Get over your fear of public speaking. How to overcome the fear of public speaking

You are the center of attention. The mere thought of this gives you arms, legs, voice, memory. You forget the words, your fingers lose their mobility, your teeth chatter, your legs give way and tremble...

Are you familiar with this situation? There is a concert ahead, your report on the work done, and in six months you begin to worry about how everything will go. Your hands are already getting cold and your breath is taken away at the mere thought that you will find yourself on stage. Because when you go to it, you seem to fall into a parallel reality, where you hear only the loud beating of your own heart and, like a somnambulist, move towards your Calvary.

Everything else seems unreal. Sounds seem to be stuck in a dense fog. Everything floats before my eyes, as in a nightmare. Bright light blinds you lighting fixtures and there, in the black hole auditorium, sit those whom you fear the most - the audience. You try not to look there, but you know that they will listen and look only at you. You are the center of attention. The mere thought of this gives you arms, legs, voice, memory. You forget the words, your fingers lose their mobility, your teeth chatter, your legs give way and tremble.

All! You are already embarrassed because everyone has seen how scared you are. You have not done anything yet, but you are already ashamed, because you are not up to par, you are not perfect, not perfect. And if you also made a mistake, then this is a shame for the rest of your life! You will never take the stage again. You can no longer tell people what was so important to them. You cannot awaken their hearts with a poem, music, or fiery speech. You will not fulfill your destiny in this life.

Fear that hinders realization

stage fright and public speaking- it is not joke. This is a cross on the realization of talent. And what can be more important for a person than the realization of their properties? After all, only this gives him an incomparable feeling of happiness and pleasure from life. Refusing to realize is the same as not living.

When people experience stage fright, they often rationalize that "if I can't do it, then it's not for me." But for some reason, you still want to be there, to experience a crazy uplift from everyone's attention and the gratitude that follows the performance, which can be expressed in different ways - in the form of flowers, admiration for talent, respect. In the end, you want to feel that life has not been lived in vain, that everything that fills you can be shared with other people.

We live among people and, one way or another, we must be able to be in the center of attention, to convey our thoughts to those around us. We can say that to some extent all life is a stage. Therefore, the problem of fear of public speaking for many people becomes a real stumbling block. Can you help in this case? System-vector psychology of Yuri Burlan claims that this is possible.

Emotional in and out

System-vector psychology says that there are eight vectors - sets of innate mental properties of a person that determine his desires and abilities. As system-vector psychology explains, first of all, stage fright is characteristic of people with. This is very emotional people, extroverts, who, moreover, in certain states are very fond of showing themselves, have a tendency to publicity, demonstrativeness. That is, these are just the people who proper development of their properties, they feel most organically on stage, perform with pleasure, relaxed, freely, infecting the audience with their emotions, awakening empathy in them.

However, visual vector properties may not be developed in childhood. This means that a child with a rich emotional potential has not been taught to bring his emotions out, to show his feelings. For example, the visual boy was forbidden to cry because "men don't cry." Or the parents simply did not have time to pay attention to the child, while the little spectator needs him especially much, much more than other children. He definitely needs to express his emotions, and his parents have no time. Situations are different, but the result is always the same - clogging of emotions inside.

Possessing a huge emotional amplitude, visual people often fall into its extreme states - the experience of incredible love at one end and the fear of death at the other. The latter has a root in our collective unconscious. The skin-visual woman was the day guard of the ancient human pack. She was the first with her keen eyesight to notice a lurking predator in the savannah and was frightened, releasing fear pheromones. The strongest fear of death, which only this woman with great sensual potential could experience, saved the life of the pack. Then he was justified, but even now he is still present in the psyche of visual people.

Spectators are born with the fear of death, and this, in turn, is the cause of many other fears, including stage fright. The development of feelings, bringing them out to other people helps to get rid of this fundamental fear, and at the same time from all other fears at once.

It is useless to persuade yourself and imagine that pumpkins are sitting in the hall instead of people. It is useless to beat the thresholds of public speaking courses, trying to get rid of the numbness that seizes you at the sight of the audience by regular training. You need to realize your properties and learn how to direct them in the right direction. Stage fright disappears as soon as you manage to forget about yourself and focus your feelings on those for whom they are intended - on the audience.

I look like?

There is another factor that prevents visual people from feeling free on stage - this is obsession with their own appearance. They can look in the mirror for a long time. They are driven to despair by a small pimple on their nose. Having planted a stain on their clothes, they make their way "along the wall" so that someone does not notice that something is wrong with them. Wrinkled trousers, ruined hair, dirty shoes cause them a feeling of physical discomfort. Imagine now that the trembling hands of such a person, deathly pallor and wobbly legs are seen by dozens of people. This is horror!

