Public Speaking Anxiety
Student’s Name:
Institution of Learning:
Instructor’s Name:
Course Name:
Public Speaking Anxiety
From a tender age, I was always nervous about speaking it public or rather being in situations where I had to address people or read in public, be they my peers, or those older or younger than me. Still, within me, I admired numerous eloquent speakers both on television and other areas of social life, though I could not muster enough courage to publicly address others. Consequently, throughout childhood even college; I managed to avoid those situations that required me to be in the limelight addressing others.
My first public speaking experience happened in college where, as part of the required course work, every student was supposed to conduct a study on a social issue or topic of their choice, and present their findings in a college symposium that would combine colleges from our school district. The presentation was scheduled for the last weeks of the college semester hence we had enough time to prepare. Accordingly, i chose to conduct a study on the attitudes of young people in my community, regarding obesity. I was extremely conversant with this issue thus the research part was easy. The presentation required a discussion of study’s background, the methodology used as well as the key findings. The thirty minute presentation was to be accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation which I proficiently prepared. However, I lacked any experience in public presentation and was scared of facing audiences. Consequently, for several days before the presentation, I would be incessantly overwhelmed with waves of physical anxiety that led to escalated feelings of stress, insomnia, and an outbreak of continual negative thoughts.
Sitting in the audience on the day of the symposium, I began feeling exceedingly anxious, had sweaty palms, my mind was racing, and my heart was pounding as I watched my classmates ace their presentations. When my turn on the podium came, I was so
Institution of Learning:
Instructor’s Name:
Course Name:
Public Speaking Anxiety
From a tender age, I was always nervous about speaking it public or rather being in situations where I had to address people or read in public, be they my peers, or those older or younger than me. Still, within me, I admired numerous eloquent speakers both on television and other areas of social life, though I could not muster enough courage to publicly address others. Consequently, throughout childhood even college; I managed to avoid those situations that required me to be in the limelight addressing others.
My first public speaking experience happened in college where, as part of the required course work, every student was supposed to conduct a study on a social issue or topic of their choice, and present their findings in a college symposium that would combine colleges from our school district. The presentation was scheduled for the last weeks of the college semester hence we had enough time to prepare. Accordingly, i chose to conduct a study on the attitudes of young people in my community, regarding obesity. I was extremely conversant with this issue thus the research part was easy. The presentation required a discussion of study’s background, the methodology used as well as the key findings. The thirty minute presentation was to be accompanied by a PowerPoint presentation which I proficiently prepared. However, I lacked any experience in public presentation and was scared of facing audiences. Consequently, for several days before the presentation, I would be incessantly overwhelmed with waves of physical anxiety that led to escalated feelings of stress, insomnia, and an outbreak of continual negative thoughts.
Sitting in the audience on the day of the symposium, I began feeling exceedingly anxious, had sweaty palms, my mind was racing, and my heart was pounding as I watched my classmates ace their presentations. When my turn on the podium came, I was so
Cited: Ferguson, Sherry Devereaux . Public Speaking: Building Competency in Stages. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007. Griffin, Cindy L. Invitation to Public Speaking. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning, 2011. Hamilton, Cheryl . Cengage Advantage Books: Essentials of Public Speaking. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning, 2011. Neale, Thomas H. and Dana Ely. Speechwriting in Perspective: A Brief Guide to Effective and Persuasive Communication. CRS Report for Congress. Washington: Congressional Research Service, 2007. Verderber, Rudolph F., Deanna D. Sellnow and Kathleen S. Verderber. The Challenge of Effective Speaking. Boston,MA: Cengage Learning, 2011. Verderber, Rudolph F., Kathleen S. Verderber and Deanna D. Sellnow. Essential Speech. Boston, MA: Cengage Learning, 2010. Witt, Paul L. and Ralph R. Behnke. "Anticipatory Speech Anxiety as a Function of Public Speaking." Communication Education, Vol. 55, No. 2 (2006): 167-177. Witt, Paul L., Mendy L. Roberts and Ralph R. Behnke. "Comparative Patterns of Anxiety and Depression in a Public Speaking Context ." Human Communication Vol. 11, No.1 (2007): 215 – 226.