It’s a fact. Three out of four adults, perhaps including you, admit to having fears about public speaking.

And the upshot? Far too many people regularly avoid opportunities to speak up…

…Which, in turn, creates lose-lose outcomes – both for those who bypass chances to share valuable ideas or insights and audiences who would have benefited, if only they had heard these things.

What a waste, right? And this begs 2 obvious questions:

‘What’s going on?’ and, if this applies to you, “what can a body do about it?”

What Really Causes Public Speaking Fears?

Based on feedback from thousands of business leaders who I’ve helped to conquer these anxieties over the years, the root cause is nearly always down to ‘anticipatory fears’ about things that might go wrong and could cause them to look or sound foolish in front of people that matter to them (bosses, peers, customers, and more).

Interestingly, the extent to which you experience glossophobia (the posh term for speaking fears) can grow the more senior you become in your profession or career – a function of giving in to worries that your ability to rise up a corporate ladder could be compromised through communication fails!

And this fear of failure isn’t just a business thing. The world of entertainment has always been littered with celebrities who have been beset with stage fright, including the likes of: Adele, Barbra Streisand, Chopin, Lawrence Olivier, Stephen Fry, and on and on it goes.

But, here’s some good news. All of these leaders and luminaries have found ways to address and tackle their anxieties…And you can too.

And, with that in mind, welcome to today’s expert interview with Co-Founder of the world famous Nursery Theatre in London, Artistic Director of the Slapdash International Festival, Performer with the Maydays and Ten Thousand Million Love Stories, and Director of Impromptu Shakespeare, Jules Munns – where we chat about ideas that can help to scoot past comfort zones and jettison fear when speaking to others.

Lean in to learn secrets from the art form that is improv comedy, where you are never in control and everything you say is made up on the spot!

How to Make Fears of Public Speaking Disappear Pronto

Listen is as we discuss:

• Overcoming feelings of terror and sleepless nights before Guildhall classes
• The effects of over taxing your brain and giving in to self-criticism
• Why you mustn’t aim to ‘vanquish audiences’ to win the results you want
• How trying to get things ‘right’ can really mess with your mind
• Why you should immerse yourself in the moment when speaking instead of trying to control audience reactions or behaviours
• What you can learn from a camper van holiday in Scotland
• Why thinking “Domani alle dieci’ can liberate you from common fears
• And more

Is Public Speaking Part of Your Comfort Zone?

You don’t need me to tell you something everyone knows already – polished, confident speaking skills offer a fast-track ticket to influence in most every profession and industry.

And if you’d like to learn more about how you can hone your executive speaking to a world-class level, so you consistently create and deliver inspiring and memorable talks, contact me at eobrien@thersc.ie – I’ll be delighted to help.