But most often, failures associated with fixation on how he looks appear in a person in the presence of an anal-visual bundle of vectors. As Yury Burlan's Systemic Vector Psychology says, it contributes to the fact that a person wants to see himself as perfect, without flaws and shortcomings, and also for other people to see him like that. This is how anal perfectionism manifests itself, the desire for perfection.

The scene often exposes the inner clamps of a person. A person loses his naturalness, so he does not always look attractive. And for a person with an anal vector, this can be very difficult to accept. Rarely does he manage to forgive himself for moments of shame. And although from the point of view of the audience there may not be shame (it happens that they do not notice that a person is very worried), but the visual vector of a person has already painted everything that happens in the darkest colors. The speaker is already sure that he was hopelessly bad on stage. Everything is lost! Finita la comedy! Spectators are big dreamers, inclined to "make an elephant out of a fly."

Trapped in bad experiences

An anal-visual person who has made a mistake on the stage at least once in a state of strong visual exaltation may never again appear on it. He will long experience his own failure, to the point that he will try to cut ties with people who saw his shame. In a visual way, he will dramatize the situation. Anally constantly replaying your failure in your head, unable to forgive yourself for what happened. There are prerequisites for this - an anal person has a very good memory, but, unfortunately, he remembers not only good, but also bad for a long time.

A bad experience can become a guide for him in life, and he will forever put an end to what he did not succeed once.

Fear of disgrace

There is another category of people who fundamentally do not want to take the risk of performing on stage. These are purely anal people. Performing on stage is not included in the scope of their desires. They are introverted and much more comfortable at home, with family, or doing meticulous, precise work, rather than under the spotlight. They don't rush to the stage. She is stressful for them. And in stress, the anal person can fall into a stupor, up to the inability to move (when the arms and legs fail). But being a scientist, analyst, teacher, he is sometimes forced to speak to the public. And here he can also be hindered by his native fear of disgrace, the nature of which is revealed by the Systemic Vector Psychology of Yuri Burlan.

Stress causes such a person to contract all the sphincters in the body. It is the anal person who, from stress, loses his voice on stage, as the throat sphincter is compressed. But the most sensitive area suffers the most - the anal sphincter. Therefore, a state of prolonged stress leads to constipation in such a person. But sudden stress can lead to loss of control over the anal sphincter and cause diarrhea. This does not always happen, but subconsciously the anal person is always afraid of this, afraid of embarrassing himself.

Our properties are given to us for happiness

Nature does not create defect. It is we, by the wrong use of our properties, that turn our life into continuous suffering. Simply because we do not understand why we are created this way and why certain qualities are invested in us. The system-vector psychology of Yuri Burlan allows us to better understand ourselves.

We begin to see that our emotions have two poles - fear and developed sensuality, love. And in order not to be afraid, one must love. And not yourself, but another person. We are aware that the anal vector is given to us to transfer experience to the next generations, to perform high-quality and necessary work for society. Therefore, the memory of people with an anal vector is good, and perfectionism comes into play.

And this awareness is priceless, because it changes life guidelines, and bad states, including any fears, go away gently and naturally. So that we do not even notice how we have become different. Don't believe? Read testimonials from those who have completed the course:

“I’ll start with the fact that the fears that really interfered with life gradually began to go away! Many thanks to Yuri for this invaluable knowledge! In particular, the fear of public speaking decreased, and she began to feel freer on stage. The vision of the world has changed dramatically, I begin to feel people not as before (through the prism of my beliefs), but I truly understand the motives of their actions! It's incredible!

If the fear of public speaking bothers you, start by getting to know yourself at Yuri Burlan's free introductory online lectures on Systemic Vector Psychology. You can register for them using this link:

public speech - common cause trembling in the knees and horror. People are sure that anxiety before such a performance visits shy individuals. But in fact, everyone goes through such feelings. Even seasoned speakers get nervous when they have a presentation with new topic and unfamiliar audiences.

Strange as it may sound, this fear is the most popular phobia on the planet. Everyone felt anxiety when delivering a report, a toast, a speech, or even a poem at a creative evening. Depending on the audience, the importance of the event, the alarm has varying degrees. At these moments, the heartbeat quickens, tremors, hoarseness occur, the body is torn with red spots.

Causes of fear of public speaking

The reason for the fear of speaking in public is the unknown. This scares people most often, especially those who have no experience. It becomes a cause of unrest even among speakers who are wise by experience.

In addition, the basis of fear is education. Parents do not allow kids to speak loudly in public. This is argued by the fact that people are watching, it is not beautiful, etc. As a result, when the baby grows up, the adult person begins to be shy of the public.

The main thing is to understand that you are not alone, 9 out of 10 speakers face such a phobia. But the excitement visits before the very performance of all people. Those who are afraid of speeches to the point of trembling are called glossophobes.

