Overcome Your Fear of Class Presentations
For many people, giving a class presentation is the absolute worst part of school. Standing in front of everyone is hard enough, let alone trying to remember your points and staying on topic. Some people even list their fear of public speaking as worse than their fear of death!
But according to experts, most people’s fear of public speaking doesn’t come from the act itself, but from worries about the disapproval of others, or fear of not knowing enough about the chosen topic. Think about what scares you the most about presenting, and then it’ll be easier for you to isolate that issue and work through it. Talk to a friend about the fear that underlines your hatred for presentations—and remember, it’s probably not what you originally thought it would be.
There are also ways you can organize your presentation so that you feel comfortable when you get up in front of the class. Eliminate tricky statistics and specifics that you might forget and fumble over, or if they’re necessary, just include them in your slides.
Opening the presentation with a personal story or example also helps many people. Since it’s familiar territory, you can convey it just like you would if you were chatting with a friend. And don’t obsess over memorizing every single phrase in their exact order or you’ll be more likely to mess up and get flustered. Get comfortable with the presentation’s main points, and then follow an outline or your slides to stay on-point.
If you’ve prepared properly and you’re still nervous, don’t fret! Everyone knows how stressful it can be in the hot seat, so there’s no need to mask your nerves. Take a few deep breaths before you get up there and take your time to stay calm.
At Homework Help Canada, we offer speech writing and PowerPoint presentation/creation so that you can be sure your material is well written and on topic. Our team of experts has years of experience putting together the best presentations for class assignments of all grade levels. Leave the grunt work to us so you can focus on getting comfortable at the podium.
References:
Adams, S. (2012, March 7). Why Public Speaking Scares You and How to Overcome Your Fear. Retrieved August 31, 2015, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/susanadams/2012/03/07/why-public-speaking-scares-you-and-how-to-overcome-your-fears/