Fear of Public Speaking

While I may not be terrified of public speaking, I am not as comfortable as I would like to be when it comes to getting up in front of a room full of strangers. What do I do about it? I practice at Toastmasters.

Why did I choose Toastmasters? Well it has been around for a long time and is quite established as a leader in the field of training public speakers. I also hoped to do some networking and get to know some new and different people.

I have achieved all of that. I get to practice my public speaking in front of a group of "strangers" (now becoming friends) and get lots of encouragement,support and constructive criticism. I get to network and I get to meet a large amount of people from diverse age ranges, cultural backgrounds and interests. It's great!

As the Toastmaster this evening I got to practice running a meeting, keeping it on track while still creating a comfortable space for everyone participating as well as the guests visiting. Each time I get up and speak I feel a little more comfortable and I encourage anyone who needs to speak publicly but does not enjoy it to give it a whirl.