Getting rid of fear. Main ways

The real way is practice. In order to avoid anxiety, you must constantly overcome it. Regular performances reduce this fear of the public. Take every chance to get practice.

The next step is preparation. best method reducing anxiety is good preparation. For a successful presentation, it is important to have a good understanding of the topic. The performance can be rehearsed in advance, think about all the nuances. The stronger your confidence in knowledge, the less fear arises that you will find yourself in an absurd position.

Don't think that you have to always be perfect. Many of us are afraid of the public because of the fear of making a mistake in public. It only increases the likelihood. But mistakes do not cause a death sentence, nothing terrible will happen.

think over appearance. It is important to look good in a performance. There is a psychological moment at work here. For example, a girl has an “arrow” on her tights, she worries because of this, but at least 90% of people will not notice her, she will still worry. Such thoughts steal confidence. Think over all the nuances so that there is no discomfort.

How to get rid of the fear of speaking

So, let's figure out how you can get rid of fears specifically before the performance:

rehearse and prepare;

It is very important to scrupulously analyze the audience. Stage fright is often a combination of several. Negative influence brings fear of the unknown. To get rid of this, it is important to find out where, how and in front of which listeners you are. If possible, analyze how many people will be, their interests and views. Getting rid of fears is connected with your knowledge and awareness.

Once you know who your audience will be, start preparing hard. The report needs to be built based on the average intelligence of the listeners. You should not make complex logical chains, use narrowly focused terms, etc. Don't use words whose meaning you don't fully understand. If there is a short report to be made, the preparation cannot be ignored. The topic is important to study carefully.

After writing a speech, it is worth thinking about questions from the audience. Be sure to train in advance, imagine a state that is comfortable for you. Practice performing in front of a friend or acquaintance.

calm down;

If you do not understand how to relax and get rid of fear, then some exercises will help. Meditation is distinguished by a technique called mindful breathing. Its essence is in focusing on exhalation and inhalation. It is necessary to keep the air on the count from 1 to 5. This gives a chance to reduce tension and anxiety. Another option: tense all the muscles in your body for a couple of seconds. Then relax completely and repeat again.

find support;

If there are acquaintances or relatives among the public, then ask for support from them. Any contact will be helpful. Before the start of the speech, find your friend among the audience.

think about the non-verbal part.

It is important to assess the need for a non-verbal part of the report. It is curious that 60% of the data each person receives from this source. If the phrases sometimes give an erroneous impression, then the gestures are read by the subconscious mind correctly.

How to overcome fear while speaking

Even if you manage to completely calm yourself before a speech in public, the fear again arises when you enter the stage. There are methods that make it possible to get rid of fear directly during the performance.

A popular stress relief technique is affirmations with text that uplifts and reassures you. It is important to choose positive phrases, such as “I love everyone present, and they love me”, “Everyone is waiting for my interesting report”, “I can be a good speaker”, etc.

Another way is to accept fears. Allow yourself to worry, because you are a living person. After accepting this fact, it becomes noticeably easier. But remember that it is important to tune in to a good outcome. Don't waste your energy on negative memories.

Experts say it is important for overly worried people to publicly acknowledge their own fear. This removes responsibility if you suddenly forget information or get off topic. But often you can’t use this method, because the audience will react negatively to the statement next time. Frankness is good for the first speech. Use this method only if others do not help.

For speakers without experience, impromptu The best decision. Few of us have the ability to extricate ourselves from difficulties. For this reason, it is better not to put yourself in a difficult situation. If you have to give answers to questions, then it is more correct to pronounce platitudes suitable for the situation.

There are others interesting tips how to overcome your stage fears. Imagine that the audience is not serious figures, but kittens or rabbits. Positive thoughts will bring positive thoughts. But these tips are given by experienced speakers, and they work for those who do not have panic fear.

For glossophobes, any option listed above is suitable to relieve anxiety and tension. If you do not neglect the practice, you will see progress very soon.

Experience is the main key to success in the art of public speaking. Start small - toast with friends. Then practice a loud voice in public places. This helps fight the fear of negative reactions from people. You will see that the tone will become more imposing, more patronizing.

Once you've gained some confidence, start taking action at work. Ask questions to other speakers. So you will reduce the fear of being in the center of someone else's attention and notice your craving for performance.

A person who wants to achieve some success in modern society, you have to constantly talk to other people and perform in front of small and large audiences. The profession of a teacher and a politician, a scientist and an ordinary manager requires developed communication skills. Stage fright (peiraphobia, glossophobia,) which almost 95% of the population has can prevent a person from revealing oratorical talents.

