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Presenting or speaking in public as you will likely have experienced

makes people nervous In fact, its one of the commonest social fears.

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1. Why do we get nervous?
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When we are faced with a dangerous or difficult situation our bodys

automatic fight or flight response kicks in, pumping adrenaline into our
bloodstream.
In its most extreme form, it produces a condition psychologists term
glossophobia where the sufferer literally freezes and cant speak.
For most of us, its thankfully not so severe. We just get any combination of
the more typical, milder symptoms:

2. How does it affect our performance?

Here, we need to consider three key questions:
A) When does your audience judge you deciding youre a good presenter
with an interesting message for them (so youve got their attention) or
vice-versa (so they switch off)?
Answer: in about the first ten to thirty seconds
B) When do nerves affect us the strongest?
Answer: in about the first thirty seconds
C) How often do speakers recover after a nervy start and fully recapture
the audiences attention?
Answer: very rarely, if ever
So, we have a crucial coincidence of the peak of a speakers nerves and
instant audience judgment together with the fact that if you dont start
well, youve lost an ideal level of audience interest and impact you will
most likely never fully recover.
With this in mind, its hardly surprising that after your presentation or
speech you might feel like
youve underperformed

not kept the audiences attention as you wanted

not had the impact you hoped for
Dan Carnegie, US author of the worldwide bestseller How to Make Friends
and Influence People, summed up these post-speaking blues very well:

3. How to deal with your nerves

So, which practical steps can you take to stop these nerves from
compromising your start and damaging your overall effectiveness and
impact as a speaker?
A) In advance
(i) Know your audience
Having a clear idea of your audiences levels of subject knowledge, relative
opinions and interests is central to giving an effective presentation.
>> Invest some time to fully consider your audience, its discrete subgroups, which of them are your proirities and how you can best tailor your
intended key messages and supporting detail to them.
A conscious awareness of who they are and how best to reach them before
you formulate your content and decide how best to deliver it will make you
more sure of yourselfand so more confident!
(ii) Structure your presentation
You know what you want to say but have you structured your slides/
information with a focus on them and not you i.e. making sure your
main messages are clearly organised, crystal clear and properly
contextualised, supported and reiterated for your intended audience?
>> Ensure your key messages and supporting information are clearly and
logically organised. This way, they are easier for you to deliver confidently.
In parallel, your audience will find them easier to follow and more engaging
meaning you will keep their attention better.
(iii) Know your material through rehearsal

Youre actually going to deliver your material/PowerPoint, so trying to

prepare yourself by simply reading it through numerous times is never
effective.
>> Rehearse your material by actually delivering it. This will help you
identify any sticking points so you can refine them as well as ensuring
youre within your allotted time budget. Equally, it allows you to work out
and practice key value-added elements such as body language, pausing and
emphasis as well as transitions between slides if youre using PowerPoint.
Remember: dont be fooled by the urban myth that some people are just
born naturally good presenters and public speakers. Yes, some people are
more suited to it by character. For this to be relevant to an excellent
performance, they will also most likely be very experienced. Above all,
however, they are simply very well rehearsed.
Case Study: for a key presentation at an annual sales conference, the
European Director of a major international company already widely
recognised as an outstanding public speaker rehearsed the full version his
45-minute presentation with my real-time coaching four times in two days.
In between each full rehearsal on stage, he spent numerous hours refining
and amending his key messages and content. A natural? Maybe. Wellrehearsed? Definitely.
(iv) Managing pre-nerves: physical and psychological
Hydrate not dehydrate - adrenalin can cause a dry mouth, which in turn
leads to having to swallow repeatedly as your mouth tries to produce saliva.
Avoid coffee, energy drinks and alcohol for at least two hours before they
compound the problem. Ensure you drink a couple of glasses of water in the
hour before your presentation. Have a glass of water with you when you
present, taking sips occasionally to keep yourself hydrated.
Use positive visualization techniques imagine that you are
delivering your presentation to an audience that is interested, enthused,
smiling, and reacting positively. Cement this positive image in your mind
and recall it right before you are ready to go on.
Remember: your audience are there and ready to follow you if you give
them reasons to do so.
Practice deep breathing adrenalin causes you to breathe shallowly. By
breathing deeply just before you present, your brain will get the oxygen it
needs and you will lower your pulse, calming you and helping provide the
platform to show your audience a measured and confident start.

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B) During your presentation

(i) Managing performance nerves 1: your opening
Smile this naturally relaxes you, sending positive chemicals through
your body and so counteracting your adrenaline. Equally, smiling like you
mean it also projects confidence to the audience.
Engage your body language dont be static. Eye contact, measured
hand gestures and planned movement e.g. repositioning yourself to the
other side of the screen during a transition between slides helps you
expend some of your nervous energy and projects confidence and control.
Manage your speed through pausing pausing regularly within and
between messages helps you moderate your speed and manage your
breathing. Remember, an ideal speed for public speaking is c.20% slower
than you would normally speak in a conversation. This is doubly important
at the start, as you want to catch and keep your audiences attention, not
lose it by nervously rushing through your opening material.
(ii) Managing performance nerves 2: throughout the
presentation
The core of managing your nerves throughout your presentation/speech are
the same as those most important at the start: i.e. using your body language
to your advantage and managing your speed through regular pausing and
breathing.
In addition, you should also consider a highly realistic but often overlooked
element:
Coping with slip ups were all human. Consequently, we will inevitably
have a few moments during our presentation when we slip up i.e.
become tongue-tied, forget what we want to say next or explain something
in an unnecessarily overcomplicated way.
When you realise youre slipping up, you get a sudden burst of adrenaline,
ironically making you more likely to follow your slip with another one!
What defines you is not if you slip up, but how quickly and smoothly you
recover from it.
Step 1: Be psychologically prepared for this happening a few times. Bear in
mind your audience will quickly forget it if you recover quickly and
confidently.
Step 2: Be prepared. Since experiencing a few of the typically observed slip
ups is predictable, you can prepare your recovery in advance.
So, what are these typical slip ups and whats the best way to deal with
them?