Written by: Hannah Kim
Artwork by: Isabella Kim
Speaking up is hard—especially in front of a large crowd. Your palms get sweaty and your voice trembles as you try to ignore the dozens of pairs of eyes boring into you. I’m sure you and many others have had a similar experience. And I bet that as much as you want to avoid speaking in front of people, life always manages to put you in that situation. But we also know that being anxious is not gonna help, so here are some tips on how you can speak more confidently in front of people.
What are you afraid of?
To be able to overcome your fear, you must first know what your fear is. You may be afraid of being judged by the audience. Or you may be afraid of making a mistake and humiliating yourself. Whatever your reason may be, you should be willing to accept it first in order to improve. If you’re not too sure, ask yourself several questions. What if you had a script with you? Would you still be worried about saying something wrong? If you remained anonymous to the audience, would you still feel nervous? By imagining various scenarios and putting yourself in them, you may be able to discover what your fear is more easily.
Know that your voice has an impact
The next important factor is to know how impactful your opinion can be. It is common for a lot of people to stay silent in group discussions, for instance, despite having an insightful thought because they disregard their own ideas and assume others must’ve already thought of them. Such habit only lowers your confidence and prevents you from talking even more in the future. Whatever idea you have, no matter how wild or unrealistic you think it is, say it. Because you never know what new insights people may be able to gain from your contribution and start a discussion on a topic that you initiated.
Practice makes perfect
Once you know what you are afraid of and have boosted your confidence level, try practicing on various levels. Famous examples include presenting in front of your stuffed animals or family members. Other methods also include voicing your opinion more often in every day conversation or being nice to everyone.
Change won’t happen immediately. For some, it may even take years to just get used to being on the stage. However, the changes will come eventually and you just have to be patient. Don’t blame yourself when you don’t think you’re making any progress. Everyone is going at their own pace and there is no need for you to feel pressured to follow them.
Works Cited
Caprino, Kathy. “5 Steps to Speaking up Powerfully When You Feel You Can't.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 18 May 2018, https://www.forbes.com/sites/kathycaprino/2018/05/16/5-steps-to-speaking-up-powerfully-when-you-feel-you-cant/?sh=1bc9dcfe6517.
Chaudhuri, Anita, et al. “How to Speak up for Yourself.” Psychologies, 14 Apr. 2022, https://www.psychologies.co.uk/how-to-speak-up-for-yourself/.
McDonald, Vanessa. “6 Reasons Why You Should Have the Courage to Speak up Right Now.” LinkedIn, LinkedIn, 5 Feb. 2021, https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/6-reasons-why-you-should-have-courage-speak-up-right-now-mcdonald.
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