PUBLIC SPEAKING

It’s not unusual for some of the most trained performers to get the jitters just before they are about to walk out in front of a crowd.

One of my students years ago was an actress who had performed in many movies and television shows. She was a beautiful woman, with a clear speaking manner, direct and quite capable of speaking up for herself. When I first began working with her she shared with me that though she had done many movies she was about to embark on a series of live performances in Las Vegas, which also included singing, and she shared with me she was terrified! She said it was one thing to perform in front of cameras that allowed her to do it again if she "messed up" but on stage in front of a live audience you get one chance.

To add to her dilemma, her throat would tighten up and cause her voice to squeak when she tried to hit the high notes! Yet she began applying her self-hypnosis techniques and establishing a firm foundation of self confidence. When the time came for her to do her performances she was still a bit nervous, but I received a telegram from Las Vegas the day after her debut stating things went great. She has since done many things live throughout the year with confidence and professionalism.

I had another student who was a concert pianist. She had stage fright so severely that she would suffer insomnia the night before any performance. When we did our history taking in Chapter II we discovered that in third grade she had a piano recital in front of the school assembly. She had been sick the week before and hadn’t really had sufficient time to practice. The day before she was to perform she told her teacher of her problem and requested to be excused from the show. Her not so understanding teacher forced her to go on anyway!

Well, it turned out to be a disaster! Besides being very nervous she also stumbled through the piece. The kids were snickering and the next day her teacher used her as an example in front of the class about how you are bound to fail if you don’t keep your homework up!

Well years later her subconscious was still petrified before a concert yet she had become a truly gifted and talented pianist. We worked with her issues by desensitizing her trauma from childhood. I also explained to her while under hypnosis that from now on the situation would always be different. She was no longer a beginning third-grader. She was very proficient at her skill. And, secondly, that she did know all the pieces that she played. That she knew them so well she could play them with her eyes closed!

I also gave her a kinesthetic anchor that when she would feel the ivory of the keys under her fingers it would trigger off all the positive suggestions and associations we had used in her hypnosis and she would hear herself and feel herself playing well automatically! So she may have felt some backstage jitters but once she began to perform she used that adrenaline to give her the "edge" that makes a quality performance.

THE ELEMENTS OF A SUCCESSFUL SPEECH

1. Preparation–As I mentioned at the beginning of the process of test taking you need to prepare! Start researching right away! Start outlining now. Hypnosis helps but it doesn’t take the place of good preparation.
2. Rehearsing–Do it out loud. Louder than you usually would. Hear yourself. Put rhythm to it. Put emphasis on key phrases.
3. Delivery–Clarity. Use hand gestures if you’re comfortable; if not just rest hands on lectern. No chewing gum, fidgeting or drumming fingers.
4. Appearance–Dress appropriately for type of talks and your audience. A professional look is generally good. Dress for success! Stay away form fashion fads. Warm colors can be good, hair neat, ironed clothes and shined shoes.
5. Ambiance–Lighting and room setup. Just as we take stock of a room we are going to take a test in, we want to be aware of certain criteria about where you’ll be speaking. Pre–preparation is always advised if possible:
6. How large is the room?
7. Is there a speaker’s lectern and microphone?
8. Is there proper lighting? Don’t have audiences go to sleep if everything is too dark!
9. Room temperature should be slightly cool. Cool with air circulation if possible.
10. Use visuals–use color, when possible. Don’t over–use visuals, it takes away from the speech giver.

Almost everyone gets nervous. You’re throat feels like it’s drying up, mental misery, pounding heart, butterflies and sweaty palms. Nervousness is caused by a fear of looking ridiculous to others.

What is your self talk when you’ve been told it’s time to give a speech?! "Oh, I know I’ll start to stutter!" "What if I go blank!" "I feel as if those butterflies are going to come right out of my mouth!" Remember how important it is to be programming your subconscious into what you want, not what you don’t want.

