Building Confidence Through Action

Ahead of acting as MC for the inaugural Crypto Bahamas that kicks off tonight, I wanted to say a few words about becoming a more confident speaker….

Strong public speaking skills can help you get a job, a promotion, or raise awareness for your business. However the fear of public speaking – glossophobia - is among the world's top phobias. Almost 10% of young adults in the United States have glossophobia, defined as an intense fear of being watched and judged by others. As a television host, I had no problems presenting on camera, but speaking in front of a live audience was far more intimidating.

So how exactly do you build confidence and become a better public speaker? It’s very simple - you just have to start. You don’t need to be great to start, but do you do need to start in order to be great. The more you push yourself to speak in front of others, the better you'll become, and the more confidence you'll have.

After leaving the BBC and moving into a career in finance, I had my first Middle East speaking role when the host for a Treasury event pulled out at the last minute. I had been thinking that very morning about how to improve my public speaking skills further, so I decided not to ignore the signs from the Universe, and just went for it. I would objectively say I was average, but it was a start, and in a topic where I knew I could add value.

Action that begets courage, not the other way around. The more we do something, the better we become, the stronger we feel, and the more confident we become. You?get?my point.

It is important to note that I do not relegate feelings, emotions and thinking. Positive thinking can make a huge difference to the success of your communication. Fear on the other hand makes it easy to slip into a cycle of negative self-talk. Self-sabotaging yourself will never make you achieve what you truly are capable of… and obviously this doesn’t just apply to public speaking.

A technique that I use that really helps me, is focusing on the things that I am good at and building on those first, before moving on to the areas that I have to improve. That way I’m starting from a place with confidence. I write down a list of the things I am good at, and what parts of an event that I am proud of and want to use again. In a second step I look at people that I admire and note down which things I would like to incorporate or learn.??

One of the interesting side effects of the pandemic is that many of us have gotten less used to social interaction. Even extreme extroverts have reported they find themselves feeling nervous about going back to the office and interacting with others. As an extroverted introvert (yes, there is such a thing!), public speaking has helped improve my confidence, and I’m equally passionate about helping others do the same.

The Speakeasy Club is a collaboration project between myself and Kat Hicker, born out of a passion for public speaking and helping people improve both their skills and confidence, leading to enhanced career performance. It is the first ever platform in the UAE to empower individuals to hone leadership-level speaking skills online.?

Our first course – The Public Speaking Masterclass - covers situations from speaking on stage, to presenting in a meeting, to handling audience questions. While not specifically designed for women, we appreciate that women are often judged by different parameters than men, and our course gives a full 360 approach – from mindfulness and body language, through to what to eat for optimal performance and of course, the “performance” itself.

If you want to be able to speak with authority, to speak with confidence, to speak with authenticity… sign up for the Speakeasy Club’s Public Speaking Masterclass today!