Here's a conundrum I get asked about often.  People say to me, "I used to be a confident speaker.  Talking to a group of people was no problem for a long time.  But recently, I don't know why, when I think about making a speech, or sometimes right in the middle when my talk has been going fine, suddenly I get butterflies, my head starts to spin, I worry that I'm going to make a mistake or forget something important, and, boom, there goes my confidence.  Why does that happen?  And what can I do about it?" 

READ MORE

       Why is it that when some folks are asked to say something at a special occasion, their first question is, "Do I have to write a speech?" This is accompanied by squinching up their eyes, raising their eyebrows in dismay, and maybe wrinkling their nose as if at a malodorous smell. The question itself is often asked in a querulous tone, the underlying meaning of which is "Please tell me I don't have to write a speech. Can't I just wing it?"
      Why is 'winging it' never a good idea? And what's the big deal about writing a speech?

READ MORE