What is Glossophobia???????

Glossophobia or Speech Anxiety is the FEAR OF PUBLIC SPEAKING.

It is the most common problem but worst fear ahead of death, spiders and even heights.

Did you know The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that more than 73% of the population have some level of anxiety when it comes to speaking in public?It can range from slight nervousness to paralyzing fear and panic.

A person with fear of public speaking is unable to control their nerves and has an extremely strong fear, sometimes to the point of a nervous breakdown. With this can come uncontrollable trembling, sweating and a racing heartbeat.

When faced with such situations, many people experience the fight-or-flight response. It’s the body’s natural way of preparing to defend itself against perceived threats and in this regard it leads to going blank or even brain freeze.

This applies to all types of communication regardless of the number of listeners. Even the thought of group activities and presentations can trigger these symptoms like worrying what people will think of us, what if we stumble over our words, worrying if we forget what we have to say. The thought of audience attention while standing in a spot light feels like judgement and rejection.

From your personal life to job interviews, from team meetings to taking up leadership roles, to running your own business, these days many activities in life require speaking in public or to groups of people. Not being able to do this effectively could cause you to lose out on many opportunities only because speech anxiety takes control of your life.

Avoidance of what frightens you makes it a bigger problem in your mind. But if you wish to be successful in your career or your personal life, you should be able to take a step forward to work on yourself.

Preparation for what you have to convey and how you convey is the first necessary step to get confident to communicate your ideas effectively.

So Public Speaking is all about building confidence by facing your fears to speak boldly in front of an audience.

Remember the quote by Brian Tracy that says “It is not the failure itself that holds you back, but it is the fear of failure that paralyzes you.”

- Brian Tracy is a Canadian-American Motivational Public Speaker and Self-development Author.