Public Speaking could be a chore to some, but many find speaking in front of people very fun. I myself, have found that speaking in front of people build's confidence and your level of shyness slowly gets smaller and smaller. To be apprehensive means to feel anxious or fearful of getting something done, or quick to do so. Every speech or presentation I have to go through, I'm always more excited on getting the job done, rather than getting myself ready to do the best presentation I can. I believe all of us have speech anxiety, some may have more than others, but it varies on different people. My speech anxiety has gotten better because I remember in Elementary school I would get up in front of the class, start twiddling my hair, and my cheeks would turn bright red. I felt like people were watching my every move, I focused all my attention on the paper rather than my audience, and in the end felt worse than before I had gotten up in front of the class. There is a lot of uncertainty that ties in with your speech anxiety. I am more of the person who will be listening rather than being the the speaker. I'm certain of my speaking abilities, in that, I prepare myself to an extent but not to the extent where I'm more than confident to speak in front of people.
So, what makes me most apprehensive about public speaking? In my opinion, I would say just getting my speeches done as quickest as possible. The worst feeling is standing in front of a crowd all eyes gazing towards you. If it was just the teacher and myself, I probably wouldn't be as nervous or have my eyes set on getting the speech as quickly done as possible. I'm also apprehensive in getting the job done because having to stand in front of a crowd not knowing and having uncertainty with how they feel about your presentation or speech makes me feel very uneasy. I got moderate speach anxiety onn my "personal report of public speaking anxiety" quiz.
I don't get too scared to present to the point of where I'm about to faint or pee my pants. I just hate the feeling of not knowing how someone feels about your work.
It is true that starting out your speech early and planning ahead will give you more time to practice and your speech will have been more prepared. That ties in with schooling also. Plan early and get things done early, so that you're not swamped in all this schoolwork and you won't be behind. Diaphragmatic breathing is what I use to do in my choir class back in eigth grade. It is a great exercise that I haven't done in a long time! To get a better feel of my audience, It is a good thing we have these blogs to get to know one another. Sorry for the long blog, but I hope you've enjoyed my blog :)
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I've actually felt the same way any time I've done a presentation of my work. It seems like once you step out in front of all these people I forget to reference the mindset that I have as a listener (ignoring most of stutters or simply forgetting the mistakes that may have been made), and instead focus on getting the job done as quickly as I can.
ReplyDeleteThe funny part is I never really noticed that I talked faster in these conditions until I went abroad and was talking to people that were used to speaking French or German, and that made me have to slow down an uncomfortable amount.
I guess the hard and fast lifestyle we are exposed to in school affects people much more than just in attitude or work ethic.
The nervousness that I get from wondering how people thought about my presentation dramatically increases when it is something that I personally chose instead of an assigned topic. I guess the whole 'you work is a reflection of you' comes out in full force.
I also think that preparation will help, but I have a feeling that the experience will probably help more.
I'll have to see, since I believe this is the first formal 'speech' I've given. Informal lectures or Seminars may be longer, but it is more like a conversation than this.
I think just about everyone has felt everything that you have just explained. I can definitely recall my elementary school days where I would DREAD the moment that I had to present an assignment. I do remember feeling more comfortable doing it in groups, it seemed to lighten the load a bit but you make a great point when explaining that when you speak in public you build confidence and your wall seems to come down a bit. That can be a major factor to finally being able to relax and saying that speech with no rush whatsoever. I can only hope that speeches wont catch me or anyone else too off guard
ReplyDeleteHi Herokittycakes! I'm glad to hear that you are comfortable when presenting in front of others. You bring up a good point in your post about anxiety lessening the more you present. This is absolutely true. Most people think that they will always be as nervous as they are now when they present. This is not generally the case. The more you present in front of a group of people, the more comfortable you get with the idea. :)
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