Public Speaking: Fear at its Finest
The day when I spot a big, black, hairy spider and refrain from screaming will most likely never come. But, the day when I am one hundred percent confident to give a public speech is somewhere in the near future. How do I know this? Through my public speaking course this semester, I completed an anxiety survey. Although I was already aware that I have a slight fear of public communication, this self-examination revealed to me my speaking apprehension score that was labeled with a specific level of anxiety. Not only, though, was I faced with a given intensity of anxiety, I was learning things about myself that I never thought I would obtain such an insight to.
Moderate: the level at which my public speaking apprehension score happened to fall. I recognized right away that I wasn’t necessarily in the higher or lower range. This assisted me in looking at the glass as half full, which happens to be an obligation if I plan to eliminate this category of anxiety from my life. As I sat and thought about my score, it hit me that I over emphasized my partial fear of publicly speaking in front of large groups of people. What I thought was going to be the end of the world was really just normal amounts of tension, stress, and anxiety that I was way too easily letting get to me. Seeing these results brought to my attention strengths that can assist my in kicking public speaking anxiety: I radiate optimism, am smart and energetic, and I have confidence with every other task I face in day-to-day situations.
Confidence seems to occur naturally day, but it is only present nearly half of the time when it comes to my presenting of a public speech. I am a firm believer in “practice makes perfect”; therefore, applying this concept to my public speaking can help me to eliminate existing anxiety. The self-assurance I take on in life can