Would you rather make a public speech or jump off a tall building?

I read in a recent survey that most businessmen would rather jump off a tall building than make a public speech.

It's certainly a feeling I used to have when I first started my career in advertising. And in advertising it's just a tad important to be able to stand up in front of a lot of people with a degree of confidence and sell an idea. I was perfectly comfortable in an informal setting –  in a client's office for example, or the boardroom but once It became a more structured environment with a stage, or in front of a large group of people, the paranoia and nausea would set in. The biggest problem with public speaking is there is no substitute for the real thing but if it makes you feel the way it did me, then you avoid it like the plague.

So what changed it for me? Well, quite simply I read the greatest book ever written on public speaking by a man called Dale Carnegie; he's probably most famous for his book,  How to Win Friends and Influence People, which is well worth a read, however, The Art of Public Speaking, which Carnegie wrote in 1915, does what it says on the cover and is just as relevant today as it's ever been – if you fancy giving it a go, I recommend the 1962 edition, The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking. 

You may be wondering how a book originally penned nearly a hundred years ago can help you in this 21st century world of high tech communication.  All I can say is you will be amazed. What it will do is instill in you the confidence to grab every speaking opportunity you possibly can, as well as help you know what to do when you're actually standing up there.

If you have any doubts try watching this video clip of the world's greatest investor, Warren Buffett talking about how Dale Carnegie changed eveything for him. Buffett's public speaking has become so legendary, that he is known as, 'the sage of Omaha', but like most of us, he didn't start out that way.