Glossophobia: symptoms

Fearpublic speakingfamiliar to everyone: trembling of the limbs, slight excitement, insomnia, which appears only on the eve of the very big day and confused thoughts. However, it is enough to speak in front of the audience, to see approval and understanding in the eyes of the audience, and the newly minted speaker becomes more confident and relaxed. Peiraphobia causes a person much deeper anxiety and anxiety; it is just one of the variants of the fear of speaking at all. In medicine, the fear of talking to people associated with stuttering is called logophobia or glossophobia. If stage fright is connected precisely with no matter how you start stuttering in public, this variant of the disorder is called lalophobia. There are situations when panic fear makes it necessary to say some specific words, the pronunciation of which causes a person to stutter. This form of the disorder is called verbophobia.

Logophobia in any of its manifestations causes characteristic symptoms:

• high blood pressure and pulsation in the temples;
• tachycardia and increased sweating;
• dry mouth and "wadded" legs;
• sometimes the voice disappears, its timbre may change: it becomes squeaky or chesty, too loud or quiet;
• in other cases, the person panics so much that he cannot get a word out of himself.

If the patient is emotional and sensitive, then at the moment when he is in front of an audience, his face may turn pale, nausea appears, dizziness, limbs may become cold. Such a speech will end quickly enough, because in most cases the speaker either gathers his courage and calms down, or loses consciousness. In young children who are forced to recite a rhyme in front of a crowd of relatives or answer in front of a whole class, sometimes lalophobia is accompanied by involuntary urination. In adults, this symptom is rarely observed.

Stage fright as a result of upbringing

Lalophobia develops more often in children brought up by strict and authoritarian parents. It is enough for mom or dad to tell the child that you can’t talk loudly on the street or in public places and attract attention to yourself so that he eventually develops stage fright. They try to bring up other children as intelligent and modest, they inspire that it is better to sit in the audience than to try to take the place of a lecturer.

Fear of public speaking often haunts people who at a young age were banned, intimidated, who were physically or psychological abuse. The atmosphere of constant pressure and depreciation of any achievements contributes to underestimation of self-esteem. When a speaker is not sure of his mental abilities, external data, or the significance of the proposed idea, it is more difficult for him to pull himself together and overcome his fear of the audience.

Children who have been instilled with ambition and the need to always be first suffer from perfectionism and inflated self-esteem. It makes them value the opinion of society, which is why the fear of speaking is formed. A person is afraid of the possibility of being ridiculed or hearing criticism from the audience, which will hurt his pride and make him doubt his own abilities.

Fear of public speaking: genetic memory

Some psychologists argue that logophobia is a genetic problem. In primitive society, man tried not to separate from the masses, so as not to be rejected. Exile in most cases meant death by predator or starvation. Modern speakers are quite adapted to survive in splendid isolation, but subconscious instincts and fears can play a cruel joke with them.

The reason for the development of a phobia is also considered the presence of bad experience in the past. For example, when a schoolboy or student was publicly ridiculed, making him feel worthless. Memories cut deeply into the subconscious if not only classmates, but also the teacher himself took an active part in the persecution. Strong personalities try to get the maximum benefit from such situations, use the experience gained to train willpower and character. People who are sensitive, prone to self-criticism and depressive states, withdraw and simply refuse the opportunity to share their thoughts with others.

Logophobia appears in patients with speech defects. They are quite comfortable in the company of friends, but a large audience scares them, because listeners can ridicule his speech impediments. Such people are recommended treatment, which is aimed at improving diction and increasing self-confidence.

Fear of blushing as the cause of glossophobia

Patients with erythrophobia refuse public speaking due to the characteristics of their own body. Experiencing excitement or other strong emotions, they blush. Among the causes of a traitorous blush, there are problems with the nervous and vascular systems, hormonal disorders and the consequences of stressful situations.

More often, glossophobia in this form is diagnosed in blue-eyed and fair-haired patients with thin and pale skin. Erythrophobes try once again not to appear in public, because the accumulation strangers makes them worry and panic, blush and be embarrassed even more.

Erythrophobes refuse high positions, because a director or a successful lawyer will have to take part in conferences, speak to subordinates or juries. For some patients, breathing exercises and self-hypnosis treatment help to get rid of the fear of public speaking, while others have to work with psychologists for a long time. If treatment with drugs and psychotherapy does not help, the person is offered surgical ways to overcome the problem. They just pinch certain nerve endings, and the patient gets the opportunity to communicate with other people, speak in front of huge audiences and not blush.

How to overcome the fear of public speaking?

Someone considers stage fright a trifle, but neglected logophobia can develop into a serious problem. The patient at first avoids public speaking, after that he is shy of friends, and over time he tries to isolate himself from society as a whole so as not to get into awkward situations.

The classic advice given to all new speakers is to mentally undress the audience or dress in ridiculous costumes to relieve tension. Others recommend making friends with the audience, focusing on the listeners who follow every word spoken with interest and admiration. A smile, gestures of approval and support help to cope with stress.

