RSS Feed
I recently entered a Toastmaster Speech contest.
Having been a public speaker for years, this was the first time I tested myself again others in the speaking profession. I decided to enter after receiving positive feedback from people at events where I have spoken: chambers, business associations, business presentations, etc.
It was an uncomfortable, exciting and scary experience.
The speech topic was Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway.
I chose that topic because that was exactly what I was doing: feeling the fear and doing it anyway. Besides, it was supposed to be a motivational speech and I needed something I could work with.
The first challenge was to get through the club contest. I did that.
The second challenge was to get through the area contest. I did that.
Now I am competing at the district level and I am up against some very tough competition.
This is both exciting and scary. It is exciting because to reach this level implies I have mastered – to a certain extent – some public speaking skills. Scary because I realize how much I have yet to learn. Exciting because all my years of hard work are paying off; scary because I know I have years of hard work left.
The important thing was that I did not let my fear hold me back. Never having been in a speech contest, I created all kinds of scenarios in my mind and none of them were very flattering. I continue to learn that FEAR simple means False Evidence Appearing Real. My mind creates more obstacles for me than reality ever could. When you begin to understand that is it easier to feel the fear and do it anyway.
To your continued success,
Ron Finklestein
330-990-0788
ron@ronfinklestein.com
