Ever heard that most people would rather die than give a speech? Well, this is the beginning of a series of articles about effective public speaking. If the thought of giving a speech makes your stomach turn upside down, makes your mouth go dry, and your knees to tremble, you're in the right place (or at least reading the right article...). Read on...

The major reason people fear public speaking is simple.....stage fright! When you're giving a speech, you're essentially "on stage"....which means you can mess up.....and "look stupid". It's not giving the speech that you really fear, it's the possibility that you'll mess up.

So, for starters, how do you deal with stage fright? You see, I can give you all kinds of great pointers on giving a great speech. The problem is that I would only be treating the symptom, rather than dealing directly with the cause. If you don't learn to effectively handle stage fright, all the technicals about a wonderful speech won't matter.

The first key is actually simple, and somewhat counter intuitive. Stop telling yourself not to be nervous. That's right, let yourself be a little frightened! Why? Because it's normal. Even professional speakers get nervous. After all, they are being paid to deliver a certain message to a given audience. If they fail, their speaking revenue plummets.

If you tell yourself not to be nervous, what will you be? Nervous! Your subconscious mind only understands commands given in the affirmative. It doesn't recognize "don't". As an example, if I asked you not to picture a pink elephant, what "picture" will your mind automatically come up with? A pink elephant! Your subconscious only understood "pink elephant", and that's what it told your conscious mind to picture.

Be a little scared. It's ok. The trick is to teach yourself how to control the nerves, to let the butterflies "fly in formation". How do you do that? One way is to concentrate on your message, rather than how nervous you are. Effective speakers focus on the message they are trying to impart on their audience. They understand that nerves are simply part of the process, so they don't give more attention to them than necessary.

As a disability advocate and speaker, I have been called on to give presentations in three different parts of the country. Sure I was nervous, but I had a message to give to my audience. A message that was important, and that they needed to hear. By focusing on the message, I actually started looking forward to being "on stage". You don't need to be a disability advocate, but you do need to care deeply about whatever message you're imparting through a speech.

Next time, we'll talk about the greatest subject you can possibly talk about. In fact, you're already an expert on it. Stay tuned....