A class on public speaking? Yesss.

This is going to be interesting. I can just feel it.

Don’t get me wrong. My enthusiasm for the next class is not because I love to speak in public – no. Nobody does. I am terrified of it like most people. You would expect that by now, I would have the hang of it after having done some presentations before – but no. My nerves will not let me be confident when I have to. Put me in front of colleagues and friends, and I will chat away non stop regardless of the topic. But give me a subject to present in a formal setting, that will be the death of me. My entire body chemistry is imprisoned by a state of fear and anxiety that stops me from delivering my speech. I have received tips here and there on how to overcome my nerves, but it’s easier said than done, right! We all have that thing we try to do to keep calm but, oh boy, our mind does not recognise it at that particular moment. No matter how hard I tell myself, to imagine everyone in the audience is wearing a funny mask, it does not really work. My nerves get the best of me, and I end up not even knowing what I said if I got to talk at all. I am curious to know what will be discussed in tomorrow’s lecture to make me more confident.