You'll probably never get over your nervousness before a speech or a presentation. Even the most accomplished speakers feel the butterflies before getting up in front of the audience. And that's good. As the old saying goes, if you're as cool as a cucumber when you speak, you're probably about as interesting as one. You can learn to use your nervousness and the adrenaline it produces to fuel your enthusiasm for the subject, to amplify your voice or body language, and to keep you sharp and alert. Here's how.

Be Prepared
First, be ready for your presentation. That means making sure you have the right message for the audience, that you've outlined the talk in a logical way, that you've added colorful elements to make the presentation memorable, and that you've rehearsed it well enough that you could do it in your sleep. (No, there's no way to take shortcuts when preparing for a presentation. Shortcuts lead to failure.)

Ask: What Are You Afraid Of?
If you're afraid of giving a presentation, ask yourself exactly what you fear. Forgetting your words? Fumbling the opening or conclusion? Tripping over a microphone cord? Giving weak answers to hostile questions? Maybe your fear is serving you well, your opening is weak, or you haven't thought up good answers to some of the questions you know you'll get. Do whatever is necessary to turn the weakness into strength. Normally this means more practice, but it may mean an additional trip to the library or the internet to do more research.

Just Before the Presentation
You're seated in the presentation room, listening as the moderator or toastmaster is introducing you to the audience. Your heart starts to race and your palms get sweaty. This is normal. But it's critical to control your emotions.

To do that:

. Breathe deeply. Focus on breathing deeply from the diaphragm. Do ten long, slow breaths just before you go up. The increased oxygen will help calm you.

. Give yourself a pep talk. "OK, old buddy. It's time. You can do it. You'll floor 'em."

. Recite the first few opening lines in your mind. They'll pop out of your mouth with vigor when you begin to speak.

. Remind yourself to start slowly. Your energy may cause you to race through the opening. Rein in your energy so you can use it for the whole presentation. You don't want to relax completely-if that were possible. You want to use the energy building in your bones for a strong start to the talk.

As You're Speaking
When you begin to speak, look for some friendly faces in the audience and direct your comments to them. If you fix on someone who looks bored or hostile, you may lose confidence, and you need all of that you can get. Finding friendly faces to speak to reminds you that your talk is really just a conversation with people who care about what you have to say. Don't forget: In most situations, people in the audience are on your side. They want you to succeed, they want you to tell them things they don't know, they want you to give them reasons to act in a certain way or to believe something. Most of them are not viewing you critically or judging you.

The Best Way to Control Nerves
Speak often in front of people. The more you do, the better you'll get at turning simple fear into a form of invigorating energy that makes you feel electric and powerful.

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