embarrassing yourself.
4) Visualize success. See yourself doing well. Imagine audience members applauding and coming up to you afterward to pat you on the back and shake your hand.
5) Don't visualize failure. Avoid dwelling on any bad speaking experiences you've had in the past. And don't think about disasters suffered by people you know.
6) Remember some important basics. Be well rested and relaxed, arrive early, check out any audio visual equipment well in advance,
You can't always eliminate stage fright and nervousness all together, and as I pointed out in Tip Number 2, you probably don't want to. But you don't want it to paralyze you either.
Follow the steps above and you find that going on stage is no longer something to fear.
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