Are you afraid of public speaking?
Public speaking is public enemy number one. Research shows that we fear public speaking more than we fear death. This means that the person doing the speech at our funeral suffers more than the person who just died.
It’s not weird that many of us hate public speaking. The attention of a large audience staring at you can be daunting. Research by Statistic Brain shows that 74% of us are afraid of public speaking.
74%. That’s a lot of people.
Evolution made us afraid of public speaking
Researchers of Psychology Today states that our fear of public speaking goes back thousands of years. In the past, when humans were chased by large dinosaurs and other scary animals, living in a group was the only way to survive. If you would ever be separated from your group, this would be a guaranteed death.
Although nowadays we aren’t chased by predators anymore, this same theory still applies. Whenever you’re separated from a group, you feel left out. On a deeper level, we’re not afraid of public speaking, we’re afraid to get rejected by the group.
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Even the most brilliant people on earth are afraid of public speaking
I want you to know it’s okay to be afraid of public speaking. Heck, the most brilliant people on earth fear it!
Just to give you a few examples:
- Warren Buffet
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Thomas Jefferson
- Abraham Lincoln
- Harrisson Ford
All these people have admitted that they are afraid of public speaking. Some of them did some form of public speaking every now and then, but they were terrified.
I bet you didn’t expect that.
It’s okay to be afraid of public speaking. It’s better to overcome it.
A study shows that people who aren’t afraid of public speaking:
- Earn 10% more than people who are afraid of public speaking
- Have 10% more chance to graduate college than people who are afraid of public speaking
- Have 15% more chance to get promoted to a management position than people who are afraid of public speaking
If these people are so successful while being afraid of public speaking.
What if they would have loved public speaking?
I know you don’t believe me when I say: ‘you can learn to love public speaking’. But hear me out. I want to share a personal story with you.
When I was 12 years’ old there was a group of kids playing soccer right across the street. When my parents suggested to go play soccer with them, I wouldn’t. I never played soccer and I thought they would laugh and yell at me.
After seeing those kids playing soccer every day, I decided to ask them if I could join. They said yes! Even though I wasn’t good (I was terrible) they appreciated the fact that I still tried it. In fact, I even got a complement from one of them, he thought I was really brave for trying!
The next day I played again. And again. And again.
I lived in that town for 7 more years, and I played soccer with them almost every day. After a while I got pretty good and I started to enjoy the game. Initially I was afraid to try it, after a while I LOVED it.
I was afraid, but they appreciated my efforts. Eventually I got better and I loved it!
The same works with public speaking.
Have you ever seen a really nervous person doing a speech? What did you do? I imagine you didn’t yell at him. Instead of being mean, you understand why he/she is afraid. Since 74% of us is afraid of public speaking, we actually feel connected to that person.
So go out there. Grab your stage.
Evolution made us afraid of public speaking. Research shows that there are a lot of benefits for those why try. Let’s stand up and expand our boundries. Let’s leave the comfort zone!
Is there an opportunity to do a pitch for your company? Do it!
Is there an opportunity to present a project to your boss? Do it!
You might be sweating the first time, but trust me, you’ll love it!
Give yourself a headstart and get The Ultimate Pitch Guide. It will help you to create the perfect pitch to convince an investor, your boss or your colleagues. Good luck!
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