There’s a reason so many people have recurring nightmares about embarrassing themselves in front of a crowd. Speech anxiety is a serious problem, and thousands of people deal with it regularly. In fact, this problem is so widespread that it shows up in movies and books all over the world because it’s so relatable.

However, if you chose the career of academics thinking you could hide behind a desk and a lab table, you’re probably not thrilled about the reality. As a career researcher, part of your role will be speaking in front of large audiences occasionally. And if your work results in important findings, as most scholars aim for, you may have to do this frequently. The good news is that you’re a published researcher, and you can use your talents and skills to learn how to prepare to speak in front of a public audience, whether it’s your first time or your hundredth.

Why Public Speaking is Important as a Researcher

Why is public speaking such a big part of being a scholar? Once you understand how important you are, it makes it slightly easier to walk into this role.

As the primary person responsible for your research project, from inception to conclusion, you are the one who knows the details, and how vital each variable is. You are the one who can connect those details to the final results, draw a picture of how they all relate to each other, explain why the process had to happen the way it did in order to give a valid conclusion, and share all that information with an audience.

In short, without you, those who are attempting to comprehend your research may take away entirely different responses. How well you present your findings, concisely and clearly, can change the misconceptions received by another presenter. But planning your presentation is equal parts prepping your mindset and designing your speech.

3 Ways to Prepare Your Mind for Public Speaking

One of the reasons why we have public speaking anxiety is that we worry we will forget what we’re going to say, or sound incoherent. This is a “mind trick,” a way our brains attempt to talk us out of doing something outside our comfort zone. Here are three quick and easy ways to overcome this fear:

1. Practice. Truly the best way to convince yourself that you’re not inept, and you won’t forget your lines, is to practice them. This means you can’t procrastinate, which, let’s face it, is a massive problem for career academics with busy schedules. Plan your speech and create your presentation visuals well in advance of the public speaking engagement, then practice the speech and how you’ll use the display at least five or six times before the event.
   
2. Adjust your body language. You’ve heard the saying “Fake it til you make it.” This can become your mantra until you feel truly confident in the limelight. An easy way to conquer your mind’s chatter is to adjust your body language. Instead of slouching or holding your hands behind your back nervously, adjust your posture. Stand up straight and look straight ahead, attempting to make eye contact with someone in your invisible audience. Each time you practice, turn your head slightly to adjust eye contact with multiple audience members, and this becomes more natural. Eventually, you’ll feel comfortable enough to move around the stage, looking at your audience without singling one person out.
   
3. Recognize your authority. You have something no one else has, otherwise, you wouldn’t have been asked to speak at this engagement. How do you stand out? Focus on your areas of expertise, where your authority is, and why you are speaking. When you remember your strengths, your confidence unfolds and expands.
   

3 Ways to Prepare Your Speech for Public Speaking

1. Find an audience to practice in front of. You’ve practiced by yourself, and you’re relatively confident that your speech covers everything you want to say. But will your audience understand the content? Ask some of your trusted colleagues, friends, and family to listen to your speech and check out the presentation. Request feedback, whether it’s good, bad, or indifferent. This serves two purposes: One, you get used to talking in front of other people, and two, you can correct anything that they don’t understand.
   
2. Tell your audience the talking points you have. You’ll capture your audience’s attention quickly if you give them a heads up early on about what you’re going to discuss. Break up your speech into categories, then touch on those talking points in your introduction.
   
3. Plan for your audience. Writing your research paper is one thing; composing a speech is another. With research, your audience is always going to be the journal’s audience. With a speech, your audience can vary. Who is listening? Are they educated similar to you? Are they general people trying to learn what you have to say without the scientific jargon? Know your audience, and write your speech on their level.