I have had a problem with public speaking for years, but the most ironic part is I am actually an excellent public speaker. But for the life of me, I get completely freaked out.  The most bothersome about it is that sometimes I actually am not as nervous as I am other times, and that uncertainty of how I will react on that day is what is the biggest variable that makes the thought of that day coming so grueling.

I can point to dozens of very successful presentations where I walked away feeling so empowered and so excited that I could not wait to do my next public speaking event, but that only lasts so long.

Public speaking is nothing but an enlarged conversation. There is not much difference between talking to one person or to ten people or to a hundred on a topic that interests them. As the number increases, you must talk louder. But this is no longer necessary, as the modern audio systems will take care of this.

A crowd is willing to listen to a speaker for a
long time, without interruption, if the topic is current and is within their comprehension and understanding. Each individual in the crowd feels as if the speaker is talking to him direct as the topic is of interest to him as well as to the speaker. Therefore, think of your speech as a conversation with the audience.