To overcome panic and excitement, it is recommended to carefully prepare for the performance. Select interesting and reliable material, rehearse your speech several times in front of a mirror or a pet. You can dictate a speech on the phone, then listen to it in order to find mistakes and get rid of them before the speech.

Perfectionist, pedantic people should relax a bit. Give yourself the right to make one or more frivolous mistakes, because no one is perfect, even opponents who try to find inaccuracies in the given facts with a satisfied smirk.

Getting rid of negative memories

It is more difficult to cope with the memories of the past, which prevent you from relaxing and make you expect the worst. Psychologists give some advice on how to overcome stage fright and believe in yourself. Useful to do at home special exercises and master breathing exercises, which will help normalize the heartbeat and muffle fear.

Meditation can overcome the tension that lalophobia causes, but it takes at least a few months to do it. A couple of hours before the performance, it is helpful to solve simple or complex mathematical equations in order to activate the left hemisphere of the brain. Then it will be easier to concentrate on the topic and answer all the questions of the audience.

Toovercomepanic, you should tune in to a positive result. Imagine the audience jumping up from their seats and giving a standing ovation, amazed by the performance. How the proposed idea will turn the world upside down or make people's lives easier, and bring universal recognition and fame to its creator.

You need to watch your body: do not cross your arms or legs, do not close yourself from the audience. Muscles and gestures should be as relaxed as possible, and postures should be open. In serious cases, when peyraphobia interferes with progress career ladder, and it’s impossible to get rid of the problem on your own, you should consult a psychologist and undergo a course of treatment. You may need to take sedatives or tranquilizers.

Treatment by a specialist will help you relax and reveal your oratorical potential. But the main weapon of all successful lecturers, lawyers and business coaches is a smile. Sincere, broad, confident and disarming. After all, sometimes it is enough to smile at the world for it to smile at you.

Glossophobia is the fear of the stage or public speaking. In many professional fields people have to face the need for public speaking, communication with a large audience in one way or another. Politics, pedagogy, jurisprudence, management, acting - all this requires public speaking, communication with the audience, the ability to convince it, control the emotions and mood of the crowd.

All of us, one way or another, found ourselves in a situation in our lives when there was a need to speak on stage, to show our oratorical and intellectual ability before large quantity of people. As a result psychological research It has been revealed that more than 95% of all people experience fear of performing on stage. Stage fright is one of the most common and, unfortunately, topical phobias. After all, it not only causes severe stress, provokes unpleasant somatic reactions and diseases. Many people want to learn how to deal with stage fright for a very different reason. Glossophobia causes them a significant decrease in the quality of life, interferes with the development of career activities, an increase in financial income, and the fulfillment of professional tasks.

Paradoxically, among people with glossophobia, there are often famous and public figures: singers, theater and film actors, musicians. For those who are afraid of public speaking, it will be useful to read the stories of such people with glossophobia as Faina Ranevskaya, Arthur Rubinstein, Pablo Casals, Glenn Gould and others.

Stage fright is a serious and severe disorder that many people attach great importance to. This is especially true for those who, by the nature of their activities, are forced to constantly speak in public. If such individuals start their disease, do not correct the disorder, do not turn to a therapist in a timely manner, this can lead to severe mental pathologies, other anxiety-phobic disorders, the development of chronic somatic diseases, as well as alcohol and drug addiction. Some people try to overcome stage fright by developing certain protective "rituals" and behaviors. Or they take doping, strong antidepressants and sedatives, and more often alcohol or drugs. Such artificial ignoring of the problem helps only for a while. The symptomatology seems to be “driven” even deeper into the subconscious, the fear only gets worse. Personal growth and development stops, new phobias are formed (for example, the fear that others will convict the individual of alcoholism or drug addiction), addictions are aggravated, bad habits. It is not uncommon for stage fright to become a prerequisite for the development of schizophrenia, personality disorders, psychopathy and other severe mental illnesses.

That is why it is so important in the presence of symptoms of an anxiety disorder in a timely manner to objectively assess the situation, recognize the existence of a problem and begin immediate psychological work on it.

How does glossophobia manifest itself?

Among psychologists and psychiatrists, stage fright is usually called glossophobia or peyraphobia. When analyzing the manifestation of stage fright, it is worth clearly distinguishing between normal, natural pre-performance experiences that everyone experiences, knowing that a large audience will listen to him. After all, almost all of them are strangers. Everyone will evaluate his appearance, every word, manner of holding and speaking. Without exception, everyone, to one degree or another, is worried during an exam, a diploma or dissertation defense, a debut performance on stage with a dance or a piece of music. Moreover, those who have been performing on stage for many years are also worried. However, a little excitement is a completely normal and healthy reaction. The normality of the reaction is determined by the absence of unbearable panic: upon entering the stage, a person gradually switches to his speech / speech / conversation with the audience and simply performs his task.

