It was a packed house at N’DIGO Magazine’s Business Breakfast. .. This is what you see when you’re on standby backstage right before you sit in the hot seat where every person in the room listens to every word you say, judging your every word for the next hour.
As you’re waiting to be introduced, you take a good look at your crowd and you naturally think, “Most of the people in the crowd are here to be inspired by me and show me love. Several are here to get to know me; maybe a few of those people hate hate me, or even worse—plotting to destroy me!” At least that’s what I am told by some entrepreneurs I consult. Understandably, the pressure of public speaking can sometimes lead your thoughts elsewhere!
Can you handle it?
Think about it, public speaking is just like being an entrepreneur—the world of Business is your audience … a bigger version of this audience! If you look at it this way, then this should help you overcome your fear.
When it’s time for me to take the stage I am fearless. Why? Because when I’m telling my story about my business, it’s my business. Nobody can object to my story because I was the one who lived it. And that’s the mindset you need to have about your business when you choose to showcase it to the world. Know the details—the good, the bad and the ugly—about your world so that nobody can object; they can criticize, but they cannot object.
You often see people get deals on Shark Tank because they have an answer for absolutely every question we throw at them, even if we don’t like the answer.
Know your business honestly inside out, so when you’re stage telling your story, you’re telling your story, and the audience will have no other choice but to respect you.
