This is a series of Capacity Building documents that was prepared by the Sudanese Youth Leadership Development Program. هذه مجموعة من المقالات في مجالات تدريبية متعددة مناسبة للجمعيات الطوعية تم تطويرها بين عامي 2003-2008 للبرنامج السوداني لإعداد القيادات الشبابية

1. 12 Ways to Build Confidence Speaking
1. Expect to be nervous.
Even experienced speakers get nervous. Instead of trying to eliminate
your jitters, turn them into energy you can use to boost your delivery. A
TV talk host asked Broadway star Carol Channing, "On opening night, do
you get nervous?" She replied, "I don't call it nervousness - I prefer to call
it concentration."
2. Prepare.
Knowing what you are going to say and why you want to say it will give
you confidence. (If you attempt to give a speech without being prepared,
you should be nervous. It's your body's way of saying, "You fool, don't
ever do this to me again.")
3. Practice.
Seek out supportive audiences. Speak in small forums where less is at
state -- at a staff meeting or a PTA meeting. Join Toastmasters. or take a
Dale Carnegie course. Work with a coach. Just get up in front of people
over and over again. Keep doing it.
4. Breathe.
In the thirty seconds before you begin speaking, take three slow, deep
breaths through your nose, filling your belly. As you breathe out, say to
yourself, "Relax."
5. Rehearse.
Rehearse your speech three or four times. Stand up as you practice your
speech out loud. Walk around as you speak. Practice in front of a full-
length mirror. Don't try to memorize your speech or give it word for word.
Practice talking it through, point by point. Imagine you're explaining
yourself to someone who cares about you.
6. Be positive.
Give yourself a pep talk. "I'm just learning how to do this. I have what it
takes to learn how to speak well."
7. Focus on your audience.
Most stage fright is rooted in self-preoccupation. ("How am I doing?" "Am
I making any sense?" "Am I making a fool of myself?") Stop focusing on
yourself. Focus, instead, on your audience and on how your speech is
going to help them. ("How are you doing?" "Do you get this?" "Can you
hear me?")
8. Simplify.
Most beginning speakers try to accomplish too much in a single speech.
Then they worry about leaving something out or losing their train of
thought. Aim, instead, to communicate what your audience can hear and
understand in the limited time you have. Keep it short and simple.
9. Visualize success.
Practice relaxation techniques in the days before your presentation. Lie
down or sit comfortably in a quiet place. Breathe slowly. Close your eyes.
Scan your body, consciously relaxing any tense muscles. Imagine your
upcoming speaking engagement. Picture yourself speaking with
confidence. Make the details as sharp as possible, involving every sense.
10.Connect with your audience.
Make the audience your allies. Talk to individuals before your presentation
to get to know a few of them. Look them in the eye as you speak to them,
one person at a time. If you can get your audience to identify with you,
your job as a speaker becomes much easier and you can relax. (See "How
to Connect with Your Audience.")

2. 11. Act confident.
Most people won't see how nervous you are. (They can't tell if your palms
are sweating or your knees are knocking or your heart is pounding.) So
don't tell them. As they say in Alcoholics Anonymous, "Fake it 'til you
make it." Smile. Hold your chin up. Stick your chest out. Look confident,
even if you don't feel it. After awhile you'll begin to feel it too.
12. Learn from your mistakes.
Accept your mistakes as part of the learning process. (What skill have you
ever learned perfectly the first time through?) Scott Adams, creator of
Dilbert, said, "Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is
knowing which ones to keep."