Westside Business Women Inc.

A vibrant start to an early morning networking event  

When we think of speaking and the fears associated with it, we generally associate this to dreaded...Public Speaking. In fact this is only one form of speaking so does it warrant us attaching all the negative thoughts and fears we have about speaking to it alone? We communicate by speaking with people everyday whether it be face to face or over the phone. When you really think about it, even if we don't think these other areas are a problem, the underlying reasons we fear Public Speaking are probably present in all that we do and have an effect on many areas of our life. So maybe we need to break it all down and look at what the underling reasons for our nerves and anxieties are?

The first thing to remember is that, you are not alone, everyone gets butterflies, even the best of them. Simone's topic on the 'Art of Speaking' helped attendees understand how they could get these darling little butterflies to disappear or at least all flying in the same direction - in formation. She began with some simple techniques to help us take back control so we feel confident and comfortable in our own skin.

It's our own insecurities, lack of confidence and not being present that all come into play with why we sometimes get so nervous or can't get the right words out in particular circumstances. Its not just in public speaking, its in range of situations like business meetings, sales pitches and situations of confrontation where we get butterflies that start going nuts in our tummy. The fear of what people think of you while you are being you, is actually greater than the fear of public speaking alone (I love that line- thanks Simone). By having this fear, we are handing over our power to the crowd we are addressing, the people in our meeting, the person on the other end of the phone and so forth. So how do we take back the control?

Here a couple of take home tips from Simone's session. These are a few things you can do and think about before walking into a meeting, addressing a crowd or what ever it is that may cause you some discomfort to help you calm the anxiety and nerves.

- Before walking into a situation where you will potentially get nervous, STOP and take a deep breath. Say to yourself I AM COMPLETELY...STOPPING. Breathe in for 5 seconds and out for 5 seconds. You may need to do this a couple of times until you have brought yourself back to the NOW, this exact moment, and clear your head of any clutter. This is a start to ready you for what's to come.

- Next say to yourself, I EXPECT NOTHING. Don't try to pre-empt what you are walking into or try to understand it or worry about it. Expect nothing from the situation. Be ok with not knowing EVERYTHING.

- Trust yourself, your resources and embrace the moment you are in. You can't be anymore than yourself so just be you. You can't change what is happening right here and NOW so roll with it and accept where you are and what you are doing. Say to yourself, I CAN DO THIS.

Be Yourself - Everyone else is already taken - Oscar Wilde

During the morning Simone also ran through some breathing techniques and delved into some other key factors that help us feel more at ease when speaking, like; perception, how we portray ourselves and the power of voice. 

Gauging from the positive feedback we've had from this event, I'm sure I'm not the only one that felt that Simone was one of the most easy listening speakers we've had to date. I didn't feel like I had information overload when leaving the event. I did however, feel like I had an ahhhh haaah... moment where I did feel that it was possible to start making some conscious changes in how I communicate in business and my personal life.

Simone runs workshops where she goes much deeper into this topic and works with you closely to manage things like: your speaking nerves / anxiety; how to get out of your head to speak from your heart; how to be grounded and clear about your purpose and message and how to connect authentically to inspire your audience to take action. You can contact Simone via her website http://www.cre8tivecatalyst.com.au if you are interested to book into one of these workshops.

Article by: Tracey Edgar