Welcome to the world of Glossophobia.

Take it from someone who not only has given a Pacifica Presentation, but has survived: Public Speaking does NOT get easier over time. The nerves, the butterflies in the stomach, the shaking... (I shook so much I thought my teeth were going to fall out.) Twenty years ago, I thought giving a presentation to my teachers, fellow students and interested community members, was one of the worst days of my life, but it's nothing compared to having to do a Public Address (PA) in the super market. The presentation only has the few eyes of the people present, a PA has all the eyes in the area on you and everyone else in the building waiting for you to mess up. And if your phone voice is funny? Argh...

Fortunately, I've come across a few things that have helped me in the past and I want to pass them on to those poor saps, I mean senors at SHS who have the Pacifica Project Presentation to look forward. (But school just started! Why should I worry about the presentation now?) (Next time folks) So, if picturing everyone in their underwear has already burned your inner eye, here are a few other tricks you can try to keep Glossophobia from ruining your presentation.

•  Don’t expect perfection – When it comes to public speaking all eyes are on you. One little misspoken word and it’s all over, or is it? No one is perfect. Sometimes the right words come out tangled and unrecognizable. If you stumble over a word or two, or a whole sentence, it’s not the end of the world, keep going. The truth is, even experts make mistakes. It’s how they deal with those fumbles that make them experts.  

• Be flexible – Memorizing your speech is well and good, but it doesn’t allow you to move with your audience’s moods. Often a memorized speech comes out stilted, stumbling from one line to the next. And if you happen to forget a sentence? It can throw your whole presentation off. Keep your mind on the major key-points of your presentation instead. This allows you to focus more on your audience and less on which word comes next. You know your material, you know what’s exciting, and you control the flow of knowledge.

• Practice, practice, practice – Repetition is not memorization. Repeating your presentation allows you to weed through the tongue twister traps and the grammar pitfalls. Bringing the knowledge to the front of your mind helps you decide what the best order is to give it to others.

• Be prepared – have something other than yourself to draw the focus of every eye in the crowd. Most people like to have something to look at. If you have visual aids, use them. Make a slide show or power point.

• Encourage audience participation – Slide shows are great and will help your audience focus on something other than you. But if that’s not enough get the audience involved. This gives you a breather out from under everyone’s eyes and it will help you keep your thoughts organized. By knowing what your audience wants to know, you know where to take you presentation to next.

Mark Twain had it right when he said there are two types of speakers: those who get nervous and those who are liars. Glossophobia can be overwhelming. Getting rid of your fear of public speaking is not something that can happen overnight, but hopefully, some of these tricks will help you stand up to your fear.

And if they finally did away with the Pacifica Project - I've heard the rumors and boy did you dodge a bullet (But don't count on it)- keep these tips in mind. You might find they are useful in post high school life.