I think you need to just get up there and kick-ass! Maybe you should try doing something you wouldn't normally do in public - go out and introduce yourself to 5 new people a day, other little things like that which will work towards your kick-ass presentation.
I really like that attitude as well...giving yourself a pat on the back is the best treat you could get!
Thanks for all the responses; I really really appreciate it. I don't drink so I don't think that is the right avenue for me and besides that is only a temporary solution. I hate living scared and don't want to cover up the problem only for it to come up over and over. I really want to get over it. I know everyone says the best thing to do is prepare and through experience of doing presentations I will get over it but that hasn't work. I had to do a bunch in high school but everytime I did it only got worse. I was hoping that there was some sort of medication or something. I saw someone mention Xanax and I looked it up but don't want to take something without talking to a doctor so maybe that would be the best route. I recall Ricky Williams having some sort of anxiety disorder and he had to wear his football helmet in order to do interviews but now he is completely over it. Anyone know anything about that? I remember Jim Rome asking him about it but he didn't mention what he did to get over it (probably the weed right ). Anyways, thanks for everyone's help and I will wait on the professor's reply and probably call the doctor to see what is best. Peace.
You do know that posting on an internet message board is in a way a form of speaking. Take the same attitude you have here when you post and transfer it to the classroom.
Has anyone ever tried Toastmasters? http://www.toastmasters.org/help.asp I personally haven't tried it, but supposedly it's helpful for those who want to improve their public speaking skills. For those who may not have enough opportunities to give public speeches, practicing around others going through the same thing might help.
My roommate and good friend of a few years back gave a persuasive speech in front of our intro Speech Comm. class about how to avoid getting a DWI. he gave a solid speech (about 8-10 mins long) and sat down next to me and asked me if he did a good job. i said he did great, then he leans into me and says "I'm f*cking wasted, man." I cracked up! he told me he was nervous about giving the speech, so he took 8 shots of whiskey before going to class. true story. college rules. but i know how you feel. i've got to give a 15-20 min role play for my professional selling class in 2 weeks. just me and one other person in a business-2-business buyer/seller situation. it's gonna suck, but what you got to realize (like someone else mentioned) is that everyone else in class has got to give one too. so just go up there, say f*ck it, and do your thing. it gets easy once you get going.
Good luck, Rivaldo. I'm a pretty bad public speaker, myself, but I find that you're your own worst critic. Preparation really is key. Get something ready, find a good friend, and practice on them over and over again. And if you don't have enough time to fully prepare, then just give it your best shot. Everyone in the class is in the same boat and much more interested in how they're doing than how you're doing. You said you've done it in the past. Then you know it's not the end of the world if you freeze up. But don't dwell on screwing up. Focus on having something to say. If you can, make it conversational. Don't think "I'm giving a speech." Think, I'm just sharing with people something I WANT to tell them. You can do this. You really can. You probably won't knock anyone's socks off. But you really can get up there and do this. Take my advice though; channel your stress into preparation and practice. No matter how scared you are, no matter how much you doubt yourself, you're better off even if you practice a little bit. Convince yourself that you can do it, because you CAN. Dealing with public speaking takes time. I agree you should see a counselour about dealing with anxiety. It can help you put your issues into perspective.
Another good bit of advice I have got over the years is this: Focus on what you want to happen, not on what you don't want to happen. Good luck, and lemme know how this thing goes...
I love how you troll around the BBS these days looking for ways to annoy people. Negative attention is still attention I guess...
you might have social anxiety disorder. i think they treat it temporarily with Valium but try to cure it with therapy. if you dont have this disorder or even if you do, i think you should just try to self hypnotize yourself to be confident. when you go up there in front of everyone, just tell yourslef that you are better than they are and speak loud to show them and to show yourself that you are a confident person. good luck.
Hey Rivaldo2181 - I have kinda the same problem; only mine is a small speech problem. I stutter sometimes when I talk; mostly when I get nervous, or have to speak in front of class (like give an answer or explain myself), or I just have bad days when I can't even talk at all. It used to be worse, it has kinda gotten better over the years. I don't know of any treatment except for hypnosis which I read is just temporary. I haven't had to give a speech yet in front of class but I will be taking Speech next semester. One of my fellow classmates told me the intructor to take speech with because he does his class using a ladder scheme. You do like four speeches the entire year. Your first one is front of a group of four that he chooses and you can look at your paper while doing it. Then it just gradually goes up to doing your speech in front of two groups, then three groups, then finally the whole class. I am scared just like you, but, I am determined not to let my speech problem get in the way of my degree. Most people don't even know I stutter until they talk to me for a couple of days. Like I said though, I have good days and bad days. Believe me, you are not alone.
i remember in college, cost accounting...biggest test of the year...my mind just blanked. I started freaking out inside, and I felt like I need to leave the room. What I did was after the test, I went to see a DR about it and he prescribed me PAXIL CR. It works! I was totally calm the next test. or you could take some xanax...good luck!
your green day thread banter was BS. You have no clue what PUNK ROCK IS ABOUT. quit saying stupid #hit. no offense, but... grow up. Chill out and quit being so negative.
I just found it surprising that someone who says he very literally adheres to anything that is written in that book would suggest drinking alcohol. How is expressing surprise about this trolling?
Do you need specs? If not look around for a pair with around 100 degrees. Put them on for the presentation and you won't have to worry about eye contact with the audience. Everything will appear blur to you.