One of my students was a young, beautiful and talented woman who was embarking on a series of beauty contests. She was very capable at her talents, which were hula and singing. While she was also a team leader in group activities, she admitted to me her biggest problem was answering questions, especially to strangers. Of course, in this category are judges of talent contests. As she put it, "Everything would go blank!" No words would come to her! When we did our initial consultation we discovered that her main "Lead–in System" (or Modality) was predominantly Visual, almost to the detriment of her other modalities. I asked her my usual questions:

1. "When was the last time you saw a red Volkswagen?" This is a Visual question. She went visual.
2. I then asked her, "When was the last time she heard the telephone ring more than 10 times in a row?" she then went Visual, not Auditory (hearing).
3. I asked her, "When was the last time she felt the wet sand coming up between your toes." She went Visual and pictured the beach, not kinesthetic.

When I asked her to recall what she experienced the last time she had to answer questions and she didn’t do well she instantly went down to her "Kinesthetic/Auditory" and began feeling pressured and started a lot of negative self talk. Well, remember when a person is Visual they tend to look up, but when she answered questions for a stranger would go K/A and then go blank! Remember K/A with eyes looking down. The description we used of going blank really fit. Once she looked down instead of up (which was full of Visual cues) she did go blank–she was too busy telling herself she wasn’t good at questions, becoming more and more kinesthetically aware her heart was pounding and her hands were getting sweaty!

Although this sounds so simple I had her make sure she kept looking up! As well as quitting her negative self talk, it made a great deal of difference!

We also found out that, as a child, she was very shy. Remember, shyness is "I–ness." It is really wondering if you have other people’s approval. It is very common, and I have read that a general estimate is that 40% of all Americans suffer from shyness. And, let’s face it, for some people shyness can be very painful.

People react differently to their shyness. Some people are so afraid of possibly looking foolish that they will do anything to get out of such a situation. It doesn’t have to hold you back anymore!

One suggestion is just before you go on stage, is to push hard against a wall.
That seems to eliminate tension from holding everything in.

Remember, truly successful entertainers or public speakers will usually admit they get those knots in their stomachs just before they have to perform. It’s OK to go through a nervous moment or two but what counts is that when it comes time to get the job done you can do it and do it well!

DOES YOUR SPEECH HAVE:

• Enthusiasm. People can tell when you’re enthused about your ideas. And It’s catchy. Find reasons to be energetic or intense and you will inspire rather than elicit indifference.
• Sincerity & Concern. Life examples are helpful! It helps to speak about what you know. If you don’t actually know, do your homework. Ask questions of everybody–what are there opinions? Don’t hesitate to over prepare!
• Interesting anecdotes. People love examples. It’s one thing to state a theory and another to back it up with a workable example!
• All three modalities? Visual, Auditory and Kinesthetic. You might also like to include taste and smell as well. Then everybody thought you were speaking to them.
• Tone. Practice on the tone (the voice pitch of your speech). You’ll want to include more ups & downs in your speaking voice. The sound of a monotonous voice droning on isn’t apt to get the results one might want.
• Use.......Pauses. Take a deep breath before you begin. It’s all right to let silence frame your words. It also gives you a chance to think. so many people worry about the pauses, the "Loud sound of silence." It only seems that way if you’re using a lot of negative self-talk.
• Eye Contact! Practice in the mirror. You don’t actually have to look anybody in the eyes. You can look at their foreheads if you want to. To them it looks as if you are talking right to them. Move your head and scan the audience. That looks relaxed even if you don’t feel that way! Staring straight ahead with a dazed look is apt to make you look less than confident.

Remember, three parts to a good talk include:

1. An opening (the introduction), generally telling them what you’re going to speak about.
2. The body of the speech, which should include specifics, examples, statistics and facts.
3. The conclusion, which tells them what you just told them! Use your best, most dramatic conclusion for last. Quotes can be good closes.

Also see Case Histories

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