Some experts even note that normal and adequate excitement before a performance has its advantages. On the eve of an important event, a person responsibly approaches the upcoming performance. Becomes more attentive and collected, carefully prepares, thinking through every detail. As a result, moderate anxiety leads to the fact that the performance is carefully prepared and is a success with the public. At the same time, those who are not afraid of the public do not always have the incentive to think through every moment of the performance enough. As a result, their appearance on the stage becomes a failure.

Pathological stage fright is manifested by intense feelings, strong and uncontrollable anxiety. Even if a person has to speak to a small audience, most of whose representatives he knows personally, he is lost and experiences a panic attack. That is, he does not choose who to fear and who not. He is afraid of performances in any form and in any environment.

Symptoms of glossophobia

Despite the causes that provoke glossophobia, its symptoms in all individuals appear approximately the same. On the eve of an important public event, a person experiences severe anxiety and anxiety. It grows every day as the “important” day comes. The subcortical system of the brain activates a powerful production of stress hormones, which, in turn, enhances the motor activity of all muscles, changes the work of the whole organism, bringing it into a state of “combat readiness”, and activates it to fight an imaginary danger.

Common symptoms of glossophobia are:

• Muscle spasms and tension.
• Anxious gestures, atypical facial expressions.
• The voice changes: it becomes quiet, muffled.

At the level of the vegetative system, the following symptoms appear:

• increased sweating;
• rapid pulse;
• increase or decrease in blood pressure;
• migraines and headaches;
• breathing difficulties.

Characteristic of glossophobia and behavioral reactions:

• Feeling thirsty.
• Trembling in voice.
• Emotional stupor.
• Loss of speech, inability to connect thoughts from excitement.
• Involuntary diurination.

In some cases, strong excitement leads to fainting spells or an irresistible desire to flee directly from the stage. Before fainting, reactions such as:

• general weakness;
• tremor;
• gagging;
• pallor of the skin;
• slow, barely perceptible pulse;
• cold, "icy" hands.

The presence of symptoms and the intensity of its manifestation in each person are individual and are determined by its type. nervous system, the power of experiencing emotions, general health and physical condition (fatigue, lack of sleep), from specific activity at the moment of fear. If glossophobia is strong, then a person can happen on stage.

Causes of glossophobia

Psychologists identify two main factors influencing the development of stage fright. This is hereditary predisposition and social influence.

Heredity implies an innate tendency to intensely experience any emotions, responding only to certain objects of a phobia, a genetically inherited fear of society. In the event that the cause of stage fright was inherited social phobia, the fear of the public itself is based on the fear of being judged, scolded, rejected or ridiculed by the public. The type of temperament, character traits, intensity of experienced emotions are also inherited. Parents and children are really very similar to each other psychologically: they have the same objects of phobias, similar emotional perception, they react the same way to certain stressors, and the duration of attention fixation on them is identical.

Experts in the field of psychology believe that social prerequisites influence the development of glossophobia to the greatest extent. Among them:

• Non-pedagogical, despotic upbringing in childhood.
• Strict and conflict, aggressive behavior of parents with a child.
• Giving importance to outside criticism.
• A high degree of self-criticism, as a result - complete obedience to authoritative personalities, the desire to please everyone.
• Self-dislike, rejection of one's personality, low self-esteem as a result of the influence of overly strict upbringing and criticism from parents.
• A failed, unsuccessfully performed in childhood, but an important task, the results of which were criticized from the outside.
• Surreal vision of reality, interpreting facts in a negative direction.

Another prerequisite for the development of peyraphobia may be uncertainty in one's competence, insufficient preparedness for a speech, lack of knowledge and information. Also, many people are afraid of stage performances because they have never had enough practice in it.

Excessive perfectionism, the desire to be the first in everything, to master everything perfectly often leads to stage anxiety. For such people, the opinion of their public is vital. And since it is very variable, and the crowd does not always meet the speakers with absolute delight (which is the norm), the development of fears is inevitable.

Glossophobia is also prone to pedantic and scrupulous personalities who seek to keep everything under control. A huge gathering of people is very difficult to control, it is not always possible to achieve the desired result. This provokes the development of pathological anxiety in such individuals.

How to overcome stage fright?

How to overcome stage fright? This question is asked by many of us. This phobia can be successfully corrected if you seek help in a timely manner and work with a competent, qualified specialist. The intervention of a psychologist is required if the fears are pathological, obsessive, if a person suffers from panic attacks and intense somatic manifestations. As for the people for whom the stage is a permanent place professional activity- actors, musicians, speakers, regular participants in conferences, presentations, meetings and other public figures, then in their case it is quite possible to defeat the phobia on their own.

