BNI Explains How to Conquer the Paralyzing Fear of Public Speaking

Dr. Ivan Misner, Founder and Chairman of BNI, the world's largest business networking organization, gives five suggestions to help you overcome the fear of public speaking -- a fear which many surveys have shown is ranked higher by some people than the fear of dying.

Upland, CA (PRWEB) April 1, 2008

Many people who are great in one-on-one situations may still be paralyzed by the process of getting up in front of a group of people and speaking. "This is understandable," says Dr. Ivan Misner, "standing and talking to an audience can be frightening, especially if it's for more than a couple minutes; but there are steps you can take to overcome this fear and give successful presentations!"

Here are five suggestions that Dr. Misner gives for people who are nervous doing presentations at networking groups or anywhere else:

  • Prepare, prepare, prepare! Don't wing it! Prepare an outline of what you want to say and practice it.
  • Be specific and talk about the things you know best. Don't try to teach people everything you do. Focus on no more than two or three areas of what you want them to learn about. Most importantly, cover the topics you feel you understand the best. This will reduce some of your stress.
  • Use handouts, visuals or PowerPoint slides to support your presentation. For people who are worried about stage fright, these props can help carry them through the talk.
  • Remember, you're the expert. Think about ways that help show that and are not threatening for you.
  • Be creative. Think of some way to communicate the information in a way you feel comfortable.

The bottom line is this: You should do a presentation that you feel comfortable with. Think creatively about what you know and what you feel comfortable doing to express that knowledge. You'll discover that you don't have to pass up the opportunity to talk to your audience longer.

Misner provided these tips in his monthly column for Entrepreneur.com (the online home of Entrepreneur Magazine). Read the whole story online at: http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/marketingideas/networkingcolumnistivanmisner/article57354.html

Questions? Call Dr. Ivan Misner at BNI Headquarters in the USA at 1-909-608-7575.

BNI (http://www.bni.com) is the world's largest business networking organization, with more than 5,000 chapters in 37 countries worldwide. BNI's Founder & Chairman, Dr. Ivan Misner is the author of several books including Masters of Sales, the latest addition to his bestselling Masters Series (http://www.Mastersbooks.com), and the #1 best-seller, Truth or Delusion -- Busting Networking's Biggest Myths (http://www.TruthorDelusion.com). He is also the Senior Partner for the Referral Institute (http://www.referralinstitute.com), a referral training company with operations around the world.

Contact:
Michael R. Drew
Phone: 512-858-0040
Fax: 512-857-9428
16208 Crystal Hills Drive
Austin, TX 78737-9009
Erin Mellinger
1-800-825-8286

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