Overcome the fear of public speaking, the science - Paul M Johnstone

The Guest Blogger this week is Dr Lynda Shaw a neuropsychologist sharing with us the science behind the fear of public speaking

Thursday 4^th: George just pushed the food around his plate.  In a few minutes he was going to be introduced to stand and speak in front of 50 people.  He could hardly swallow his saliva let alone lunch.

“Ladies and Gentleman, it gives me great pleasure to introduce George of Dragon limited.”

The words sounded miles away, drowned out by his pounding heart, but he stood and walked heavily to the podium with beads of sweat glistening his top lip and shaking hands, regretting the day he agreed to do this.

It could have been different. Our unconscious, automatic emotional brain acts faster than our rational, conscious factual brain.  No amount of logical thinking can arrest the fear of all eyes watching George, judging his performance, waiting for him to make a mistake leading to humiliation.

Crazy isn’t it?  Audiences want to like the speaker.  They want to be entertained and informed, but our emotional brain taps into old mistaken beliefs and sends cortisol, the stress hormone through the roof. 

Which means it’s jolly hard to remember what we want to say.  And to top it all cortisol suppresses all those wonderful neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine so that we can’t sleep, eat, think clearly and we become overly anxious.

Top Tip To Tame The Unconscious – make up a mantra such as “I’m a great public speaker, I’m interesting, they love me and I’m having fun.”  Say it and mean it many, many times.  Remember perfection is an illusion – go out there and enjoy, the audience will be in the palm of your hand.

Saturday 6^th George just had time to eat dessert before he was announced.

 

Lynda Shaw With a PhD in neuropsychology and extensive business experience, Lynda is uniquely placed to offer companies a whole new perspective on communication and the ageing workforce.  Professional speaker, seminars, private consultations and author.   

Lynda can be reached via her website www.drlyndashaw.com

You may have questions and commnets please post them as I am keen for feedback on this blog having the view that all feedback is good feedback 

Paul M Johnstone is a Professional Communicator, Speaker, Executive Coach and PowerPoint Guru! He works with companies, charities and individuals, helping them improve their communication skills and deliver successful presentations.  Paul can be reached at +44 (0)7711 324362or through his website at http://www.pmjohnstone.co.uk/ and http://www.paradigmshakers.co.uk

©Paul M Johnstone