Public Speaking (Can you do it? YES YOU CAN!)

I am terrified at the thought of getting up in front of people (yes, it's true, a public speaking teacher is terrified).  Let me explain:  When I was a kid, I took piano lessons. Every spring, our piano teacher would have us prepare for a formal recital. We would pick out our piano pieces (I can still hear her saying "Classics only! None of this pop music crap!"), practice them until memorized, and then wait with dread for the fateful day. When it arrived, all of us would put on our Sunday Best, and trudge over to the local church for our recital. We were given a corsage to wear and a program, then ushered to our seats in the front of the chapel. Then we would wait and watch ("Quietly children, sit quietly! No wiggles!"). We watched as the chapel got filled with friends and family. A LOT of friends and family. Ok, a WHOLE LOT of friends and family (gulp).  I secretly started cursing Beethoven, and the music he wrote that I held in my hand (just in case). All of a sudden, there seemed to be a lot more notes on my music. And as I looked the music over, I panicked. I hadn't ever noticed this crescendo before, where did that come from?! And had I really paid attention to the tempo and the time signature even?  I looked at my music like it was written in the Greek language.

     About that time, my friend elbowed me. "Hey Lori, are you ok?" 
     "Of course I'm ok;" I whimpered, "Why?"
     "Well because your skin looks funny." 

I ran (quietly of course), to the bathroom and looked with horror in the mirror. All over my face, my neck, my arms, and my hands was this awful red splotchy rash.

     GREAT.

I tried splashing water on my skin. Nothing. And now my dress was wet, and I looked like I had been sweating profusely. To make matters worse, I started to tear up. Now some people in Hollywood or other alien cultures actually look beautiful when they cry. Not me. The blotches got worse, and my eyes turned red. And I was third on the program. My mom enters the bathroom:

    "Lori, there you are, you're up next, what in the world are you...." 

She doesn't finish her sentence, because she just now really looks at me and sees the mess that I am.  We share a moment of horror. Then she tries her best to hide her original thoughts and says;

     "You look fine. Beautiful. You will do great!"

She then ushers me back to my seat in the Chapel of Hell.  I hear "Spinning Wheel's" last measure. That's my cue. I go up to the piano, sit down, take a deep breath, look down at my fingers ("Don't look at your fingers Lori, true pianists rarely look!"), and they are shaking. They look like alien digits and not my own. And then...somewhere, Beethoven (who was profoundly deaf later in life) covers his ears and groans. 

And that's how all of my piano recitals went. Year after year. People (well, my family and friends anyway) would show up just to see the "Red Headed Blotchy Girl with Alien Fingers" play Mozart, Chopin, and Debussey. And for all that torture, my piano teacher (God bless you Mrs. Ricks), would give me a pansy in a planter as a gift. Every single pansy I ever received wilted and died. Apparently pansies don't like Red-Headed Blotchy Girls either.  I saw it as a sign.

Now, you're probably wondering, "What does this have to do with YOUR experience in public speaking & performance? This sounds horrible, why would you tell me this?"  Well I'll tell you. 

PERFORMING IN PUBLIC IS HECKA SCARY.  

Yep, that's right. I'm not going to sugar coat it for you. I won't even give you a pansy (it won't grow anyway). 

According to the "Book of Lists," people rank public speaking up there with death. Yep...Number one fear is a loved one dying a horrible death (piano recital maybe). Number two is you yourself dying in a horrible way (totally piano recital). Number three?  PUBLIC SPEAKING. 

Fast forward several years to a classroom at BYU-Idaho.  Young, excited, vibrant students all eager to get up in front of their peers and change the world with their speeches (insert appropriate sit-com laughter here).  And I am here to teach them how (insert appropriate "you lose" music from The Price Is Right).

     Is it even possible? 
     Can public speaking actually be done right? 
     Can YOU give a great speech? 
     Does Sis Embree have any flowers that lived? 

The answer to the above questions is YES, YES, YES, and STILL WORKING ON IT.  In my next blog post, I am going to outline the basics of public speaking for you. With a little knowledge, a lot of practice, and perhaps some itch relief rash creme, we will conquer the third biggest fear! 

Take THAT Beethoven!