Overcome the fear of public speaking

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Leita Cowart / Special

Rob ‘Waldo’ Waldman is a professional keynote speaker and seminar leader. He ‘helps individuals and organizations maximize productivity.’

You’re the kind of critical-thinking, competent and confident nurse who is an asset to your patients and workplace. That is, until your supervisor asks you to give a presentation about your unit’s best practices at a meeting. Now, you’re a tongue-tied, quivering mass of anxiety.

The diagnosis: glossophobia, or the fear of public speaking.

It’s a common condition among people in all walks of life. Yet it’s manageable, even curable. You can become an effective communicator, whether you’re teaching a new recruit or speaking to a crowd of 500.

“People fear speaking in public because they know all eyes will be on them. The expectation is that they have to be the expert. What if they mess up? They fear being exposed and judged,” said Rob “Waldo” Waldman.

Waldman, a former Air Force fighter pilot, is a professional motivational speaker and seminar leader. He’s also past president of the National Speakers Association.

Waldman overcame claustrophobia and panic attacks at 30,000 feet to fly F-16 fighter planes and taught others how to do it.

Waldman offers useful advice on facing and overcoming the fear of public speaking.

• “Find the meaning to your mission,” Waldman said.

If you’re scared of heights or the water, you’d never dive from a 30-foot platform. If your child was screaming, “Help” below — you’d jump, he said.

“When you focus on how what you say will help your co-workers or organization, you’ll focus on serving others and how best to get the message across,” Waldman said. “If you keep the focus on yourself, you’ll be afraid.”

• Speak from the core of who you are. You don’t have to be as funny as Jay Leno or as inspiring as Billy Graham.

“People want to see what’s in your heart. There’s power in authenticity,” Waldman said. “It’s not what you say so much as how you say it and how they hear it. One of the best and easiest ways to make a point is to tell a story. People love stories, and it will humanize your communication.”

• Prepare. Know your subject, write out your thoughts and know your audience. Keep it simple [three to five talking points] and just what your audience needs to know.

“A pilot just doesn’t jump in the plane and go. He ‘chair-flies’ before every mission, going through all the procedures, contingencies and envisioning success,” Waldman said. “Preparation leads to confidence.”

• “Don’t fly solo,” Waldman said. “A pilot can’t see behind him, so he relies on his wingman to see his blind spots and call out the dangers.”

Get help and feedback from a coach, mentor or class. It also might be a good idea to join Toastmasters International, a nonprofit organization that encourages public speaking.

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