How to Get the Confidence to Speak in Front of a Class

Managing Your Nerves

Figure out why you are nervous. Are you afraid to get a bad grade? Do you think you may embarrass yourself in front of your crush? Once you identify these thoughts, try to find reasons why they are not true. For example, when you think, "I am going to make a fool out of myself in front of my friends," try thinking something more positive such as, "I am going to be so prepared that I will sound smart enough to impress all of my friends." Remember, fear of public speaking is very common. You are not alone in your fear, and there will be plenty of resources to help you figure things out.

Talk to someone whose speaking skills you admire. Talk to a respectful friend or an adult who has public speaking skills that you want to emulate. Ask them how they handle big presentations and what they would do in your situation. Talk about how they prepare and how they stay on track while they speak. If the person is someone you can easily talk to or trust, ask them to be your practice audience. If your campus has a speech and debate club or organization, you can ask to come observe one of their meetings, and talk to a couple members about how they cope.

Practice in your daily life. You can practicing public speaking every day, even when you don't have an assignment. Challenge yourself to do one thing that makes you uncomfortable each day, like raising your hand in class, talking to a classmate you don't know well, or ordering food over the phone instead of online. Then, use these challenges as a chance to practice your public speaking skills. If you know that you tend to talk fast, for example, use your daily challenge as an opportunity to practice speaking slower and enunciating. If you know you are quiet when you speak, practice speaking louder.

Visualize your success. When you're nervous about speaking, it can cause you to focus on what you think will go wrong. Any time you notice that happening, try as hard as you can to fight back by thinking about a successful outcome. Think about the best ending possible to your speech, whether it's an A on your assignment or a standing ovation. This may feel silly at first, but the more you visualize your own success, the easier it will become to get rid of negative thoughts.

Preparing for Your Presentation

Start planning your speech well in advance. It is easy to feel nervous when you only began thinking about your subject the night before it's due. Begin preparing yourself as soon as you find out you will be speaking in front of your class. Start to think about what points you want to include in your speech, and how you want to structure your time. You don't need to have your speech memorized weeks before the due date. Simply start thinking about your timeline. Set aside a little time every day to work on your presentation. Depending upon the type of speech, you may not need to memorize it at all, or you may be allowed to use note cards to help you keep your place. Try to have a subject and a general outline of what points you want to cover developed a day or two after you get the assignment. Then, take 20 or 30 minutes each day to do a little research and write out part of your speech.

Make notes regarding your primary points. It may seem counter-intuitive, but you don't want to read off a script when you speak. Instead, make notes that outline your main points, and provide one or two pieces of data for each point. If you can, print this on an outline that will fit on a single sheet of paper. That way, you don't have to worry about out-of-order pages or notecards. If you are talking about historical events, for example, have an outline where the headings give the name and date of each event. Then, have one point under that with the major players, and one point briefly summarizing what happened. Don't read directly from the outline. Just use it as a guideline to help you remember key points and keep your structure. It's there to help you if you get lost, but it shouldn't be a script.

Rehearse your speech until you have your points memorized. Once you have your points researched and a script or outline prepared, start rehearsing your speech. Begin by rehearsing to your reflection while you memorize your information. Once you have your points memorized enough that you don't need a script, ask some friends or a teacher if you can practice delivering your points to them. Practice at least 2-3 times each day. The better you know what you want to say, the more comfortable you will feel the day you have to say it. When you practice for others, use their feedback as a learning opportunity. Remember that they are not trying to make you feel bad. They are just helping you find places where you can improve your facts or presentation.

Look at the room in advance. Whether you are speaking in your classroom or in your school's theater, try to look at the room at least once before you make your points. Think about where you will be relative to your audience. Find out if you will have access to tools like a podium, and start planning where you want them. This is especially important if you are speaking in a room other than your classroom. Unfamiliar environments can make nerves worse. You can lessen this by becoming familiar with the environment before you have to speak there. Even if you don't think looking at the room will help, do it anyway. It is easier to relax in a place that is at least a little familiar.

Speaking to Your Class

Stay calm on the big day. Try not to let your nerves overcome you before you speak. Whenever you start to feel nervous, start thinking about your talking points instead of thinking about what could go wrong. Then, refocus your mind back on your material. Accept that you will make some mistakes. Embracing the fact that everyone makes small, recoverable mistakes when they speak will help you feel less nervous and keep you from making larger, more critical mistakes. Most minor mistakes won't even be noticed. If you make a minor mistake like mispronouncing a word or skipping a small part, don't stop your presentation or start backtracking. This can interrupt your flow and make you even more nervous. Correct the mistake if you notice it right away. Otherwise, just move on.

Try deep breathing exercises. Close your eyes, inhale deeply by breathing into your abdomen, count slowly to three, and exhale fully. Repeat the process until you feel calmer and you can focus on your points instead of your nerves. This is an especially helpful tool to use right before you have to speak.

Be an actor while you speak. Actors say and do things onstage that they would never imagine saying or doing in everyday life. That's because actors are playing a character. Think about yourself as a character who is a lot like you, but is really comfortable with public speaking. Play that character when you have to talk in front of your class. This helps some people because when they are playing a character, it is easier to take risks knowing that if you mess up, it's the character that will get the blame, not you. Being an actor is a "fake it until you make it" approach. Play someone who is collected and confident. Given enough time, your confidence will stop being fake.

Do your best and have fun. You've worked hard to make sure that this speech goes well, so show it. Your classmates will appreciate watching someone who has a bit of fun with the material. The more enthusiastic you are, the less likely they are to notice minor errors and missteps.

Reflect on your speech but don't dwell on mistakes. Congratulate yourself for having the courage to get up in front of your peers. You will always be harder on yourself than anyone else. Ask yourself what you could do better next time. You can even make a list. Try writing down two positives of your presentation for every negative. This way you can focus on areas where you need to improve without feeling like the whole speech failed.