I find public speaking and performing a very interesting subject, because it is considered one of the things that people are afraid of most, getting up in front of a huge audience and talking.

When I was in high school I was kind of nervous about giving a presentation but finally when I got to 11th grade I thought 'screw this, I'm never going to see these people again, I'm doing this for me.' And that really helped. When I stopped being concerned about what other people thought about me I ended up doing a ton better and it was more natural.

Then in college I took a public speaking class and that helped me even more. ^^ I also play the trumpet so I had to perform in front of audiences and judges all the time....now I just play in a group.

But I wanted to generate a discussion about public speaking.

Are you a good/bad public speaker?
Why?
Do you perform in public (i.e. dance, singing, instruments etc...)
Anything else...?

I found that if you really stop worrying about what the people in the audience think of/about you, everything is much better. ^^

speaking infront of people, i'm not all that good. it's not really because i'm nervous, though. it's because i never practice presenting what i'm supposed to be talking about. >_<

i sing infront of audiences atleast six times a year. adiences such as students and parents, towns, streets, churches, etc. i'm also in tons of plays. i get so many compliments that it just doesn't bother me anymore.

My phobia is speaking/getting up in front of people. And it’s not something I can just get over either (like most people seem to think). I would have to be heavily medicated before I could even attempt to give a lecture or presentation.

Obviously I would be a bad public speaker due to the fact that if I were to be pushed out on stage I would probably pass out from either stiffening up or hyperventilating. My other down fall is that I have a very soft feminine voice that doesn’t carry across the room. I have to literally yell to sound like someone talking in a halfway normal-strong voice.

I think the obvious answer to this question is “no�. Even when I’ve done things that would require some sort of presentation at some point I would skip out on it in the end. I used to take piano lessons when I was younger and I remember that my instructor was getting everyone together for a recital and she was very disappointed that I said I didn’t want to participate. I also skipped out on my Gold Award ceremony. My parents were not pleased about that one. I suppose it is kind of sad. I mean I did work very hard to receive my award and I was one out of about five thousand girls who did achieve it (that sounds like a big number, but that’s only about 5% of all the girls who were eligible to try for it). But sadly my social anxiety got in the way.

So that’s pretty much me and public speaking…. We just don’t mix. lol

Just thinking about it makes my stomach get all upset. >__>

When I know that I have to do a speech in front of a ton of people, I start shaking and my stomach gets upset. My voice also shakes and I'm a wreck.

I could try to get better, but no matter what I think, it doesn't help. Oh man. xDD

I was given a public speaking 'elective' in 7th grade. o: [Psh, elective. We didn't even get to choose it >.o]

I don't really think it helped me, cause everyone knew each other from 6th grade and was thinking the same thing, "Let's get over with this auuughhh...." XD

I dislike talking to strangers, don't know which one might kidnap you or something. :ninja:

Edit : Awwee Chai. T.T; I've only skipped out on an unncessary balet performance. XD Most people in class can't here me either. o.o The teacher makes a lound student come up to the board with me when I explain the problem. XDDD

I'm a terrible public speaker, I end up talking too fast and mumbling and my teachers in school would always make me repeat things over again. It was really embarassing. :oops: Even the classes where I was one of the loudest kids in the class I had trouble presenting in front of.

In orchestra I didn't have much of a problem playing in concerts because at least there were a bunch of people up there with me. But during the class-time quizzes you had to play a piece and everyone would sit there and stare at you... :shock: I always did really, really bad on those.

I end up talking a tad bit fast, but it doesn't really bother me any to do it anymore. Might as well get it over with.

I guess I surprise people when I seem to have no problem with it, because I'm usually one of the quieter ones.

Like CIC, I as well just speak a bit quickly when I have to give a speech in front of people, but now that I am in Speech class I don't think I will have that problem as much anymore. Today I was even able to ''introduce'' myself with minimum anxiety. I used to be really bad at public speaking, but now I think I have more of a "I just don't give a damn anymore" type of attitude that helps keep me calm during class. Plus I really do have to get over the slight fear I had, since my Major in College is Special Education, and as a teacher I will end up doing quite a bit of public speaking, so just for the sake of my career I had to really just get over it all. Now I don't even feel half as anxious. I even have to make up a speech by Monday and I am not nervous at all. It is kinda' enlightening not to be so nervous any more. Anyone who has the fear of public speaking, just try to remain calm and keep telling yourself the people in your class will most likely not remember your speech after the class is over, so why fret?

