I have a public-speaking engagement tonight. Any tips on how to stay calm and not be nervous?

Question

alcohol will not work; I don't drink. but, thanks anyway.

Answer 1

Good luck, sweetie!!

Look at it not as a problem or obsticle, look at it as your day to shine!! Confidence means so much, from the way you hold yourself to how the crowd responds to you.
Take a short, brisk walk, or some other activity that requires excersise. It is proven that excersise releases chemicals in the body that help peopl relax and focus.
After rehearsing your speech a few times, put it down, and put the event out of your mind for a while. Worrying will not help.
While speaking, look right above people's heads. They won't know the difference, but it will give them the impression that each person is capturing your attention.

Answer 2

During my university years I had one class that would require several presentations. I enrolled in a public speaking course (non-credit) prior to making any presentations. It was a good course but only about 12 people in the class. It helped a bit I guess but what I found worked best was when my topic was something I really knew well and had a great interest in.

In later years, I was okay about giving short presentations but I found I always started out fast and people didn't really catch the first few minutes of what I was saying. So if possible, I would suggest starting out on a light note (maybe a very simple joke or something funny that just happened to you). This will help ease you into your subject matter. Remember to breath and not speak too fast. The further you get into your speach, the calmer you should become.

No ammount of any technique is going to calm all your nervousness. You just have to learn from experience that public speaking isn't so bad. Good luck.

Answer 3

1. Know your subject well. This will give you the confidence that you won't foul up.
2. Get enough sleep
3. Eat a good breakfast the day of the speech.
4. Remember people are looking at you for information, not to judge you on your presentation. Keep telling that to youself to calm your nerves.
5. Practice you speech out loud. Your brain will remember the "practice."

Good luck!

Answer 4

When you ask people what they fear most about giving a speech, they list any number of reasons.

Here are the most common reasons people list for being afraid of public speaking with suggestions for what to do to overcome that fear.

"I'll be boring."
If you're not boring in real life, there's no reason for you to be boring as a speaker. Fear is the culprit. When you're afraid, you become self-protective. You draw back into yourself. Your focus narrows to what is immediately around you, and all you can think about is survival. You lose your creativity, spontaneity, and humor. Control your nervousness, and your natural liveliness will surface.


"People will laugh at me."
If you do or say something that amuses people, they will laugh -- even if you don't want them to. So laugh with them. Then they're not laughing at you, they're laughing with you. And they'll love you for it. Laughter is the most potent antidote to fear. While fear shuts you down and makes you cower in the corner, laughter pumps you up and gets you energized.


"People will see how nervous I am."
So what? People expect you to be nervous. (They say to themselves, "I'd be nervous too, if I were up there.") Being nervous is only a problem if you're so nervous that you make the audience nervous. Don't call attention to your nervousness. Just go on with your speech.


"I'll forget my next point."
Since so many speakers do forget their next point, there are lots of strategies to compensate for it.
While you're preparing your presentation make sure your main points flow logically from one to another. Make the connections really tight.
Take a moment, take a breath, and think. If you give yourself half a chance you'll probably remember what you were going to say.
Back up and try again. Repeat the previous point, the one you just summarized. Doing so will often lead you on to the next point.
Refer to your notes. Even if you speak without a podium, keep your notes nearby. They're your security blanket.
Tell your audience you've drawn a blank. They'll understand, and their understanding will make you relax, which in turn will help you remember. Ask, "Where was I?" and someone will tell you.


"I won't be able to answer people's questions."
You don't have to have all the answers. You just have to know how to get the answers so you can say, "You've stumped me. I don't know the answer to that question, but I do know how to find it. If you give me your business card, I promise I'll get back to you with what you want to know."


"I'll freeze."
This is most people's biggest fear. You're standing before a room full of people and you freeze. Your mind goes blank. You can't remember a single thing you were planning on saying.

Here's the secret. Say something. Say anything. The longer you stay silent -- trying to remember exactly what you had planned on saying -- the more stressed you will get. And stress is like ice water on the brain. Say, "You know, I've completely forgotten what I was going to say." Your audience will identify with you. They may laugh. Then you can laugh. Oxygen will return to your brain and begin thawing things out. Refer to your notes, if necessary. And begin again.

Answer 5

I had to take a public speaking class in college, and that old phrase "picture the audience in their underwear"...don't do that. You'll spend too much time trying to imagine it and will end up stumbling over your own words.

Just take a couple of deep breathes before hand.

Make sure you know your speech backwards and forwards. Practice to a mirror also.

Answer 6

When I had to speak in front of a room I was told by a teacher to picture everyone naked to relax me. It actually workedcause I was able to give my speech and not mess up at all.

Answer 7

uhm, ok.

stay in a quiet place (if you can). but this'll work anywhere you are, just try not to let others notice.

relax your breathing (force yourself if you have to).
breathe deeply: inhale as much as you can, but exhale very slowly, through slightly clenched teeth making a soft steady ssssss sound. do it as many times you can.
also touch your thumb and index finger together (it's too long to tell you why).

Answer 8

the advice about picturing people in their undies just doesn't work.
have an alcoholic drink beforehand. seriously. it will help calm your nerves.

Answer 9

make sure you have memorized your speech,pick four ppl in the audience to make eye contact with and keep it with only them,but make sure they are spread out so it looks as if your looking at the whole room.The more ppl you look at the more nervous you'll become

Answer 10

I would pray.....Then have a shot of vodka and got over what I have to say over and over again. I'll be thinking about you. Good luck on that. Just think do it and get it over real fast....lord.