The treatment of such a phobic disorder as glossophobia is carried out in 4 stages:

• Recognition of the presence of the disease.
• Analysis and identification of the prerequisites for its development.
• Formation of possible solutions, drawing up an action plan.
• Implementation of the plan.

Let's take a closer look at possible options for anxiety reduction that would help an individual raise self-esteem and cure phobic anxiety disorder.

1. Rethinking how we treat strangers.

The audience for the speaker is always something unknown, unpredictable and uncontrollable. By revising the perception of the audience as unknown persons, having received information about these people, it will be much easier for the speaker to speak, the excitement will noticeably decrease. So, before speaking, carefully consider the following points:

• population (gender, age, social status, possible interests and hobbies of people who are going to attend your performance)
• Think about exactly what these people would like to hear from you. What information will be interesting to them, and what - not so much. Is it necessary to approach them with humor, or does the performance require maximum seriousness and concentration. What will they take with them after your presentation, what information will be useful to them.

Having worked through these points, you will be able to plan an ideal, informative speech, think over the behavior on the stage in advance, anticipate possible questions from the audience, etc.

1. We cease to be afraid of the “terrible and critical” public.

Many performers on stage are nervous because they perceive the audience as a stern critic. They pay attention to chuckles from the audience, to disapproving facial expressions, critical displeased looks, disapproving whispers.

Reconsider your attitude towards the audience: stop treating it as criticism, concentrate on positive points. The opinion of the public can never be unambiguous. Therefore, pay attention to interested listeners, approving nods, exclamations of delight, a close attentive look. Also visualize in your mind a positive, approving perception of your presentation.

1. Eliminate the possibility of a failed performance.

To reduce the chance of failure to a minimum, carefully prepare for your presentation. Let your competence, level of knowledge and awareness block the excitement and anxiety. After all, the one who knows competent person always feels much more confident, can easily answer the most tricky and difficult questions public. Work through detailed plan performances, hone every detail to perfection.

For example, you are giving a presentation. Your preparation plan should be as follows:

• Finding, analyzing and processing information from various sources.
• Writing an original speech based on the materials studied.
• Abstract key points, landmark points (so as not to forget anything).
• Consider the sequence of all parts of the speech.
• Pick up the facts: how can you support your point of view in case of questions from the public.
• Learn prepared speech.
• Anticipate possible questions from the audience in advance, compose answers to them in advance.

It's better if you have a few rehearsals before the performance. Let your friends, relatives, colleagues become listeners. This method also works very well: record your speech on a voice recorder, and then listen and evaluate it critically. Do this several times. With each new entry you will notice improvements, clean up shortcomings. These techniques will allow you to feel much more confident on stage and help eliminate possible mistakes.

1. Give yourself permission to make mistakes.

Do not attach exaggerated importance to criticism from other people. Remember that anyone can make mistakes. And criticism is not always fair: often the reason to criticize your performance can be Bad mood listener, his skeptical cynical view of most phenomena, personal dislike and antipathy towards you, regardless of the quality of the performance, a biased attitude towards you. It is also worth remembering that approval is not always objective.

Constantly work on psychotechnics that form an adequate self-esteem, increase your significance in your own eyes, and help you perceive yourself objectively and independently of other people. These techniques can be affirmations and meditation.

1. Optimism is above all.

Fix your attention on the process, not on the outcome of the performance. While speaking, think over every word, focus on the subject you are talking about. Notice all the benefits of your performance on stage. After all, you are in the field of view of all people! How much information can you convey to them, how much useful to give, entertain, cheer, give knowledge and good mood. Try to pay attention to all the benefits, tune in to the positive!

beautiful additional measure To overcome stage fright, the following methods will become:

• Complex gymnastics, which is aimed at strengthening all the muscles of the body.
• Breathing practices.
• Training the left hemisphere of the brain - doing logic, mathematics, performing tasks that require analytical thinking.
• Vocal lessons - train the voice, tone the diaphragm.
• During the performance, your posture should be as open to the audience as possible.
• meditation techniques.
• Affirmations and self-hypnosis.

Don't forget about yourself easy way cheer up yourself and the audience. Even if it is very difficult for you to do this, force yourself to smile, to say a few important and pleasant words to all these gathered people. Undoubtedly, you will receive a lot of smiles in return. And this will instill confidence in you and levels your anxiety!

So, we hope that the information provided here has allowed you to clarify the causes and patterns of development of glossophobia, and the listed psycho-techniques and tips will help you cope with stage fright. If the article seemed useful to you, please share it with your friends on social networks. Your feedback and wishes are also very important to us, which you can write below.

