Warren Buffet said the easiest way to add 50% to your market value was to learn how to speak in public. To mark International Small Business Day, here are 4 reasons why people find it hard to Stand up and Speak about their business – and how to solve them!

1, You’re talking rubbish

One of the reasons we can dislike public speaking is: you remember a time when you were giving a presentation or talk and you suddenly realise that what you were saying is rubbish. It’s boring, it doesn’t make sense: it has no structure or anything remotely entertaining in it.  The audience is clearly bored and you’re even bored speaking it.   It’s certainly happened to me – on more than one occasion! This memory may cause you to conclude that you are rubbish at public speaking.  However, the problem is not the speaking, it is the writing.

Great speaking starts with great writing

You can’t give a great speech until you can write a great speech.  Learning how to craft a great speech will make your speaking and presenting a lot more enjoyable – both for you and your audience!  When you know that what you are about to say is well thought out, nicely structured, entertaining even – this will boost your confidence and ensure your audience listens to what you have to say.

2, Your audience can’t hear you

When I teach public speaking and presenting, the first question I ask is: who is in your audience? Understanding who you are talking to is essential if you want your message to be heard.  It’s easy to forget that the ideas and concepts that we deal with every day in our business are not necessarily known or understood in the same way by our potential audience.  When you say – “I provide servers for hotels” are you talking about computers or waiting staff?

If your business has a technical side to it – are you careful to explain acronyms and working assumptions in a way that is relevant to the audience in front of you.  I’m sure you can imagine how speaking about your business to industry peers is different to speaking to potential clients for the first time when you explain what you do and how you do it.  If your presentation is full of ideas and terminology that the audience does not understand or mis-understands then they won’t be able to hear and understand your message.

When you speak with clarity, then your audience can hear your message. Speaking with clarity requires adjusting your message to suit your audience

3, Your audience doesn’t believe you

Many of the people who attend my courses or become coaching clients, at least half, want to increase their confidence when speaking in public and presenting.  For many, it has been something they have struggled with for many years and fear of public speaking has held back their careers and added stress and worry to their lives.

They are not alone. Around 75% of all people suffer from a fear of public speaking (glossophobia) at some point in their lives. It is the world’s number 1 social anxiety disorder.

When we are uncomfortable when we stand up and speak, it shows up in our voice, our body language and even choice of words.  This discomfort can be picked up by the audience who begin to feel uncomfortable themselves.

Human beings are fundamentally good and honest- our bodies get stressed when we do things that we know to be wrong, like telling lies.  This is how lie detectors work – they spot the subtle stress signs when the subject speaks a lie.  The most common source of subtle stress and discomfort in people is when they are saying something they know to be untrue or don’t believe in.

The problem when we exhibit discomfort when speaking in public is: the audience’s subconscious is going to interpret this as the subtle signs that we are lying or do not believe the words we are speaking.  In order words, the audience won’t believe you because your subconscious body language is saying that you are lying or deceiving the audience.

The audience has to believe in you before they will believe in your message.  When you speak with confidence your audience will believe your message.

4, Your audience doesn’t like you

Every time we stand up and speak, we are selling something: a product or service, an idea or ourselves.   The human brain makes decisions in the emotional centre, not the logical part.  This means we make decisions based on emotion and then justify them with logic afterwards. If you want to move your audience to make a decision to buy the thing you are selling, you will need to engage their emotions as well as their logical side.

People buy from people, so no matter how good your idea or product, no matter how compelling your social cause – the audience will not be moved to take action unless they first get to know like and trust you.  You do this by sharing personal stories – of your failures as well as what those failures taught you, which takes courage.  When you speak with courage, your audience will respond to your message.

If you want to master how to speak with clarity, confidence and courage – to learn how to craft presentation and speeches that are engaging and even entertaining then my Online Speakers Masterclass could be just what you are looking for.

The Online Speakers Masterclass consists of 4 live online video lessons which will teach you all the theory and give you loads of practical tips and tools you can use every time you want to stand up and speak.  Over the 4 weeks you will develop a 30 minute presentation about a topic of your choice and receive ongoing coaching and feedback to help you perfect it.

Learn more and sign up for the next class here:www.malmesburyspeakers.com/online

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