Although you’ve gone to Toastmasters… you’ve put yourself “in the fire…”
… are you still plagued with nervous energy when even the thought of being in the spotlight enters your mind?
Personally, I know the feeling. I remember when I went to Toastmasters to “get over” my public speaking fear.
I “worked hard” to…
…face my fear.
…craft speeches.
…stand up and deliver those speeches.
And even though I won “best speech” awards, I was still afraid to speak. Why? Because even though I was working hard to overcome my fear, even though I was doing all the “right” things…
… working hard didn’t help me face my fear. Working hard didn’t help me move beyond my anxiety. In my mind, “working hard” was the only way to approach a problem.
So then “hard work” is what I thought it would take to overcome my anxiety.
I was wrong.
Do the work without working too hard
While you do have to do “the work” to get rid of your public speaking anxiety, you don’t have to work hard to get rid of it.
Here’s what I mean. The word “work” reminds me of the more traditional approaches to change. You set a goal, lay out specific steps to reach that goal, you put in the effort, and voila! I’m not saying you don’t have to put in the effort. But I believe you don’t have to work so hard when it comes to overcoming your fear.
To overcome your fear of speaking in public, the key is to connect to your Essential Self.
Discovering your Essential Self is the work
And here’s the real secret: your Essential Self is already within you. Then the task (your real “work”) is to discover your Essential Self.
So, do you ever say to yourself something that sounds like this… “If I work hard, I should be able to overcome the fear of speaking?” If you do, I want to challenge you… are you reinforcing your fear of public speaking by “working hard” to overcome it?
Long ago, one of my mentors challenged me. Her name was Rochelle. She suggested that I look at how I manifest what I desire in my life as Easy, Effortless, and Enjoyable. I can’t say I look at things this way all of the time, but her words still ring true for me. They guide me to let go of my struggle, and trust the outcome that what I want will happen… as long as I show up and continue doing whatever I can.
Now, I understand that it might not compute when I tell you that you can overcome your fear of speaking in public by not working hard. My point is this… if you say it’s going to be hard to overcome your fear, it will be hard. But, listen, I encourage you to acknowledge and appreciate that the wisdom within you is already at play. It’s happening! You don’t have to “work hard,” you just have to do the right work.
And when you begin to think and be a vessel of effortlessness, ease, and enjoyment… … everything you want will fall into your hands… including fearless public speaking. Which reminds me of a quote I read recently that said, “You can’t hold water by grabbing it, you have to cup your hands.” You can have what you want without the struggle.
So, if you are ready to overcome your fear of public speaking… with ease, effortlessness, and joy (yes, it’s possible)… Click here to contact me. We can explore next steps.