Cut the Fear - Deepstash
Master Public Speaking

Learn more about communication with this collection

How to adapt to different speaking situations

How to engage with an audience

How to use body language effectively

Master Public Speaking

Discover 54 similar ideas in

It takes just

7 mins to read

Cut the Fear

Cut the Fear

We have a tendency to hype up our fears.

Always remember: the worst case scenario really isn't that bad. No matter how it goes, you’ll be just fine. Life will move on.

Plus, the audience is generally rooting for you! They place themselves in your shoes, so they want you to do well. They're on your side.

154

782 reads

MORE IDEAS ON THIS

MARK TWAIN

There are two types of speakers: those that are nervous and those that are liars

MARK TWAIN

181

1.57K reads

Move With Purpose

Move With Purpose

Pacing around the room or stage like you're on the phone with your middle school crush isn't helpful.

Take slow, methodical, purposeful steps.

There are people who move to move—and then there are people who move with intention, who are going places.

Be the latter.

158

782 reads

Find the Anxiety Killers

Find the Anxiety Killers

There are always a few people in the audience who are prone to smiling, nodding, and engaging positively. Their positive engagement kills your anxiety.

At the beginning of your speech, scan the front of the crowd as you hit your opening lines. Identify the few people who smile, make warm ey...

169

883 reads

Play the Lava Game

Play the Lava Game

As a kid, I remember playing a game where parts of the floor are “lava” that you can't touch.

During a speech, I try to play a similar game. I think of my pockets and torso as “lava”—I can't touch them.

This simple framing forces you to get your arms away from your body, gesture broad...

166

921 reads

Slow Down to 0.75x

Slow Down to 0.75x

When we get nervous, our natural tendency is to speed up—to get to the end faster.

To fight it, think about trying to speak on 0.75x speed. It should feel almost uncomfortably slow.

Pause and breathe frequently. The best speakers take long, dramatic pauses (you’ll notice this from you...

166

858 reads

Never Self-Sabotage

Never Self-Sabotage

When you're feeling nervous or uncertain, there's a tendency to self-sabotage.

We tell the audience we're nervous, we make fun of ourselves, we make ourselves small physically by crossing our arms and creating a barrier between us and them.

Don't do this. It's okay to be vulnerable, b...

160

766 reads

Storytelling Structure

Storytelling Structure

The best public speakers don't deliver a speech—they tell a story. They take the audience on a journey.

Create a storytelling structure that is familiar and easy to follow. It's often helpful to be clear and explicit about that structure upfront.

  • First, describe the reality (“wha...

191

806 reads

Engage the Audience

Engage the Audience

There is so much pent up energy in a room—it often manifests as tension.

You can feel it as a speaker when the audience is stagnant. There’s all this potential energy that needs to be released.

You can dramatically reduce the tension in a room by creating action and movement—by conver...

163

766 reads

Study the Best

Study the Best

Identify 3-5 speakers you admire.

Go on YouTube and find videos of each one delivering a speech.

Slow down the playback speed and take notes.

Study the following:

  • Structure: How are they structuring their talk?
  • Cadence: What is the p...

193

1.06K reads

Public Speaking

Public Speaking

  • Public speaking is scary. So scary that a number of surveys and studies have found that people rank public speaking ahead of death on a list of their greatest fears.
  • It’s a critical skill sets for your career and life. Confident, powerful public speaking—whether in...

190

1.77K reads

Avoid Memorization

Avoid Memorization

When we’re nervous for a speech, toast, presentation, or talk, our bias is to memorize the content word-for-word.

We memorize in a valiant effort to avoid screwing up.

Ironically, memorization often has the opposite effect.

When you memorize material, one tiny slip-up ca...

166

1.31K reads

The Alternative To Memorization

The Alternative To Memorization

  • Focus on a few key moments. Perfect the opening line, transitions, and closing. When you nail these, you create momentum—with the audience and yourself. It instills a confidence you can build on. Manufacture these small "wins" that compound.
  • Create “lego blocks” that you can piece to...

184

1.22K reads

Strike a Power Pose

Strike a Power Pose

Executing power poses can actually create feelings of confidence and power. (The science behind this is now heavily-contested.)

Before your next talk or presentation, find a quiet place, take a few deep breaths, and raise your arms high and wide, triumphantly over your head. Speak a few pos...

167

1.01K reads

Practice Relentlessly

Practice Relentlessly

Capitalize on every opportunity to practice—both for a specific event and for the skill more broadly.

When practicing for a specific event, start by doing it in private to remove the fear. Use your phone to record and watch your performance. Then transition to practicing in front of an audi...

155

931 reads

CURATED FROM

CURATED BY

bro_kzz

Unapologetic reader and proud communicator. Coffee everyday.

The Public Speaking Guide Wwe all were asking for.

stash-superman-illustration

Explore the World’s

Best Ideas

200,000+ ideas on pretty much any topic. Created by the smartest people around & well-organized so you can explore at will.

An Idea for Everything

Explore the biggest library of insights. And we've infused it with powerful filtering tools so you can easily find what you need.

Knowledge Library

Powerful Saving & Organizational Tools

Save ideas for later reading, for personalized stashes, or for remembering it later.

# Personal Growth

Take Your Ideas

Anywhere

Organize your ideas & listen on the go. And with Pro, there are no limits.

Listen on the go

Just press play and we take care of the words.

Never worry about spotty connections

No Internet access? No problem. Within the mobile app, all your ideas are available, even when offline.

Get Organized with Stashes

Ideas for your next work project? Quotes that inspire you? Put them in the right place so you never lose them.

Join

2 Million Stashers

4.8

5,740 Reviews

App Store

4.7

72,690 Reviews

Google Play

samz905

Don’t look further if you love learning new things. A refreshing concept that provides quick ideas for busy thought leaders.

Sean Green

Great interesting short snippets of informative articles. Highly recommended to anyone who loves information and lacks patience.

Shankul Varada

Best app ever! You heard it right. This app has helped me get back on my quest to get things done while equipping myself with knowledge everyday.

Ashley Anthony

This app is LOADED with RELEVANT, HELPFUL, AND EDUCATIONAL material. It is creatively intellectual, yet minimal enough to not overstimulate and create a learning block. I am exceptionally impressed with this app!

Ghazala Begum

Even five minutes a day will improve your thinking. I've come across new ideas and learnt to improve existing ways to become more motivated, confident and happier.

Jamyson Haug

Great for quick bits of information and interesting ideas around whatever topics you are interested in. Visually, it looks great as well.

Giovanna Scalzone

Brilliant. It feels fresh and encouraging. So many interesting pieces of information that are just enough to absorb and apply. So happy I found this.

Laetitia Berton

I have only been using it for a few days now, but I have found answers to questions I had never consciously formulated, or to problems I face everyday at work or at home. I wish I had found this earlier, highly recommended!

Read & Learn

20x Faster

without
deepstash

with
deepstash

with

deepstash

Access to 200,000+ ideas

Access to the mobile app

Unlimited idea saving & library

Unlimited history

Unlimited listening to ideas

Downloading & offline access

Personalized recommendations

Supercharge your mind with one idea per day

Enter your email and spend 1 minute every day to learn something new.

Email

I agree to receive email updates