Public Speaking:
How the Hell Do You Do It?
The first 2 steps to take as an actor, streamer and host.
Imagine you’re standing on a stage. Bright lights are weighing on your shoulders. Silence lies among a multitude of eyes staring right at you.
Now imagine you’re sitting in front of a camera. A musical introduction has just faded out. You see your reflection in the lens of the camera and you know that reflection represents many faces listening to every word that comes from you.
No matter the situation, knowing you have eyes on you while you perform and/or present can be nerve-wracking! We’re scared of what others will think of us. We overthink what we “need” to do (or not do) for some mythical sense of acceptance we’ve created in our heads. It’s amazing the power of our minds!
When I first started in acting over 10 years ago, the fears my mind created were MASSIVE! It was strange to suddenly be the center of attention and to be the Captain in charge of steering that specific moment. I was recently reminded of where I started and the process I took when I had a viewer of our stream (MindMineTV) ask me how we perform in front of people every day.
After some reflection, there were 2 first steps that helped me, and will help you! Whether you’re just starting out or need a quick refresher to help regain focus, here are those steps:
Step 1: Do it!
Sounds obvious, right? “Well, duh, of course, but that’s my issue!” The thing is that practicing in your room with the windows boarded up and the door locked doesn’t do you any good.
There’s something to the saying, “face your fears”. Like I previously mentioned, our minds have a lot of power over us BUT if we face our fears, we can re-train our brains (yes, it’s possible – lookup Cognitive Behavioral Therapy).
Don’t get me wrong, the feeling of “fear” isn’t bad, it’s our brains’ way of trying to keep us alive. The problem is that our brains don’t always register every situation properly thus standing in front of people looking to be entertained, turn into a group of tigers looking for lunch.
Now does this mean you should start off doing a presentation to 5,000 people? No. To most people, there’s a breaking point where too much is just that…too much. Every step forward is a win to take on smaller opportunities first. After all, you wouldn’t start building a house by building the roof first; work your way up.
Step 2: Know who you’re talking to.
If I asked you, “Who are you talking to?”, how would you answer?
First off, if you answer, “A group of people that hate everything I do.” STOP THAT! People watch a stream, watch a film, or go see a live event to have a good time. They never watch hoping to pull the torches and pitchforks out for a rousing actor lynching.
Secondly, when I asked you who you’re talking to, I don’t me the viewer specifically. You’re typically being watched by a room of strangers but somehow you have to try to connect with them (and sometimes a scene-partner). In order to connect, you need to have something to hold on to that gives you a sense of “familiarity”.
The best way to get this sense of familiarity and garner the confidence you need is to imagine the person (or group of people) you’re speaking with as your best friend. This is the person that you feel comfortable being yourself with, you feel comfortable sharing things about yourself to and comfortable to crack jokes with. The goal is to have this feed you with a positive drive that carries you through an entire performance.
Are there any more steps you can take for successful public speaking and performance? Yes but, as previously mentioned, every step forward is a win. These 2 steps are great to start with to help retrain your brain early on in the process while helping to construct a bond between you and your audience.
Once you’ve started working on these steps, let me know how your process is going and ask any other questions you have by connecting with me on Twitter: @EvinCAnderson
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