I'm rather good at public speaking and performances, forgive me for the seemingly lack of modesty.

For me, I get all tied up before the performance. But when I get on stage, it's a bit like "You're here. Do it right."

I used to freak out about it a lot, but ever since I've been performing and playing piano in front of groups of people, it's gotten a lot easier.

I mean...the main things are to smile and to make sure you can project your feelings or thoughts to the audience.

As for having fun...that depends. xD;; Sometimes, it's like "HOLYFREAKINCRAP THERE'S SO MANY PEOPLE GAAAAAAH!" But usually it's like...well, you're human, they're human, you make a mistake, we all do, and chances are it'll make the speech more interesting. Or if it's a performance, they probably didn't catch it. xDDDD

I wish I could've been more confident and reassured in high school to believe that but I think my fear was deeply rooted. ><; If only I was able to say, "Screw it, I don't care what these guys think, it's just a speech/project" but I would always get nervous and fumble. So...maybe I should take a class like that.

Anyways what I can do is sing in front of people...as long as I'm in with the choir. XD I have no problem singing in front of my own choir either because chances are I've sung with them for over six/seven years *stemming from Middle to High school* I did get nervous when I had to do my first solo freshman year but it turned out well and then I was in a quartet with a bunch of my friends. So singing isn't hard but for some reason speeches trip me up.
That's strange, isn't it...

=] I'm okay with speaking in public. Not at all afraid.

But last month, before my piano recital, my mom made some nasty comment about that kid who screwed up. And even thought i kept thinking it doesn't matter, i was still shaking like mad. =/ I really think my mom shouldn't have said that in front of me before my recital =/ It really did not help at all.

I'm okay at public speaking. I used to be REALLY shy and talk barely loud enough to be heard, but I think a big help in getting over that was when I gave a D.A.R.E. (lol) speech on a podium in front of my entire elementary school during an assembly.

I also became heaps more confident in general in high school, so now I have no problem speaking clearly in front of people. My high school classmates were also a pretty friendly crowd for the most part, easy to work with and present assignments in front of.

I think I have an issue with eye contact though. I've always had problems with it, whether while giving a presentation or just in everyday interaction. Looking one person in the eye is awkward; having to engage a whole crowd that is looking back is just... :shock:

Are you a good/bad public speaker? Why?

I'm generally a terrible public speaker. I tend to get antsy and a bit anxious under pressure. It's the matter of no one else talking, or the occasional awkward moment of an audience not laughing at a bout of sarcasm or emphasis you placed on a topic. My head starts to spin, I start to feel a bit sick, and, eh - everything just blanks out. I tend to do well when there is interaction involved, however. Set someone up with me for a back-and-forth conversation and partnership and it'll just roll. Quite good with theatrics and performance as well, depending on what we're running with.

But, on average, I'm a terrible public speaker because I tend to move too much and shake. I might not be psychologically nervous in some cases, but the body physically reacts to the stress anyway. It varies from presentation to presentation, but, on average, I have difficulty holding my balance if I stand in place. Have collapsed from weak knees before.

Do you perform in public (i.e. dance, singing, instruments etc...)

I spent five years in theater doing performances for school, then quit because of an argument I had with one of the teachers/directors which had ended in my throwing a script off stage. Drama! It's more than a synonym for Theater. That's another story. Ha, ha. But I used to act, and I still prose read privately or for the entertainment of friends who like a bit of zany injected into their books, articles, etc.

I also took two years of Choir and had to perform in front of crowds within my group. I only sang solo once for the director as an assignment requirement. Was a nervous wreck, and we all had a laugh.

Beyond that, I haven't taken part in performance art - though I did participate in debate. Shaky hands, good voice, but a whole lot of motion and out of place comedy.

Anything else...?