How to stop being afraid of public speaking? - a topical issue for people of all ages and professions. For the first time, we are faced with the need to speak to a serious audience already at the institute or at work. And if at school, speaking in front of classmates gave you discomfort, and you caught yourself thinking - “I'm afraid to do this,” then work assignments where you need to convey certain information to professionals most likely terrify you.

But all this fear of public speaking is only in our head, so you can easily get rid of it by first explaining to yourself how it arises and what ways to overcome it exist.

The excitement before performing on stage is different, but we feel the same state, which is extremely difficult to overcome: hands and knees are shaking, the mouth dries up, the voice sounds as if from the outside, the audience turns into one frightening mass. To understand why fear controls us so much and how to deal with it, let's find out its causes.

Perhaps the very first and underestimated reason that provokes the fear of public speaking begins in childhood. When a small child speaks loudly for the first time public place, then the parent will silence it. In the future, this will be the explanation of why a person has a phobia to express thoughts loudly in front of an audience.

When the voice is clamped, it leads to excitement, and ultimately to fear. Add oil to the fire, of course, they will not forget and school teachers, belittling abilities, and classmates who can hurt feelings without thinking about the consequences. These moments are the causes of social phobias, including provoking fear of public speaking.

The second reason why fearless public speaking bypasses us has to do with the psychological component of fear. In the past, fear was synonymous with danger. I felt cold - I tried to warm up faster, went to the edge of the abyss - I was afraid of heights and walked away. Under the influence of everyday stresses: work, study, economic and political changes in society, the instinct of self-preservation has undergone changes. As a result, we begin to worry in unjustified situations, including before performing on stage. The reasons that awaken this fear in us are the following:

• Fear of people as such due to low social activity.
• Fear of saying something stupid or making a reservation.
• Constantly winding up the idea that the audience is negatively disposed towards you, and will closely evaluate the performance.

Another reason is not having the information necessary for the performance. And the last one is agoraphobia, or the fear of crowds. Unlike the fear of people, which is written above, this fear is deeper, and people do not even realize that they are afraid of large crowds of people and suffer from this type of phobia.

Why you shouldn't be afraid to perform on stage

Having understood the sources of the formation of a phobia for stage performances, you must first convince yourself that this fear does not exist, that we start to worry in vain.

The main point on the way to overcoming fear that you need to realize and feel is that public speaking is an opportunity to prove yourself from the best side and evaluate your skills in working with an audience. This is important because every day, at work or school, we communicate with people, and when this discomfort brings us, our productivity drops, our mood worsens, etc.

Fearless public speaking is the key to your self-confidence. By training skills by presenting information in front of other people, you bring actions to automatic execution, and over time you will no longer feel uncomfortable when communicating with people. We summarize the useful aspects that can be obtained from performing on stage:

• Experience in communicating with a large audience, which will help develop communication skills.
• In the process of preparation, you will deepen your knowledge related to the topic of the speech.
• At work conferences or student summits, your speech will be noticed by influential figures, which may do you a favor in the future.
• At proper preparation to the reports, soon your speech will become more literate.

How to overcome stage fright

If you apply the above tips too late - the performance is already on the nose, and the phobia haunts you, and you cannot get rid of it, then use the following tricks:

• Relax. When the body is tense, you involuntarily want to shrink and not be the center of attention. Relax your body so as not to reinforce psychological discomfort with physical tension.
• Your posture on the stage must be confident: both feet are on the ground, hands are not in closed posture, back straight. Place your supporting leg forward for stability. This will allow blood circulation to circulate better, deliver more oxygen to the brain cells, and you will become less worried.
• It is important to normalize breathing so that the body is not under stress. To do this, inhale, count to 4, then exhale sharply. Repeat 10 times.
• If you feel that your voice breaks with excitement, do speech gymnastics in advance. Tell the speech without opening your mouth. Speak the letters as clearly and expressively as possible. This exercise will relax the muscles of the face and larynx and help to cope with anxiety. Take water with you, otherwise at the wrong moment you will lose your voice and have to interrupt the performance.
• If a fearless public speech for no reason is accompanied by trembling in the knees, then try mentally directing attention to them. Or fool your brain and consciously make your knees tremble. After that, the trembling often stops.
• Make eye contact with your listeners to keep in touch with them. This is how you show that the performance is aimed at their interest and feedback.
• If you make a mistake, the right decision is not to focus on it, and continue speaking. In addition to the task of presenting information, it is important to be able to focus on the main thing. Therefore, if you succinctly omit the error, none of the listeners will even notice it.

The recommendations in this article will help overcome fear, and fearless public speaking will become a constant companion of stage performances. You will never say - "I'm afraid to perform on stage, I can't handle it." When you feel confident in front of an audience for the first time, you will realize that in life you have become much more liberated, and the phobia that haunts you has receded.