conquer the fears of speaking

here are some suggestions for the speaker to conquer his or her fears of speaking.

1. be prepared. there is no substitute for preparation. practice your speech, revise, and then practice again
2. pick out friendly faces to speak to. these pleasant expressions will inspire you and help you relax
3. think positive things about your content. one of my favorite thoughts is, "this information will be helpful to this audience" repeat this statement to yourself several times before you speak
4. have a great opening line that you know will grab the attention of your audience.
5. pause before you begin to speak as you make eye contact with those friendly faces
6. include a personal experience early in you speech. you are most comfortable relating a story