Too scared to present? You’re not alone.

According to a survey by YouGov, 49% of British adults are scared of public speaking. It’s slightly higher for women and lower for men but based on those results, if you’re looking around any room it’s likely that over half of the women and nearly 4 out of 10 of the men will not want to speak up.

Professor Patrick Winston of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology says “Your success in life will be determined largely by your ability to speak, your ability to write and the quality of your ideas, in that order.”

Assuming you agree that Professor Winston is right, and given the potential number of your colleagues who fear standing up and speaking out, if you can pluck up the courage to raise your hand or offer to present you will quickly start to be seen as different from the crowd … and more successful. Easily said … but what can you do to help yourself in that moment, as you raise your hand or walk onto the stage?

# 1 – Breath! As you wait to speak and while you speak.

While waiting to speak breath in deeply. Long breaths that reach your diaphragm – two or three of these and you will feel a difference. While you’re speaking remember to breath. This will help to slow you down and create pauses as you speak. Pauses allow your audience to take in and absorb your words so it’s important to make sure you allow that to happen.

# 2 – Stand or sit upright.

Your posture is key. It makes you look more interested and more interesting but it also has an impact on how you feel … good posture makes you feel more confident and capable as well as giving that impression to your audience.

# 3 – Smile. As you start to speak … smile.

Think of something that makes you happy so that your smile reaches your eyes. It will help keep you calm and you will come across as more personable. (If you’re delivering bad news, you don’t want it to turn into a huge grin, just a kind smile that makes you come across as more human.)

If you want more ideas to make presenting easier for you and less scary, then you can download my eBook “21 tips to better presentations” … but if all you can do are these three things you will find it starts to make a difference.

And the more you speak up the easier it will become!