General Authorities And Nerves

[Duncan]

I had to give a talk on sunday but just up to giving it my stomach was in distress and when I got up to the pulpit I was fine and it seem to go well from a physical perspective. My question is how do the General Authorities and General Auxillary leaders handle having to constantly give talks and giving them in front of sometimes thousands of people?, wouldn't they be in physical trouble,i.e, nerves,nausea,etc.like all the time and in doing so your body would be telling you 'you know...all this public speaking isn't a good thing!' In other words wouldn't they feel sick on a constant basis?

[CV75]

I had to give a talk on sunday but just up to giving it my stomach was in distress and when I got up to the pulpit I was fine and it seem to go well from a physical perspective. My question is how do the General Authorities and General Auxillary leaders handle having to constantly give talks and giving them in front of sometimes thousands of people?, wouldn't they be in physical trouble,i.e, nerves,nausea,etc.like all the time and in doing so your body would be telling you 'you know...all this public speaking isn't a good thing!' In other words wouldn't they feel sick on a constant basis?

Not everyone responds as you do. Practice makes perfect. Faith makes perfect. Medication might help. Prayer might help.See Helaman 10:4-5 and Mosiah 4;27.

[thesometimesaint]

Duncan:

You are not alone. The fear of public speaking is greater than the fear of death. Fortunately most of us do survive the public speaking. Practice does help. Do be carefull if you take medications. They can have unintented consequences worse than the disease.

There all types of "Tricks of the Trade" that can be used.

[Jeff K.]

I hear a couple of belts before a talk helps alot, wait... we don't do that.

[Nathair/|\]

I hear a couple of belts before a talk helps alot, wait... we don't do that.

The New Priest

A new priest giving his first mass was so nervous he could hardly speak. After mass, he asked the Monsignor if he had some advice for how to combat the nervousness.

The Monsignor replied, "When I am worried about getting nervous on the pulpit, I put a glass of vodka next to the water glass. If I start to get nervous, I take a sip."

So next Sunday he took the Monsignor's advice. At the beginning of the sermon, he got nervous and took a drink. He proceeded with the sermon.

Upon his return to his office after the mass, he found the following email from the Monsignor:

1) Sip the vodka, don't gulp.

2) There are 10 commandments, not 12.

3) There are 12 disciples, not 10.

4) The Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are not referred to as Daddy-O, J.C. and the Spook.

5) The Virgin Mary is not called 'Mary with the Cherry'.

6) And next Sunday, there will be a taffy pulling contest at St. Peter's, not a peter pulling contest at St. Taffy's.

Signed,

The Monsignor

[LeSellers]

I had to give a talk on sunday but just up to giving it my stomach was in distress and when I got up to the pulpit I was fine and it seem to go well from a physical perspective.

The fear of speaking in public is totally irrational, and totally real, for those who have it. I, fortuantely (for me, not so much for those I am speaking to) do not suffer from this anxiety, at least, not much.

The fear is one, like most such fears, stemming of pride. The fearful person is afraid of making a mistake and appearing foolish. So I ask those who are fearful to recall the last time they recall anyone speaking in public who made a mistake. They usually can, sometimes even a serious mistake. Then I ask, how that mistake affected their view of the speaker. In most cases (nearly 100%, unless it's politicians), the answer is not at all, or almost not at all. If that's the case, why does that (only potential) mistake and the aftermath loom so large in their minds that they become (some of them, at least) temporarily paralyzed?

There is no reason for it, and they acknowledge that. They then go off to the pupit and their fears are reduced not one whit. Or that has been my experience.

Lehi

Edited August 16, 2011 by LeSellers

[Ariarates]

I am most nervous if I don't know what to expect: who is the audience, how will they react, is my stuff any good, did I get everything right, did I bring the right version of my notes or presentation, etc. - none of which needs to bother a GA.

[HiJolly]

And they can vet their material not only with their spouse or significant other, but with the correlation committee!

HJ

[mfbukowski]

Just do it a lot. You get used to it. Trust me, they are completely comfortable and not nervous at all, especially at conference when everything is written out and all they have to do is read their own words.

You get used to it. If you have to, you can just get up and do a half hour without preparation no problem once you have done it enough, with no fear whatsoever. What's there to be afraid of? It's just like talking to one person- there are just others listening! Pick one person who seems interested and just talk to that person.

It helps to teach a lot of classes and encourage discussion- that way you learn to think on your feet. So you learn how to do 40 minutes based on discussion.

Then all you have to do is do the second part of the discussion yourself. Ask yourself questions out loud and then answer them:

Or "Brothers and sisters- to you- what does this scripture mean? You could take it this way....... (5 minutes) or then again, you could take it this way...... (5 more minutes) but I think that what the Lord is telling us is really..... (another 5 or 10 minutes)... And I can tell you Brothers and sisters I have a testimony of this because.......(5 minutes)"

So there you have a 20-30 minute talk with no preparation. Just pick a scripture you have thought about and are comfortable with.