A lot of people tend to say they like my voice and think it's hilariously suiting of who I am as a person. The funny thing is that my voice switches easily into exaggerated accents, pitches, etc. The downside is that I can 'get stuck' like that and be chattering like a silly American insulting the British for a few hours when I was only goofing about a movie or something.

I've also been told I talk really loud, so that can sometimes be a problem - especially with microphones. Loud voice and a microphone rarely work out right. SChhhhhhreeech.

Well, I'm not too bad. I just blush horribly, I can't help it XD;;

I manage to get what i want to say out though. Even though I'm pink when i do it >w<

I find performing much easier, I do a lot of solo singing at school and I forget about the audience and enjoy singing >w<

Are you a good/bad public speaker?

I used to be fairly okay with it, when I was small. Now I tremble all over. xD;;

Why?

I had no inhibitions at all when I was little, but if you're told enough times that you're weird and stupid and are never picked for any important roles in school plays, you begin to get the message. Plus, by early adolescence, everybody's a lot more cliquey - especially amongst girls. I'm a bit of a sore thumb. Not a deliberate non-comformist, but I like my studies, and reading, and grew-out of imaginary games very late. I'm not really interested in fashion, or boys, or recent music, or TV soaps, and my disinterest can come across as elitism or snobbery, I fear. Probably what would be called a controversial child, loved by some, disliked strongly by others. x3;

Anyway, hitting adolescence can give your self-confidence an awful bash, can't it? Scared of appearing weirder in front of my peers, I withdrew. A bit unecessarily, I think - a script I wrote with another girl I wouldn't usually work with for a performance piece in English wowed everybody. People said it actually sounded as if we were talking like Victorians! : D So though both she and I were shaking like crinkled leaves in a wintery whirlwind, we were appreciated. <33 It's not that uncommon to be so spooked!

Do you perform in public (i.e. dance, singing, instruments etc...)

I have a sonnet sitting beside me I have to read in assembley soon. It's tough. I don't fully understand it yet, and you have to know the meaning before you can get the right intonation and whathaveyou to convey meaning to the audience (very few of whom will probably get the language; the point of the assembley is to worry people about how little we're reading these days, and how the UK has fallen in the literacy tables.) And the trouble is, I fear I'll rush it. That's the temptation. Rush and get performing over and done with. And you can't do that with a sonnet.

For somebody who doesn't enjoy speaking in front of people, I'm really a sucker for punishment volunteering for this (it's the cause I'm interested in.) Weeell, I suppose it'll be good practice.

Anything else...?

I really, really want to get better at public speaking and get over myself. xD;

I'm a horrible public speaker- when I read out loud to others, I normally have a loud enough voice to be heard properly. But, for whatever the reason, if I'm not allowed to read off a piece of paper, I suddenly start to speak quietly. :(. I also get incredibly nervous, and occasionally forget what I want to say. :(. My knees also shake, and I stumble over my words. However, I have no problems playing an instrument in front of an audience, though. Or reading in front of people. I just have problems if I actually have to look someone in the eye. ^^; I really need to overcome this fear, though- I'm stuck taking public speaking this semester. And while I only have to speak four times, it's four more times than I'd like to speak. ^^;;.

You know, I've been told since 7th grade that people are mortaly afraid of public speaking, and I just never really understood that. I wouldn't know if I'm good or not, but it's not something that's absolutely nerve wracking for me. I do tend to have this problem that if the spotlight is put on me, my words get all jumbled up inside, but it just makes it harder for me to get my point across. I don't usually get the stomach knots, though.
We had to take a speech class in 8th grade, and then once again during 9th or 10th, and I'm taking ANOTHER one for my senior year, and that's just graduation requirements. I was on the speech team for about half of my first year of high school, but the advisor was more than a royal pain in the.. eh-hem... buttocks... and it turns out the year after that he got caught cheating. Gave someone an orration that they didn't write, and now the school can't win overall tropheys until next year, I believe.
Gosh, I've rambled.

Anyway. Public speeking, not that big a deal for me. As for other performing...
I live for it.
I've been in theater for a couple years now, and I just love being onstage in front of an audience. It's seriously what I'd like to do with the rest of my life. I'm in choir, and we perform all the time in front of all sorts of people.

