Building Confidence and

Overcoming Fear
Communication Skills
Saikrisshnna Manchala
What is confidence?
Confidence is the feeling you have when
you believe that you are capable of
handling a situation successfully.
You are not born with confidence!
It is something that anyone can develop.
Confidence is the framework of effective
oral communication.
What is stage fright?
Stage fright, or communication
apprehension, means that a person is afraid
to speak in public.
Surveys indicate that 80 to 90 percent of
Americans admit to feeling extremely
uncomfortable about public speaking.
A phobia is an irrational fear.
Public speaking cannot harm you! Therefore, if
you have an ongoing fear of it, then you have a
phobia, which is irrational and can be overcome!
Common Physical Symptoms of
Communication Apprehension
Upset stomach
Flushed face
Dizziness
Fast heartbeat
Shortness of breath
Excessive perspiration
Wobbly legs
Why? The body is being flooded with energy,
or adrenaline, because the person is perceiving
an emergency situation.
Why do we get stage fright?
The body is flooded with energy (adrenaline)
because we sense an emergency situation.
We dont like to be judged.
We dont think our ideas are worth listening to,
we dont think we can express our ideas well,
or we fear the audience wont like us while we
are speaking.
We dont feel prepared.
So how can we overcome a fear of
speaking?
Think your way out of
uncomfortable feelings. Let
your mind overcome your
emotions!
Perception
Perception is how you see things.
How you perceive a situation when you feel
fear is often very inaccurate.
An inaccurate perception of a situation can
cause a person to blow things out of
proportion, or make a problem seem greater
than it is.
We must learn to see things as they are
rather than how our fears might lead us to
see them.
Perception of Your Audience
You may think that your audience
automatically knows that youre nervous.
Consider this:
Studies on how well an audience perceives anxiety
should comfort nervous speakers. Researchers
have found that most report noticing little or no
anxiety in a speaker. Even when individuals are
trained to detect anxiety cues and are instructed
to look for them, there is little correlation
between their evaluations and how anxious
speakers actually felt. (Ch. 2, p. 33)
Perception of Your Speech
Consider it your opportunity to share something
meaningful (your message).
It is not a performance! No Hollywood screen
tests here!
The speech is an extension of yourself. It
exemplifies your personality, feelings, likes,
and dislikes.
The audience will not judge or
score you!
Perception of Yourself
Dont compare yourself to others.
You dont have to be perfect!
Dont equate a few mistakes with
total failure.
Mistakes are an opportunity to
learn and improve!
Self-esteem, or confidence, is the result of
discovering who you are, with all of your
strengths and weaknesses.
We are all unique and have a lot to offer one
another.
Building Confidence
Content
Organization
Notes
Friendliness
Impression
Dedication
Empathy
Newness
Conviction
Enthusiasm
Content
Have something worthwhile to say.
Do your research and develop your
content.
Use a variety of sources (books,
websites, magazines, newspapers,
interviews, etc.).
Use a variety of appeals (logical,
emotional, and ethical).
Organization
Have some type of an outline that is easy for both you
and your audience to follow.
Have a main idea, clear areas of analysis, and
supporting evidence that fits the topic.
You always need:
An introduction that leads to
A thesis statement,
Support, details, and elaboration that proves your
thesis statement,
And a conclusion that summarizes and provides an
ending appeal
Notes
Jot down your ideas in a brief, directed
(preferably outlined) form.
Note cards to guide your speech rather than a
fully written-out speech!
Avoid having too many words on one card and
having too many note cards.
Do not read to your audience!
Key words and phrases to remind you.
Notes cannot substitute for preparation!
Friendliness
Showing friendliness will encourage your
audience to give positive feedback.
Smile and use your nonverbals.
Make eye contact.
Talk to individuals (Dont view the audience as
a mass of faceless people.)

Impression
Getting off to a good start is essential in
building confidence.
Smile and be positive from the moment you
walk to the front.
Be well-dressed and
well-groomed.
Dont detract from your
message.
Dedication
Practice. Practice. Practice.
Try to simulate the real thing.
Become acquainted with your
voice and how to use it.
Practice looking at people
while delivering your speech.
Practice your gestures.
Practice movement.
Empathy
Know how it feels to feel that way.
Empathy is a sincere understanding of the
feelings, thoughts, and motives of others.
How is your audience feeling? What is
important to them?
Make an attempt to put yourself in their
shoes.
Try to find common ground with your audience.
Newness
Apply some originality.
Gives confidence to have something new to say.
Take a different approach or slant to the topic.
Use a clever anecdote,
meaningful quote, artwork,
charts or graphs, or tell a
personal story.
Conviction
Believe in what you say.
Some speech topics can be boring unless you
add your own special dimension of personal
conviction. (Create a value statement out of a
boring topic.)
If you are confident about the importance of
your message, then your audience is more likely
to be persuaded.
Enthusiasm
Get fired up!
You need energy!
Great outlet for nervous energy.
Intellectual enthusiasm comes from the
sharpness of mind that your research brings.
Physical enthusiasm comes from your energetic
nonverbal communication.