Paddling like crazy

It was a bravado performance: a perfect audience pitch, witty, erudite and engaging. The keynote speaker and chair of a conference I recently went to seemed totally across their game.

Yet a few minutes after stepping from stage they confided in me: "I hate that. I'm aways SO nervous. Was it okay?"

You could have knocked me down with a proverbial feather. Was it okay? It was brilliant!

But not for the person actually doing it. And that's wrong. And not necessary. And definitely fixable.

For if you are representing your business, or your charity, or your family, or anything else you feel passionate about, then you should actually be doing it with pleasure and confidence - and not the collywobbles.

And that's why we run public speaking courses for professionals to help them be the leaders they are.

Loads of people won't admit to it. But it happens to us all: the fear, the rush of adrenalin, the knees going, the prickles at the back of your neck, the tremble in the voice, the dry mouth.

I should know, it's happened to me loads of times.

I've presented thousands of hours of live television, given speeches in Parliament and Strasbourg, been interviewed by the big media hitters of Sky, ITV, BBC and Panorama, hosted awards events, chaired conferences and shared a platform with a former Prime Minister.

And that's why I know the pitfalls - and how to avoid them.

In the fast-paced media world of 2020 every single business needs to be ready to face the cameras. No one is a better advert for your brand than you. Get it right and you're a hero. Get it wrong and ...

So that's why we run our bespoke speech, media training and presentation courses. I have more than a quarter of a century's experience on the front line of speechwriting and delivery - and I have made those mistakes so you don't have to.

Come and learn the tricks of the trade with us so you can stop paddling away like crazy beneath the surface, face down that imposter syndrome, smooth those feathers and let yourself just, well, just be more swan ...

Alexis Bowater is founder and Director of Bowater Communications. www.bowatercommunications.co.uk