Joy Jones - Fearless Public Speaking: A Guide for Beginners

That which we are capable of feeling, we are capable of saying.

Cervantes

Suppose you were a teacher and you had to present a geography lesson to your classbut you had to teach it one student at a time. Youd have to repeat that same lesson 20 or 30 times. Suppose the president wanted to tell each citizen about a new tax lawif done one-on-one, that explanation would be given 6.1 million times to the residents in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area alone.

Now you know why public speaking was invented.

Public speaking is useful and necessary, and better than that, its fun. Yes, I said fun! I know a lot of you would rather eat fried rat, sleep with snakes, or attend school twelve months a year than appear before an audience. Polls have shown that public speaking is the number one fear of many people. But if you keep reading, youll find out that public speaking is nothing to be afraid of. In fact, you can enjoy doing it, and Im going to show you how. Believe it or not, the so-called fear part of it is part of the fun.

I love it when people overcome their speech fright, and I relish seeing a speaker in action. I used to coach a teen poetry slam team. And they were fearless. When I say fearless, do I mean that they were never nervous? No. But they had something to share, and they were so enthusiastic about sharing it that the part of them that was fearful was eclipsed by the part of them that was having fun.

Have you ever held a full-time job, applied for a credit card, driven a truck, been to college, voted for mayor, gotten married, bought a house, or skipped class? Probably not. But those may be things that youre looking forward to doing. And youll probably do them well. Add giving a speech to that list (but delete skipping class!).

Do you know how to tie your shoelaces, walk to the store alone, send an e-mail, download music, do fractions, and skip class? These are all things that at one time you had never tried before, but now you can do them easily without thinking about them (but hopefully not skipping class. Do not ever think about doing that!). Thats the way youll soon feel about giving a speech.

What exactly are you giving when you give a speech? How would you like having the power to influence someones behavior, make them roar with laughter, or come to a new and better understanding of something? What could be more marvelous than to be the spark that makes that imaginary lightbulb turn on over a persons brain? Often, thats precisely what happens when you speak. When you give a speech you give others a chance to learn, to be entertained, and to see another view. Thats the gift you give when you give a speech.

Youre also giving youa part of yourself. When you speak you share your thoughts. Others get to witness the distinct way you put ideas together, how your mind works, and what you consider important. Wouldnt it be great to be able to receive a gift that is intriguing, unique, and remarkable? Well, you are intriguing, you are unique, and you are remarkable. When you stand before an audience to speak they get to discover this, too. Even if you didnt know that before I told you so, youll start to feel that way once you deliver your speech. Thats the gift you receive when you give a speech.

Ordinary people (that is, those people who arent lucky enough to be public speakers) only get presents a few times a year. On their birthdays, maybe on a holiday, and perhaps when their grandparents go out of town and bring them back a T-shirt that shrinks the first time they wash it.

But a speaker gets so many good things from speaking. If you can learn to like public speaking, you will eliminate a lot of stress and fear from your life. You wont have to run and hide when the teacher is looking for volunteers to lead the assembly program. You wont have to hunch down behind Billy Martinez when the teacher is scanning the room looking for someone to call on. You wont have to miss out on the enjoyment of speaking.

My slam poets could make the adults in the audience go Aww when they said something cute or wise. And the kids in the audience would go Wow! when they rapped something deep or clever. Thats a lot of feel-good! I, too, adore stepping out in front of a group. The larger, the better. I can actually feel waves of energy washing over me as I face the audience. That energy is love. Nearly every occasion to speak is an opportunity to be in love.