Pracitce Before You Preach

Ghandi said “An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching.”

Like many people, I've always been afraid of public speaking. But as my career has progressed I've been increasingly called upon to speak to groups and to lead by articulating a vision to groups of people in public forums.

Back in 2006 I made an effort to get more comfortable and confident through practice. I began accepting every opportunity to speak in public.



I began volunteering to speak at industry conferences, to schools, associations, and to any other group that would have me.



I also pushed for opportunities within my job to make presentations.



I did over 15 speaking engagements between 2006 and 2009, including a keynote speech to over 400 marketing professionals,


and little by little, after each one, I felt just a bit more comfortable.



Every time I'd get behind the microphone I'd find myself sweating a bit less, stumbling over my words a bit less, and lapsing into pregnant pauses just a bit less.



Today I can actually say that I enjoy and look forward to public speaking.

My advice to everyone is to use practice to tame your fears. The more you do something you're scared of, the less scary the thing becomes. It's like weight training. The more your stress your muscles during a single workout session, the stronger they recover for the next session.

So even if you feel you've screwed up while trying something, think of that screw up as practice. Practice that will make you stronger and better the next time.