Hi Reader,

​

Welcome to Rev Up for the Week, where each week I give you a positive or productive thought for the week ahead. Last week, I released this video to give a bit of a behind-the-scenes look at my work as a speaker. And I've been doing some keynote talks as well as sharpening up the slides for my 'KIND' keynote in readiness for the book launch in October.

​

So it got me thinking about what I've learnt over the years as a speaker.

​

Glossophobia is the fear of speaking in public, and a famous study found that more people feared speaking than feared death. So, I thought I'd share a couple of tips that can help make you a more confident speaker or presenter - whether that's delivering a big talk to your team, sharing a presentation, or just contributing boldly and articulately in a meeting or Zoom call. So here are three things that I've learned that I hope can really help:

​

1. Smile. I learnt years ago that when we smile, the body releases chemicals that reduce cortisol, and that even when we force ourselves to smile for no reason, the same thing happens. A little secret - before a talk, if I'm in the front row of an auditorium or if it's dark, you'll find me inanely smiling just before I hit the stage. Or I'll nip to the toilet and sit in the cubicle smiling for a couple of minutes. It really works to calm me down.
2. Flip the self-talk. So much of our negative self-talk is things like "they're going to judge me", "they'll think I'm silly" and so on. Yet most of the time, especially if you're giving a talk to your team, they WANT you to do well. So remembering that people want to have a good experience can be really powerful. And thinking back to previous talks you've done, and recalling some of the positive feedback, can be a great way to reassure that pesky lizard-brain thinking.
3. Pause, breathe. This is the one I've struggled with a lot over the years. It's so hard when you're standing on a stage, with lots of eyes staring at you, to slow down. Our natural tendency is to race through everything at a hundred miles an hour, either because we can't wait to get it over with or because leaving pauses and empty space feels so uncomfortable. It can feel like pausing and leaving gaps is wasting everyone's precious time. But actually, flip that one around, too: audiences NEED the pauses so that they can process what you're saying. Pauses give people a chance to catch up, or to re-engage if their minds had wandered off. Pauses are in service of the audience, not an inconvenience to them. And pauses give you the chance to take a breath, check your timings or grab a sip of water.

​

So there you go. Three simple tips for you to use if ever you're asked to stand up in front of anyone and talk. And if you're interested in me coming in to deliver my new keynote on 'KIND: The Quiet Power of Kindness at Work' (and you might even get a sneak preview of some of the content from the book before it comes out!), then hit reply and I'd love to chat.

​

Have a great week,

​

Graham

​

​

​