Overcoming Nerves - Improve Your Public Speaking Presentation and Influence Skills Training Coaching Melbourne Australia

02Dec

Public Speaking Like Facing a Firing Squad? One Client’s Belief

What would you answer, if I asked you to complete this statement: “speaking in public is like____________________”? Public Speaking Like a Firing Squad? A new client, let’s call her Alice, was telling me recently that when she first entered her (particularly male-dominated) area of academia 30 years ago, giving a presentation was known amongst her peers as “facing the firing squad”. The audience would lean eagerly towards Alice, armed and ready to rip apart every assertion she made. And 30 years later, Alice still feels this way - only now, she’s moved into a new area where the audience is waiting with interest...

By Sarah DenholmMindset, Overcoming Nerves, Public Speaking and Presentation Skills Blogfear of public speaking, giving a presentation, overcoming public speaking fear, public speaking attack, public speaking beliefs, public speaking in academia, public speaking successful mindset, reluctant public speaker0 CommentsRead more...

09Sep

Introvert? 4 Ways to Blast Through your Resistance to Presenting in Public

If you're an introvert, you may struggle to speak in public and plan to avoid it whenever you can; getting up in front of a group can seem like an insurmountable hurdle if you tend to avoid the spotlight. Yet you may need or want to present well; you have ideas to share, and it really bothers you that you don't feel competent at presenting. If you want to be able to get up and speak but feel as though you're fighting yourself as it's happening, it's worth knowing this (I discovered this concept through Susan Cain's writing; her book is Quiet:...

By Sarah Denholmbusiness meetings, Delivery, Mindset, Overcoming Nerves, Public Speaking and Presentation Skills Blog, Rehearsalacting as if, BAS Behavioural Activation System, BIS Behavioural Inhibition System, fear of public speaking, Go System, interview behaviour, introvert public speaking, low-energy speaker, presentation skills, Quiet, resistance to speaking in public, self-talk public speaking, speaking in meetings, Stop System, Susan Cain, The Power of Introverts4 CommentsRead more...

05Jul

Practising Your Speech – how much is enough?

mtsofan via Flickr Working with a client this week during an individual coaching session, we were putting the finishing touches on a 5 minute speech he was preparing for a formal family celebration dinner. Ed had written a script which we first edited to create a logical flow; we then worked on humour, pacing and engaging delivery methods. I ended the session by suggesting that he practise the speech at least 5 times before the big night, just over a week away. Ed was astonished. He had never considered practising his speech - let alone my suggestion of a minimum of 5 times...

By Sarah DenholmDelivery, Overcoming Nerves, Rehearsalpractising presentation, practising public speaking, public speaking practice1 CommentRead more...

01Jun

How to change your negative beliefs about speaking: 5 step plan

Choosing new beliefs I sometimes work with clients who have seen themselves as poor speakers for a long time, often many years. They may turn up for coaching or come along to one of my courses with the attitude of "well I'll give this a go, but it won't really change anything". Our beliefs run our lives - they underlie how we relate to the world. But you don't have to feel so stuck around public speaking, and you don't have to sabotage yourself by letting your past experience dictate the present moment. Sometimes I think that we over-complicate things...so with the...

By Sarah DenholmMindset, Overcoming NervesDavid Rock, new public speaking beliefs, overcoming public speaking fear, public speaking positive mindset, public speaking stress, speaking belief system, speaking goals, speaking skills, Your Brain at Work4 CommentsRead more...

11Feb

Using Peripheral Vision Impacts your Public Speaking

plotting your imaginary graph Using your peripheral vision - opening out your vision field to its very edges - is a helpful tool to feel more relaxed, open and ‘spacious’ in front of a group (or indeed whenever you want to feel that way). How often do you do the opposite? This is pretty much the opposite of what we commonly do during the day: think about how often we might focus in on the computer screen, T.V., piece of paper, or even when we’re talking to someone. Why you need to practise It’s important to practise expanding our vision field, because it’s not an obvious...

By Sarah DenholmOvercoming Nerves, Public Speaking and Presentation Skills Bloganxiety research, eye contact, performance anxiety, peripheral vision nerves, public speaking stress, Scientific American, Wray Herbert3 CommentsRead more...

