Overview

Presenting in front of an audience, whether small or large, can cause feelings of nervousness or unease.

Public speaking is a fear many have experienced, but sometimes it may be a part of the work that you do. Managing nerves beforehand can make the experience easier and even enjoyable!

Cartoon of a woman at a podium. On the left, she appears nervous. On the right, she appears confident and engaging.

Reflection

What helps you focus and stay calm before a presentation?

Industry Insight

"Anything can be interesting if the speaker is engaging - and one key to being an engaging speaker is knowing your material through practice, endless amounts of practice. Being a good speaker isn't hard - if you can confidently and organically deliver your material in a way that allows the audience to believe you are someone to be believed, then you will find yourself being called back again and again.

Often in presentations, the audience is looking to learn something from you, and a key part of this interaction is allowing the audience to feel confident in their belief that your information is correct. Through practice and familiarity with your material, your audience will recognize your confidence, and engage more with your actual story."

David Stewart, Senior Manager, Innovation Strategy & Emerging Technology
Honours Bachelor of Arts, Economics, University of Toronto

Activity: Managing Nervousness Before a Presentation

Here are just a few examples of ways to manage presentation nerves.

Instructions:

Click on each item below to learn more about it.

OPTIONAL Video: How to Deal with Presentation Stress and Anxiety

Former TV news presenter Sylvie Verleye shares the science behind stress and anxiety, and how to overcome your nerves when you are giving a presentation, in this video from Expert Academy, How to Deal with Presentation Stress and Anxiety.

This external video has accurate captions. For closed captioning, click on "CC" or the subtitles button at the bottom-right of the video interface (beside the gear icon), or download the transcript (PDF | DOC).

Industry Insight

"There are voice coaches you can help you out if you feel you are lacking in some area or if others have pointed out something to you with due respect (e.g., too loud/soft, raspy/losing breath, etc.). Toastmasters is another way to improve your communication, and you can join or start one with ease."

Richard N., Cloud Technologies Professional
Honours Bachelor of Science, Computer Science (Specialist), University of Toronto

OPTIONAL Video: The Toastmasters Club Experience

"Toastmasters International is a nonprofit educational organization that teaches public speaking and leadership skills through a worldwide network of clubs. Headquartered in Englewood, Colorado, the organization's membership is approximately 280,000 in more than 14,700 clubs in 144 countries. Since 1924, Toastmasters International has helped people from diverse backgrounds become more confident speakers, communicators, and leaders" (Toastmasters, 2023, para. 1).

Toastmasters have local chapters, including in various cities in Canada. Click here to find your local club.

You can also find a list of online-only clubs here.

This external video has accurate captions. For closed captioning, click on "CC" or the subtitles button at the bottom-right of the video interface (beside the gear icon), or download the transcript (PDF | DOC).

References

Expert Academy. (2013, May 10). How to deal with presentation stress and anxiety [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryXOW1QS0ZM

Toastmasters International. (2018, April 3). The Toastmasters club experience [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=383gehepo8M

Toastmasters International. (2023). All about Toastmasters. https://www.toastmasters.org/about