A Total System for Becoming a Natural, Confident Communicator
Ivy Naistadt has developed a foolproof system for becoming a natural, confident communicator. Her 20 years of experience as a Public Speaking Coach helping business professionals are synthesized in her new book, Speak Without Fear: A Total System for Becoming a Natural, Confident Communicator.
"This book could be your Bible as it addresses the problem of stage fright and other difficulties connected with public speaking."
– USA Today
Read the Reviews...
Articles & Press Clippings...
“I found you audiobook “Speak Without Fear” to be extremely helpful! I’ve always struggled in meetings or any arena where I have a speaking part and your book provided me with some great insight and tools that I put to use in a presentation this morning. Thanks for the great book!”
Buy it now in Kindle, Hardcover, Paperback, Audio CD, and Audiobook Download versions
Are you an Avoider, Anticipator, Adrenalizer or Improviser when it comes to making a presentation, going on a job interview or speaking before a large audience? Whatever your nervousness profile may be, the fear of public speaking has taken over and disabled you from giving an effective, well-executed performance. You're not alone.
Millions of people have to communicate daily under pressure. Even some of the best performers do so reluctantly and with great stress.
Executive speech coach, speaker, and seminar leader Ivy Naistadt, whose clients include the senior management of Hershey, Corning, Pitney Bowes, IBM and the New York Times, has developed a foolproof system for becoming a natural, confident communicator. Her 20 years of experience in helping business professionals manage their public speaking jitters are synthesized in her new book, Speak Without Fear: A Total System for Becoming a Natural, Confident Communicator (Harper Collins Publishers, February 20, 2004).
The stage fright we experience in situations where we are called upon to put ourselves on the line before a group or a person is fueled by three things, according to Naistadt, including:
- Myths about the fear of public speaking pervading society that we have bought into. These obstacles can be eliminated easily and quickly simply by dispelling them.
- Skill-related roadblocks, which require more time and effort to remove because they require learning or having a particular skill. But at least the fix is clear-cut.
- Inhibitions that plague us on an individual basis, requiring a deeper level of commitment to resolve because they stem from fears we've nurtured as obstacles over time.
Get to the Root of What's Troubling You
Speak Without Fear aids the millions of Americans who list fear of public speaking as one of their biggest -- along with going to the dentist, being audited, and attending a funeral. It combats performance anxiety in everyday business situations -- meetings, presentations, interviews, reviews and sales conferences. Public speaking skills can be learned and honed and many books cover this topic. However, Speak Without Fear delves beyond external techniques and probes deeply into the reason for your performance anxiety.
Speak Without Fear gets to the root of what's troubling you and giving you the sweats so that you can identify what's in the way and work through it to communicate naturally, comfortably and compellingly before audiences of any size. "Considering how dependent the marketplace is on communications, it is imperative we overcome fear of public speaking that plagues our performance," says Naistadt.
Speak Without Fear shows us:
- Which personality type we identify with -- and how to address the fears and concerns associated with each one
- The 6 primary fears associated with public speaking and how to resolve them
- Eight last-minute details to prepare for our speaking engagement and convert fright time into Showtime!
- How to puncture the myths that keep us from reaching our unexplored speaking potential
- Dozens of do's and don'ts when it comes to how we use our bodies when presenting
- Four high-impact ingredients to make your speech bloom and come to life
Surprisingly, the influence of our speaking fears may trace all the way back to childhood. The words spoken to us by those we trusted -- siblings, parents, teachers, and clergy played a great role in our development as communicators. Naistadt attacks all of the emotional-based issues and provides techniques designed to bring any negative emotions accompanying hidden obstacles to the surface and clears them away.
Easy to Follow, Step-by-Step
Naistadt's easy-to-follow, step-by-step program helps you pinpoint the incidents and issues that, directly or indirectly, cause you fear and loathing in the spotlight. She helps you develop and master a technique for overcoming your anxiety that is adaptable to your level of experience and need. She serves as a calming force in a moment of chaos.
Develop a Style that Reflects Who You Are
Speak Without Fear empowers you to develop a personal style of communicating that reflects who you are, with self-assurance and authority.
Naistadt helps you bring your message to life while minimizing the fear factor. She concludes:
“No matter how anxious you are about going before an audience, any audience, whether it’s one or a thousand, no matter how many jobs or other opportunities you have passed up, or lost, because of it, you can combat your stage fright and liberate yourself to speak without fear — that is, comfortably, confidently, compellingly — in any circumstance.”
Author Reviews...
“Authentic, impactful communication requires a powerful message aligned with one’s genuine stories, emotions, body and presence. In Speak Without Fear, Ivy Naistadt provides you with very powerful and practical tools to express your deepest, most genuine voice as you powerfully connect with your audience. I highly recommend this book!”
CEO & Founder, LeaderSource® International Speaker and Best-Selling Author of Leadership from the Inside Out and Awakening the Leader Within.
“Spiced with hilarious anecdotes from Ivy’s careers in show business and big business, Speak Without Fear is like having a close friend gently exorcise our deep-seated fear of speaking in public.”
author of Beating the Success Trap
“On the surface, Speak Without Fear may seem to be a book for adults in large corporations who aspire to poised public speaking, but it is much more than that. Delving into the roots of stage fright, Ivy Naistadt shows how pivotal past experiences can be in shaping an individual’s communication style. Her step-by-step exercises pinpoint the essential skill set needed for effective public speaking, whether we communicate to large or small groups.”
Author of Girlwars and Surviving Ophelia
“I wish I had read this book a long time ago! By encouraging us to tap into faulty notions we’ve learned about ourselves and our communication, Ivy Naistadt offers a fresh, funny, holistic approach to unlearning the negative lessons that hold us back and accessing the powerful speaker in each of us.”
Co-author of The Anger Advantage
“Ivy Naistadt knows what it takes to be an authentic and powerful speaker. Her refreshing book, Speak Without Fear, takes the “sweat” out of speaking. With Ivy’s guidance you may even learn to love it.”
Media & marketing coach and author of Sell Yourself Without Selling Your Soul
Book Reviews for Speak Without Fear
“I wish I’d had [this] book 20 years ago… it’s very very valuable – one of the best of it’s kind I’ve ever seen quite frankly.”
“It may be all talk, but there’s a lot to be said for overcoming stage fright: The unrelenting phenomenon can prevent you from attaining social and professional success. Naistadt helps you pinpoint the reasons that you clam up during important presentations and in front of crowds. She targets your nervousness profile and cultivates specific ways you can overcome the jitters, working through “surface” and hidden obstacles so you can shine.”
More Reviews...
“Excellent advice for overcoming common [public speaking] fears and obstacles. A fine guide, recommended.”
“In this approachable how-to book, a former actor turned professional speaker lays out a path to confident public speaking... Naistadt’s anecdotal tales of her own experiences as an actor who struggled with inhibitions and anxiety, as well as her tales of clients and their public speaking travails, give this manual a friendly, conversational tone that should appeal to any person facing a big presentation, whether it’s a high school senior planning for college interviews or a high-level employee making a year-end report.”
Available in These Translations...
Buy it now in Kindle, Hardcover, Paperback, Audio CD, and Audible Audiobook versions