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How to deal with public speaking anxiety

We’ve already provided some tips and tricks on how to deal with public speaking anxiety, but there are
certain things you can work on which will have a lasting impact. With help from experts in our open steps,
we’ve put together some information about how to improve your confidence, change your mindset and
implement relaxation techniques.

Learning about these things can not only help you with your public speaking anxiety, but might benefit you
with other forms of anxiety too, like more general social anxiety. Even if you don’t explicitly suffer with
anxiety, learning these things will help you become more self-assured.

How to improve your confidence

In our open step about understanding self-confidence, Helen Kempster from Goldsmiths University
discusses how self-confidence is made up of two elements: self-efficacy and locus of control. This comes
from psychological research done by Judge, Locke and Durham in 1997, and is referred to as ‘Core Self
Evaluation’.

1. Develop self-efficacy

The first part, self-efficacy, is about the belief you have in your ability to succeed in different situations.
Three factors affect your self-efficacy, and these are direct experience, observed experience and social
persuasion.

Direct experience is about being successful or unsuccessful when you try something new, observed
experience is about watching a role model succeed or fail in something, and social persuasion refers to
praise or criticisms from other people.

All of these things can affect your self-efficacy, and therefore your self-confidence. So, if you want to be more
confident, you should take these things into account. You should be open to trying new activities and taking on
responsibilities, you should find positive role models (in friends and family, or online), and you should ask for
feedback and constructive criticisms from others.