[Rivers]

I've always been scared of public speaking. But I took a public speaking class in school and that helped a lot.

[Garden Girl]

My bishop called me Sunday afternoon and asked if I'd speak in sacrament meeting in two weeks... last time I spoke it was during winter and we didn't have but a few visitors... but in these summer months our ward bursts at the seams. Every folding chair is set up clear back to the back wall of the cultural hall. Yikes!!

Although I still get butterflies, what I always do when I have to speak is write out my talk long-hand... reviewing it and making any changes. Then I type it up double spaced, including typing out any scriptures rather than looking them up and reading directly from the source. That way I'm not getting "lost," etc. I take time to become familiar with my talk and the sequence of my thoughts. And I have my typed notes (that I glance at to keep me moving along, but not read word for word). That way I'm not nervous about what I'm going to say, and don't forget an important point I want to make, etc. If I do draw a momentary blank, all I have to do is look at my notes and continue along. It works for me.

GG

[LeSellers]

And, there's Toastmasters. I recommend it, based on the accolades of others whom I trust. (As I said, I've never had much trouble speaking in public—I gave my first address at age three, and ain't shut up yet.)

Public speaking is a skill that can be learned. It's a skill that pays huge dividends.

Lehi

[CARPE DIEM]

I had to give a talk on Sunday but just up to giving it my stomach was in distress and when I got up to the pulpit I was fine and it seem to go well from a physical perspective. My question is how do the General Authorities and General Auxillary leaders handle having to constantly give talks and giving them in front of sometimes thousands of people?, wouldn't they be in physical trouble,i.e, nerves,nausea,etc.like all the time and in doing so your body would be telling you 'you know...all this public speaking isn't a good thing!' In other words wouldn't they feel sick on a constant basis?

It is my understanding that your General Authorities and other leaders have months and months to rehearse and use a TelePrompTer as well. Public speaking is an Art. May I suggest you go to your church on a week day or two and practice in front of the empty pews. I enjoy speaking in public, I just don't like doing it 3 or 4 times a day !

[mfbukowski]

My bishop called me Sunday afternoon and asked if I'd speak in sacrament meeting in two weeks... last time I spoke it was during winter and we didn't have but a few visitors... but in these summer months our ward bursts at the seams. Every folding chair is set up clear back to the back wall of the cultural hall. Yikes!!

Although I still get butterflies, what I always do when I have to speak is write out my talk long-hand... reviewing it and making any changes. Then I type it up double spaced, including typing out any scriptures rather than looking them up and reading directly from the source. That way I'm not getting "lost," etc. I take time to become familiar with my talk and the sequence of my thoughts. And I have my typed notes (that I glance at to keep me moving along, but not read word for word). That way I'm not nervous about what I'm going to say, and don't forget an important point I want to make, etc. If I do draw a momentary blank, all I have to do is look at my notes and continue along. It works for me.

GG

It also helps to have sections underlined in different colors so that you can edit them out or add more later depending on your time. Make sure you hit everything in red for example- that is the main talk; but if you find you have a lot of time left, add some blue sections- say, for more scriptural quotes or General Authority quotes.

When I was learning and still in my notes- I will actually have three colors. If it ends up that I have five minutes to deliver a 30 minute talk- no worries- I hit the red stuff, and forget about the blue or green stuff. (Let's say the blue and red are 30 minutes worth and that is the assignment)

If I have to stretch, I will do the blue and red, and the green. If I really have to stretch, I will read each scripture in context, slowly and comment on every verse- "Note what's being said here- he is saying blah blah blah"- that sort of thing.

I learned that while I was a High Councilman- that's why they tend to be boring. Sometimes their talks are 5 minutes, sometimes 40, and they have to be ready for either contingency!

Obviously it's best if you can go extemporaneously like the GA's do- but it's all a learning curve!

Edit: I don't mean to take over the thread, it's just that I, like Lehi, have done a LOT of public speaking both for my job- doing public presentations and seminars- and my various callings. When I was a kid, I was in plays and things like that, did speech and debate all the way through high school and college and now in the church, I probably do some public speaking almost every week.

But the point is, that it is all practice- and if you do it enough, there is nothing to be nervous about. Speaking in stake conference makes me no more nervous that having a chat with my wife- it takes much more preparation- because I want to make sure the content is good- so I worry about the content- but the delivery is nothing to me.

But it's all practice practice practice. Get up in front of as many people as you can as often as you can- teaching classes is a great way to get into it.

Anyway, I 'll shut up now for a while, though obviously it doesn't come naturally for me to do so!

Edited August 16, 2011 by mfbukowski