Overcoming Fear of Public Speaking: A Personal Experience

OVERCOMING FEAR OF PUBLIC SPEAKING:

A Personal Experience

Who exactly did I think I was? Just because Rachael Romig, Senior Director of Events & Special Programs at Greater Reading Chamber Alliance, called to ask me to speak at the 2022 Women2Women Expo…I said, “YES?”

What was I, nuts?

There was certainly a moment of regret immediately after saying “yes” to Rachael’s request. Seriously, what was I thinking? I’m not a professional speaker. I see these women on YouTube TED talks; I’m certainly not one of them. I’ve been to the Women2Women Expos before and I know the caliber of talent and vetting necessary to give someone the opportunity to address the audience. And…Rachael called me?

Rachael called me because she felt I had a story to tell. Leaving my professional work and making a big change and a decision to retire at “47,” she felt I had a message that would be impactful to the female leaders attending the event. I know Rachael and I had to trust her instincts that I could do this.

First thing I did was think about a message that would impact everyone in the room, no matter their circumstance. I wanted to offer one major, easy to remember take-away for the attendees. I decided that take-away was going to be a question everyone needed to ask themselves, “What do I REALLY want?” From there, years of experience and excerpts from reading hundreds of business books helped to fill in the outline of the speech. I rehearsed and rehearsed. I’ve found that when I’m prepared, I’m not as nervous.

On the day of the event, I was shown the room. Oh my goodness! It wasn’t just a room; it was a concert hall! The room was huge! There wasn’t a thing on the stage except for a microphone and a microphone stand. I scrambled behind the curtain and down a hall where I found a chair and a table to use. I needed some accessories.

Was it an ideal set-up? From the feedback received, probably not. I was going for a comfortable, grounded, talk-show vibe (plus it was comforting to sit). I should have walked around and been more animated. I should have had slides to accommodate the quotes I used. Lessons learned!

But, for my first speaking engagement in front of 300 equals, I’ll give myself some leeway and call it a success.

After all, isn’t that how it’s supposed to work?

Get out of your comfort zone. Try something new. Learn from your failures. Tweak & repeat! 2