Speak Out - Don't Freak Out Quotes

“A few mistakes do not a fiasco make. Professionals throw them off casually but file them away to reinvent as an endearing anecdote in later presentations. Make them part of the performance! Put them behind you and keep going whatever happens.”
― Ruth Bonetti, Speak Out - Don't Freak Out

“A first recorded instance of “presentation anxiety” occurred around 1300BC when God commissioned Moses to urge Pharaoh to free the Hebrew slaves. “Please send someone else!” pleaded Moses to God. “I'm a nobody. I'm not eloquent. I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.” Perhaps he stuttered.

Poor Moses. As well as having to argue with God and Pharaoh – and convince the Hebrews they should follow him to the Promised Land – he had to overcome his insecurity as a speaker.

Moses’ story reveals an important truth – the more we speak in public, the less our fears intrude and the more we grow in confidence. If Moses, the self-confessed “nobody”, could surmount his fears, so too can we.”
― Ruth Bonetti, Speak Out - Don't Freak Out

“To all of you who suffer from stage fright agonies, take heart. You suffer because you are not a potato. Does a potato possess your abilities, your sensitivity, or richness of imagination? Do you want to present like a potato? Do people pay to hear potatoes speak? Your imagination makes your life harder but, when you have conquered your fears, it will set you apart.”
― Ruth Bonetti, Speak Out - Don't Freak Out