01Feb

Overcoming Fear of Public Speaking: Playing at the Edges of your Comfort Zone

Stretching your comfort zone edges I've recently gone back to yoga classes after a break of 10 years or so, and one thing about doing the poses which confused me initially, was knowing how to distinguish between intensity during a stretch versus discomfort or pain. Intensity is another word for energy flow, and that's what you're after in yoga, and public speaking. But where does intensity tip over into negative, unhelpful territory, and how can you stop that from happening? The solution, I've found, is learning how to "play at the edges" of my comfort zone, my limits, without going too far....

By Sarah DenholmMindset, Overcoming Nerves, Public Speaking and Presentation Skills Blog, Rehearsalfear of presenting, fear public speaking, speaking comfort zone, speaking skills0 CommentsRead more...

18Jan

A Tip to Stop Self-Doubts Before You Go On Stage

[Updated 2020] A client asked me recently about any tip to stop self-doubts; those fearful, negative thoughts which kick in like clockwork in the hours before she has to present. You may know how she feels: it's so unhelpful, isn't it? And yes, it's how our brains work when we feel threatened by something, and don't feel that we have the resources to cope. And while there are a few different ways to tackle this issue, there's a practical strategy - which I'll share in a moment - which I've been using successfully with my speaking clients. I've also used it myself...

By Sarah DenholmMindset, Overcoming Nerves, Public Speaking and Presentation Skills BlogBeilock, Choke, cognitive science, nervous presenter tip, public speaking fears, public speaking panic, speaking tip0 CommentsRead more...

31Oct

How to Practise Your Presentation: Practical Tips (And What Not To Do)

Group of Practice Golf Balls - vorakorn There are many different ways to prepare: today I'm going to talk about practising your talk in the outer world, but working with your inner world - using mental rehearsal and relaxation techniques - are also important if you're nervous. Practising can help in showing you: what you need to fix in order to make your talk flow logically what you need to edit for clarity the possibilities for connection with your audience when you know your material so well that you get out of your own head how to feel more confident and comfortable (see my previous article on the neuroscience of...

By Sarah DenholmContent, Mindset, Overcoming Nerves, Public Speaking and Presentation Skills Blog, Rehearsal, Structurememorizing your talk, mental rehearsal, practice in front of mirror, practising public speaking skills, public speaking practice2 CommentsRead more...

17Aug

Practising Your Presentation: Why Don’t You Do It Properly?

Practising your presentation I've learned over my years of experience both as a speaker and a Classical pianist, that fear about an upcoming talk - or concert - is simply telling me to prepare: to get ready for the event. To give you an example: when I was much younger and more foolish, I was booked to give a presentation on the 'art of performing in business' to a management team. I was using PowerPoint for the first time, and turned up to try a foreign laptop in the hour before the actual presentation... I wasn't even familiar with using a laptop! I became more and more...

By Sarah DenholmBody Language, Delivery, Overcoming Nerves, Public Speaking and Presentation Skills Blog, Rehearsalpractising public speaking skills, practising your presentation, procrastinating about practising your presentation, public speaking fear paralysis2 CommentsRead more...

02Aug

3 Great Reasons From Neuroscience To Practise Your Presentation

Neurons in the brain: Dr Jonathan Clarke Today's post covers 3 great reasons to practise your presentation, taken from neuro-scientific research. Practice is No. 5 in my C.R.I.S.P.E.R series of good speaking skills (these skills are: being Clear, Relevant, Insightful, Succinct, Practised, Energetic and Respectful - the overview article is here). Reason No. 1: thicker neural pathways create precision and certainty Every time you practise your presentation (indeed, anything: it could be your golf swing, or a piece of music), you're creating a thicker, stronger neural pathway for the subject in your brain, as the bundles of fibres become more dense - they end up...

By Sarah DenholmDelivery, Overcoming Nerves, Public Speaking and Presentation Skills Blog, Rehearsalcontrol when public speaking, David Weiner, neuroscience of public speaking, practising your presentation, prefrontal control public speaking, public speaking practice, public speaking rehearsal, Reality Check What Your Mind Knows But Isn't Telling You, speaking lizard brain, Steven Dworkin5 CommentsRead more...