How to use Blogging & Community Building to Master Public Speaking

As the online world takes over more of our time and focus, many of us tend to forget about the offline world, the vast opportunities that still exist within it and the connection it has with driving the online world. Nothing beats human interactions in the end since it’s in our current DNA to socialize and experience each other and ideas in a physical way – it’s simply how we’re built.

Coupled with that, there exists lucrative opportunities to reach wide audiences via networking at conferences and public speaking. These opportunities are rich as they expose those brave enough to engage these live audiences, exposure to a qualified and highly targeted community; which translates to a greater ROI on whatever you’re trying to achieve.

Yet, in light of this, 74% of people suffer from speech anxiety. Thankfully, bloggers have an opportunity to begin overcoming this.

Blogging has become a powerful tool to help people across the globe break out of their shell, gain exposure, fulfill lifelong dreams and ultimately achieve online success. It can be quite a liberating experience when you realize that you have built a blog that is on its way to the top and the traffic starts pouring in.

At the same time you’re enjoying your successes in the blogosphere; bear in mind that some, if not all, of this success and what you’ve learned can pour into all areas of your life.

Specifically, blogging has the power to mold you into a very influential speaker, which in turn, can help you to build your global brand and authority and catapult you to even greater heights.

If you’ve never thought about these benefits, here are some highlights that will give you an idea of the power you possess within your hands through blogging.

Practicing with Your Audience

Although we are not face to face with our blogging audience, we can’t deny the fact that there is the feeling of anxiety and embarrassment when things perform less than expected. So the same effort that you would put into preparing a speech, it should be the same in preparing that perfect blog post.

At the same time don’t be afraid to try out new things like using a different writing style or launching that crazy marketing idea that’s not proven but just might work.

If you’ve been building a good relationship with your readers, they will honestly and quickly signal to you if you’re on the right track or not.

Simply put, the more you blog, the more you practice and read your posts aloud, your mental clarity will improve, your confidence and knowledge increases and you will eventually find yourself speaking with greater ease, power and authority.

A useful method for practicing public speaking as an extension of your blog is to more closely engage readers, clients and other bloggers in your niche through the use of a collaboration and online meeting tool like ClickMeeting.

The service enables you to host real-time audio/video sessions with your audience which you can use to discuss industry trends, provide insight and answer questions and share resources to bring together other professionals in your industry.

Through using ClickMeeting, you’re practicing your presentation skills in an environment with less tension and demand for you to be “face to face” with your audience. The platform provides a buffer. Use this experience to hone your skills and get more comfortable expressing yourself in real-time.

Check this video: Seth Godin: How to get your ideas to spread

Building Confidence in Your Abilities

Public speaking can be a very dreadful experience, even for the hardened master. There is just something about standing before a crowd, all eyes on you with high expectations.

In this case, the fear of failure sets in and if not controlled, can cause a complete mental and physical shutdown. Blogging presents us with a unique opportunity to choose whichever topic we feel passionate and knowledgeable about and to truly express ourselves in a somewhat controlled environment.

As you continuously blog, the more you will learn and even if your writing skills are not up to par, if you’re truly interested and dedicated, you can improve and even become the best.

In any niche, your confidence will improve as you blog more often. When the time comes for you to present yourself offline, you will be amazed at the knowledge you have gained and how easily you express yourself.

To conclude, public speaking is definitely a skill that is worth mastering and can launch your career to new heights, gain you the exposure you need to build a solid brand and grow your business.