Strangely enough, the only time I'm ever nervous when performing is when I have to sing for an audition. Even though it's something I know I'm good at, that's what I'm always nervous about somewhere in the back of my mind... or in the pit of my stomach.

I HATE public performing!! nothing else makes me so damn nervous than it.

I've avoided it, delayed it, screwed it, nailed it, I will always hate it!
I suck! I get too nervous, I shake, I sweat, I mumble, I tackle!! then when it's over I'm embarrased for the next week or two. I can't just forget about it. bleh.

I fear public speaking more than I fear death. Which really isn't saying much, because I don't fear death, and I just have very slight discomfort about public speaking. XD

The thing that bugs me about public speaking is that I'm always afraid something I say will come out wrong, and I'll end up offending someone. I don't really fear embarrassment, because hey, everyone has brain farts, tongue tangles, and other such embarrassing incidents once in a while. They'll laugh at mine...then someone else will have one, and everyone, myself included, will move on to that. No big deal.

As for other theater...nope. No fear here. None at all. I LOVE it. I have nothing against singing on stage, dancing, acting, anything like that. I enjoy it. But then again...I've been doing it since I was six. When I was six...I was petrified at the thought of something going wrong. XD; But I got through several performances, got used to it...and all is better now. :3

I used to be really shy and not be able to talk to anyone, but I got over that and now I have no problem with speaking in public. I also DJed on air before so I had to be able to speak clearly and keep people entertained so I learned a lot from training for that.

I’ve learned not to care what people think whether I’m talking to a group of 2 or 2000. It’s so much easier to talk on air since it’s pretty much like talking to the wall, but that also makes it hard.

I am always afraid before public performance/speech (I forgot how do you call that word) but when I actually go in front of public and perform, I feel so special, and the feeling is great! :D

I absolutely love performing. I did several musicals with a performance group in the city, I've even been paid for playing music for something at the local playhouse. It's an amazing high. <33

I'm really outgoing. What's the point of working on something like music if you don't share it, isn't that sort of the point?~

I couldn't do any kind of public speaking it terrifies me. I am kind shy anyway. When I was in first grade my teacher sent me to another classroom to borrow some scotch tape. When I got to the other classroom I was terrified to go in. I stood outside the room afraid to go in because I might look stupid. Finally my teacher sent another classmate to find me, since I had someone with me I was O.K. to go in. I don't like parties or places where there are a lot of people I don't know. I guess it's a phobia of mine

I can't speak/perform in front of people..It's really hard for me.
I studder more than I usually do
and if I'm reading something, I trip over every three words.
I'm extremely afraid of the criticism I'll receive..Especially if I know the people that I'm talking to.

I would say that I'm a great public speaker. I lost my fear of being heard after a little emotional breakdown freshman year of highschool (Which involved several off limit words said in front of a teacher, followed by ten minutes of hysterical sobbing. I got off. Teacher blamed hormones. I won. <3) I've also been in the music programs since I started school, so being afraid of crowds has never been an issue.

In eleventh and twelfth grades, we had to give a huge speech. Like, worth our entire quarter grades. Me, being the moron that I am, decided to wait until the night before, both times, to actually write the speech.

First one, one person made the 7 minute mark. That was because he stammered his way through his thing and forgot half his lines. Our teacher would hold up a little card with the minute markings on them. I got up and did my speech (On why we should have school uniforms). Didn't get booed, made my audence laugh, good speech. I went over to talk to the teacher, and she apologized for not holding up the cards, but she was just so into my speech that she forgot. I smashed the seven minute marker, going for the longest speech in our class at eleven minutes. Bam.

Seinor year, I did the same thing (Procrastinating) and finished the speech in third period, practiced during lunch, and delivered it fifth period. One of the other people who had to go during my period suggested that I go first, because he thought I'd be bad. Oh ho. I went over my time again (Getting points docked, different teacher) and made him mad because I delivered it well. One guy said that "Really, it sounded like you spent all night on that speech, or really had it done before." Psh, no. Like I'd stay up for school.

I always did Solo and Ensemble, managing to pull good scores. I'm currently in a crazy ass performance group where we basically just make asses of ourselves to have fun and get a laugh, and it's amazing. I love it. I have no problem doing anything in front of a group.