Q:
How could I learn to overcome my fear of public speaking?
A:
First of all, make sure you have something to say; that’s number one.
And then when nobody is listening, give a speech in private. Practice talking in private. If you’re a capable person, if you’re a baal machshavos, you’ll be able to say something. You learned seforim, so why not? Practice talking.
And I’ll give you some advice now. It’s worth a lot of money but I’m giving it to you free of charge. I never did it myself, but it’s worth doing. Take anything, a Yiddish newspaper if you speak Yiddish or an English newspaper if you prefer. You only need one; don’t buy another one anymore; just one time. And you should do as follows.
Read it five minutes a day aloud and speak every consonant aloud. If you speak Yiddish, redt klahr un deitlich yedden vort, yedder ois un mit der tzeit vest du veren a no’em (the Rav was careful to say the words slowly and enunciate every consonant as he spoke). Speak clearly and enunciate every letter and you’ll train yourself to be a speaker. Yeshiva boys, pay attention because someday it’ll come in handy. Learn how to speak in public by enunciating every consonant clearly (again, the Rav was especially careful to demonstrate what he meant by pronouncing each syllable very distinctly). And after a while, you’ll gain confidence.
TAPE # 91
