Hi everyone! I hope you all are doing well. Today, my topic is public speaking how it helped me, what it did for me, and why it is important. So, let’s start from the beginning. I was a very shy kid since school.
You could say that confidence in public speaking usually comes from school, but unfortunately, in my school, there were never any public events. This didn’t give me the confidence to speak in front of others, and no one ever tried to encourage shy kids to speak up or to help them overcome their fear of public speaking.
So, in a way, it wasn’t really anyone’s fault. They never tried, and I never moved forward in that area.
Moreover, I’m a very introverted person, and I speak very little. I only open up in front of my close people, and even then, there are only a few of themWhen I was in 12 class , my teacher called me to the board to explain a question.
Even though I knew everything, my concepts were clear, and I could explain it, I didn't go up because of a lack of confidence and fear of speaking in front of everyone..
Then I came to university, where you have to speak during presentations, vivas, and other speaking activities. At first, I was very nervous. In my third semester, we had a public speaking course where I had to give a speech in front of everyone.
I still remember my first public speaking speech I sat down and memorized it. But when it was my turn, I literally forgot my speech in front of the whole class. Luckily, I’m good at improvising, which saved me during my first speech, but my heart was racing the whole time
Our teacher told us that feeling nervous before a speech is normal behavior; if you don’t get nervous, it means you’re abnormal! 😂 After two or three speeches, I gained confidence in my public speaking skills.
After that, I never went to class with a prepared speech. I would just go and speak on the topic in the moment, which really boosted my confidence. Now, I can easily give a speech whenever the opportunity arises
Public speaking has helped me eliminate my fear of speaking in front of others. However, that doesn’t mean I’m no longer shy or that I don’t get nervous. I still feel those butterflies, but now I can confidently step up and speak in front of an audience. It has boosted my confidence and significantly reduced my stress
One thing I’ve learned is that you won’t gain confidence until you try. You need someone to help pull you out of your comfort zone when it comes to public speaking. Also, remember that the people sitting with you are not experts; they’re just like you. If you make a mistake, no one is going to laugh at you. If you understand this, public speaking becomes much easier.