Summary

Larry Cornett shares his journey and top three techniques for overcoming the fear of public speaking to enhance career opportunities and personal branding.

Abstract

Larry Cornett, a leadership coach and career advisor, discusses the significant impact that overcoming the fear of public speaking has had on his career. He recounts his transformation from dreading public speaking to genuinely enjoying it, emphasizing the career advancements and personal brand growth he experienced as a result. Cornett attributes his success to three key techniques: formal public speaking training, engaging in karaoke to desensitize anxiety, and adopting an on-stage persona to dissociate from personal nervousness. He encourages readers to practice these methods and shares resources for further career development.

Opinions

Public speaking proficiency is crucial for career advancement and entrepreneurial success.
Training in public speaking is invaluable for gaining practice, mastering presentations, and managing challenging speaking scenarios.
Engaging in karaoke can serve as an extreme form of exposure therapy, making public speaking seem tame by comparison.
Taking on an acting persona during presentations can help reduce anxiety by creating psychological distance from the audience's judgment.
Warren Buffett's valuation of public speaking skills as a multiplier of personal worth underscores its importance in professional development.
Personal branding and visibility in the professional community are significantly enhanced by effective public speaking.
Networking events can be more challenging than public speaking for some individuals, including the author.
The author's personal enjoyment of public speaking increased after employing the mentioned techniques, suggesting their effectiveness.
The author invites readers to try out these techniques and engage with him for further advice and coaching through his platforms.

PUBLIC SPEAKING

Three Tips to Conquer Your Fear of Public Speaking

Invest in yourself!

What techniques do you use to overcome your fear of public speaking and boost your self-confidence before an important meeting, presentation, talk, etc.?

For most of my life, I used to fear and hate public speaking.

Getting up in front of people to talk? No thanks!

But I actually enjoy it now. No, seriously, I do.

I find it easier to get up in front of an audience to speak than to try to make small talk with people at networking events. Maybe someday, I will come to enjoy that as well. But, for now, it’s not my thing. Large audiences or 1-on-1 conversations are much easier for me.

So, why does this matter? Why should you care about becoming comfortable with public speaking?

I know that overcoming my fear and becoming proficient at public speaking boosted my career. Quite simply, I never would have advanced as far in my career as I did, if I was not able to get up in front of a room full of colleagues and present to them.

Presenting at conferences and interviewing with the media increased my visibility and built my personal brand. Practice, practice, practice helped me overcome the anxiety of public speaking and made it much easier for me to present to angel investors when I was raising money for my startup.

If you want your career to take off, learn how to speak and present with confidence.

If you want to build your own business, you had better become very comfortable with speaking to potential customers, partners, and investors.

If you want to remain right where you are, never get promoted, and never become a successful entrepreneur, then sit down, close your mouth, and never speak up or take the stage.

Warren Buffett once told a class of business students that he would pay anyone in the room $100,000 for 10% of their future earnings. If they were excellent communicators, he would raise his bid by 50% because public speaking would make his ‘investment’ more valuable (source).

If you are interested in changing your life and skyrocketing your career, here are the top 3 techniques that I’ve used to overcome my fear of public speaking and actually find a way to enjoy it:

1. Training in public speaking

Never pass up an opportunity to present and speak in front of an audience

I know that this tip is obvious. But, common sense is not common practice. Even though we all know that training in public speaking is available, very few people make an effort to sign up for it.

Earlier in my career, I forced myself to take a few courses and workshops on public speaking. It made me very uncomfortable, and I was terrified to stand up and talk in front of the room. However, it was a tipping point in conquering my fear.

One workshop focused on general speaking. A few others were for managing presentations to larger audiences, and dealing with the media. All of this training was very useful!

First, the training gives you much-needed practice.
Second, it teaches you the importance of mastering your talk and why even the best presenters rehearse for more hours than you think.
Finally, it teaches you techniques for managing the audience, answering questions, handling challenging issues with the media, etc. Essentially, what should you do in those worst-case scenarios? Once you know that, you feel more comfortable about anything that might happen to you.

2. Ready for this? Try karaoke

If I remember correctly, this may have been “White Wedding”

Yes, I said karaoke. My previous colleagues understand this tip. They were there when I was introduced to karaoke clubs while I was living in China.

Wow. Talk about combining your worst fears into one swirling, whirling mass of anxiety. Getting up in front of people. Public speaking. And, worse, actually trying to sing in front of an audience with a mic in your hand. Yeah, it can be overwhelming.

However, I think that this experience was one of my most significant breakthroughs. It’s the same as phobia treatment.

Do you fear spiders? Well, then play with a big tarantula.

Do you fear snakes? Wrap one around your neck.

It is such a sensory overload that you never fear the simple act of speaking in front of an audience again. You feel like you’ve already made the biggest fool of yourself and survived. A little public speaking will never be worse than that.

From that point forward, giving a presentation seemed tame compared to singing in front of strangers.

3. Acting

Tristan und Isolde (an opera by Richard Wagner)

My on-stage persona isn’t “me.” I take on a role when I’m in front of an audience. I embrace it.

My persona loves the spotlight. My persona enjoys interacting with the audience and making people laugh. My persona has fun with dramatic pauses and looking at the audience.

The separation of self from this acting persona helps eliminate the anxiety of the situation. It’s not “me” up there on stage. It’s “him.” If that guy bombs, it wasn’t me that bombed. Maybe he should do a better job next time!

I know this tip sounds a little like embracing dissociative identity disorder. But, isn’t that what actors and entertainers do every day? Do you think those folks in Hollywood are really like the characters in their movies? Nope, and you don’t have to be either.

I hope this helps!

So, there you have it. These three tips helped me overcome decades of fear of public speaking.

Not only did I overcome my fear, I actually love speaking now. For those of you that know me or have attended one of my talks, you know that I do enjoy being on stage. You’ve teased me enough about it.

These tips should work for you too. Try them out and let me know in the comments. You can even invite me to karaoke with you. I’ll come as long as you are buying the drinks.

Read more of the free career advice that I share with over 1,500 smart job seekers every week. Check out my leadership and career coaching at Brilliant Forge.

Larry Cornett is a Leadership Coach and Career Advisor. He lives in Northern California near Lake Tahoe with his wife and children, a Great Dane, a chicken, and a stubborn old cat. He shares advice that helps you become an opportunity magnet, so the best things in life come to you! You can also find him on Twitter and Instagram @cornett.