Last night was our local DSWA Chapter Meeting and we had the pleasure of hearing Nancy Tierney from Unconditional Confidence who spoke to us about public speaking. She was a fantastic speaker - lively, funny, confident… She shared with us some “secrets” to speaking with confidence including that you “can’t care a rip what anyone thinks of you!”

This is something I really struggle with. I worry about my hair, my tummy bulges,that I don’t have the right shoes or clothes, or that maybe I’ll just “look bad” or make a fool of myself. For one thing, as Nancy said, what other people think of you is none of your business! They are their thoughts, and chances are you will never know what they are thinking, and even if you did, there isn’t anything you can do about it! Wow, that really shifted my perspective. She said to be who you are anyway - make your message MORE important than your fears. Hmmmm…

Another thing that was really liberating was she said it is OK to completely be yourself when public speaking. Talk the way you talk. Be the way you are. Don’t change anything because you think you should do it the way someone else does it! Just talk. Just be. Just share. Just care. I love it! I do feel like I’m not “good enough” just the way I am so I do try to “fake it” sometimes. What’s wrong with just being me?

I also liked her suggestion to HAVE FUN. Think of your presentation and find a way to make it fun for YOU. What can you do to make your talk outrageously fun?! I started thinking of things I could do at my trainings or meetings to add some pizazz and make it fun for ME, which will in turn be fun for the guests. Standing up and lecturing isn’t fun to me. Getting people sharing, talking, and then sharing from my heart about how the topic can make a difference is what moves me.

Nancy has several CDs and coaches people about public speaking. If you need help in this area, I really recommend her! She was so great, so personable, so engaging, and really hit the nail on the head for so many people at our meeting. I can’t wait to try out my new approach!