Nervous about speech!?

Question

I'm a 17 year old girl. Does anyone else ever get nervous when doing a speech in front of the class @ school? I don't know if it happens more to girls than guys? Guys never seem or look as nervous. My armpits start sweating alot, I get cold hands and my heartrate increases. All this happens even when just sitting in the classroom waiting for my turn, anyone else have this happen? What do you do to relax yourself?

Answer 1

You practice -- but not so much that you sound like a tape recording..

You REALLY have to KNOW your subject. You have to know you know more about your subject than anybody else in the class... probably even the teacher.

Being tense is ok. It means you're body is getting ready to fight or run. I'd guess at this point you're thinking about running. Nope. Go into "fight" mode. You're smarter than anybody else in the room on this topic. There aren't too many questions that they can ask that will stump you. If they ask you such a question, I used to make up a 2-page bibliography or resources and reply, "That's a good question. I think it's a little complex (or off the topic, or some other lame excuse) to discuss here. (Or you can flat tell them you don't know.) I'll give you a copy of my resource list and you can check it out yourself if you like." Nobody knows everything about anything.

Answer 2

Yes, it happens to me, or used to almost every time I had to do it. I find it is much easier if I constantly practice my speech beforehand...out loud. Also, keep in mind that nearly every one gets nervous about doing a speech. There are just degrees of nervousness. You have to remind yourself to relax while doing it, breathe, slow down, look up at the audience but don't gaze at anyone in particular. Make it seem that you are making eye contact but look at foreheads or something behind the audience.

I have to give speeches/presentations all the time now as a graduate student and it is not easy for me. Some of us are just not comfortable doing it, but I don't think anyone can tell that I am nervous any more because I do the things I mentioned above. In fact, my friends tell me how confident and composed I look up on a podium.

Good luck...just keep practicing and remind yourself above all else to present to the audience a composed and confident speaker no matter how you feel inside.  

Answer 3

YES!!

that happens to me all the time..i think i might have anxiety problems

i get soo nervous..it shows for a minute or two but i usually throw a joke in my speech so people start laughing and that calms me down

by the end its like a complete tranformation from almost fainting to feeling completely natural

i'm complex like that haha