Are you someone who feels nervous when you stand in front of people on a stage? Most people experience fear and anxiety just by thinking about public speaking. Even as students, they back out from all possible chances of standing in front of people. If you consider a class, a handful of students would be willing to perform on stage. What could be the reason for this?
Reason for fear of public speaking
Before discussing the benefits of public speaking for children, there is a need to understand the reasons for their fear. Public speaking or talking to an audience in front of a stage is the scariest nightmare for many children. It is normal for a person to be anxious about how well they will perform. But when that fear starts to hinder their daily life, it becomes an issue. Many times, children face difficulty in delivering a speech without fear to an audience. When all eyes in the audience look at them, they may feel conscious and afraid. The reason for this can vary from person to person.
- Previous experiences: If a child has had a bad experience with public speaking early in their life, they are more likely to be afraid of doing it again. Such children will experience extreme amounts of fear and stress.
- Anticipation: Most children feel the pressure of performing way before they get on the stage. They get worried about something that might happen on stage and fear it. They may even lose sleep and appetite due to fear.
- Fear of audience: The pressure of giving a good performance can be stressful. Will the audience think the speech is boring? Are they judging negatively? Such thoughts can be overwhelming for a person.
- Forgetfulness: What would happen if I forgot midway? What would the people think?– such crippling thoughts often bother speakers. This can contribute to fear. Many children dread the thought of going blank and not being able to speak on a stage.
- Self-doubt: Often, people doubt their skills and keep themselves from performing. They believe that they do not have what it takes to speak beautifully in front of an audience.
Fear is not an excuse to keep you from doing something nice. You can try methods to overcome your fear of public speaking and become a decent speaker. The immense benefits of public speaking for children are hard to ignore.
Helps with academics
Public speaking can help a child become good at their academics. When a child is confident enough to stand in front of a crowd and deliver a speech for some time, they will be noticed by people. This will help with their academics and professional career. A decent skill to keep the audience engaged is good for your resume. Being confident in your skills can be good for you, especially when you are a child.
Improves listening
One of the benefits of public speaking for children is that it makes them good listeners. As a speaker, they will be familiar with different audiences with a variety of opinions. This serves as a reality check that every piece of information can be perceived in more than one way. They will listen more attentively to know how people react to things.
Improves communication
The benefits of public speaking for children can be in many ways. They can develop their communication skills through a good program. Improved skills to speak with random people can help them express themselves more clearly. Good communication skills can also help a child foster ability to maintain good connections in their life. This skill comes in handy in the future when they have to interact with people formally regarding admissions, interviews, job opportunities, etc.
Ability to influence people
After a good speech, the audience will feel like it made sense. It gives them new perspectives. If a speaker is good enough, they will be able to shift an entire audience’s mind in favor of their motion. The ability to speak their mind and convince others why they are right can be beneficial in the future when they are in an environment where opinions matter.
Prepares for future
Another benefit of public speaking for children is that it helps them grow up as confident individuals with no fear of the audience. It will help them in their future endeavors. For instance, if they started working in a company and had to lead people in their department, they would need the skill to motivate them. With good experience in public speaking, leading a team would be easy. Public speaking skills can be put to good use in inspiring the team to perform better.
The Bottom Line
Enroll in a public speaking class with Orator academy to help your child become more confident in speaking. They will be given the training required to become fearless speakers with specially crafted courses from Orator Academy.
