1. A POCKET GUIDE TO PUBLIC SPEAKING 5TH EDITION Chapter 3
Managing Speech Anxiety

2. Identify What Makes You Anxious
Public-speaking anxiety (PSA)
Fear or anxiety
Associated with actual or anticipated communication to audience as speaker
Identify what makes you anxious.
Can help lessen your fear

3. Lack of Positive Experience
Speech anxiety can be caused by
Lack of exposure to public speaking;
Unpleasant public speaking experiences.
Gaining experience helps you overcome anxiety.

4. Feeling Different Common causes of speech anxiety
Feeling alone
Feeling sensitive about personal idiosyncrasies
Fear that no one is interested
Everyone is different in many ways.
Nearly everyone experiences nervousness.

5. Being the Center of Attention
Audience behaviors causing speech anxiety
Lack of making eye contact
Conversing with a neighbor
Self-consciousness can make you feel conspicuous.
Audiences often notice only what we reveal.

6. Pinpoint the Onset of Anxiety
Anxiety can strike at different times.
Anxiety may cause procrastination or poor performance.
Identify the first onset of nervousness.
Allows you to address it promptly with specific anxiety-reducing techniques

7. Pre-Preparation Anxiety
Consequences
Reluctance to begin planning
Preoccupation with anxiety
Missing vital information about the speech
Address anxiety early with stress-reducing techniques.

8. Preparation Anxiety Produces a cycle of
Stress;
Procrastination;
Outright avoidance.
Take short breaks to regain confidence.

9. Pre-Performance Anxiety
May occur while rehearsing the speech
Can cause you to stop rehearsing

10. Pre-Performance Anxiety (cont.)
Use the anxiety stop-time technique.
Allow anxiety to present itself.
Wait a few minutes.
Declare time for confidence to step in.
Proceed.

11. Performance Anxiety May occur as the speech begins
Control nervousness during the introduction.
Rest of the speech comes easily
Manage anxiety.
Don’t let anxiety manage you.

12. Use Proven Strategies to Build Your Confidence
Many strategies can help reduce fears.
Thoroughly plan for each presentation.

13. Prepare and Practice Begin preparing as soon as possible.
Rehearse your speech several times.

14. Modify Thoughts and Attitudes
Have a positive attitude.
Envision your speech as
Valuable;
Worthwhile;
Challenging;
An opportunity for personal growth.

15. Visualize Success Visualization helps reduce nervousness.
Close your eyes.
Picture the day of your speech.
Visualize positive feelings and reactions.

16. Activate the Relaxation Response
“Fight or flight” response
Rapid heart rate and breathing
Dry mouth and faintness
Freezing up
Relaxation response counteracts these sensations.

17. Activate the Relaxation Response (cont.)
Briefly meditate.
Relax your muscles and breathe slowly.
Repeat a word or phrase.
Use stress-control breathing.
Inhale; let your abdomen go out.
Exhale; let your abdomen go in.

18. Use Movement to Minimize Anxiety
Practice natural gestures used while speaking.
Example: Hold up your index finger.
Move as you speak.
Relieves tension
Helps hold audience’s attention

19. Learn from Feedback Welcome feedback.
Opportunity to do better next time
Pay attention to objective evaluations.
Feedback is meant to help you.