Is fear of speaking in front an audience holding you back? This may help
Have you ever let that inner voice convince you that you’re not good enough, that you should stay in the safety of your comfort zone and definitely not say yes to that opportunity to speak in front of an audience?
Well, international keynote speaker and leadership expert Nicole Hatherly says it’s time to put that inner critic to rest.
The leadership expert and global brand strategist is used to speaking in front of crowds of thousands but it hasn’t always been this way.
Just ten years ago, she could barely speak in front of anyone.
“I was petrified,” she tells Women’s Agenda.
“And I knew that was holding me back in my career.”
Today, Hatherly runs masterclasses and workshops with some of the biggest organisations helping people break through their fears around public speaking.
So how did she go from there to now?
Well, Hatherly says it comes down to this.
“We can sit under the radar or we can play it small and safe but we know we need to be visible, we need to be vocal and we need to be really strategic as well about how we present ourselves and how we present our expertise."
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Unlike a business, she says a brand is about perception: how clients view you and your venture.
“It’s the glue that connects humans to you,” she explains.
“It’s the feelings, emotions, connections and desires that people associate with your product or service.
"Often women will be less confident sharing that success. They will be less confident in standing up, standing out and shining.
"That hesitation comes from societal conditioning.”
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Is your inner voice telling the truth?
The next key issue is fear of judgement.
Something Hatherly has gradually overcome by asking this powerful question: is what my inner voice saying true?
“The truth is we will be judged,” Hatherly says.
“If we’re going to be judged, let’s have our authentic words that we want to use to express ourselves in the right order and feeling like we’re comfortable enough.
"That feeling of being judged starts dissipating when we’re more in control of our narrative.”
Nicole Hatherly shares more ideas to quieten that inner voice on Women’s Agenda.
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Author Mentor and Editor | Non-fiction writing coach | Marketer
1 个月So true! I think you can know your values and act confidently without worry - as most people in the audience are wondering about how they will do it, they are not judging your speaking. (Except for that one dude at the back who wants the secret sauce)