Are you afraid of public speaking? Do you avoid any speaking opportunity? Have you ever thought about how your fears are limiting your career?
Being able to present an idea in a compelling, exciting way is vital for success in many business fields. It is time for you to stop avoiding public speaking moments and look at them as an opportunity.
Communications skills Vs. Technical skills
When you think about your job, you tend to focus on the technical skills you need to do it. In fact, those are probably the first ones you mention in your resume. The problem is: they are not enough.
Manager positions are the ones with more significant demands concerning communication abilities. To be a good manager, to even have a chance of being promoted to such a position, you must be able to communicate with many people, people with different goals and perspectives, and truly reach them. Yet, these are not the only positions that may challenge your communication skills.
Sales positions and all that require direct contact with the general public demand good communication skills as well. However, your communication skills start working for you way before you notice. They have an impact from day one.
Let’s get that job
Even before you start working for a company, you already need your communication skills to be sharp: the job interview.
Your probability of getting the position you’re looking for depends on your ability to send the right message about you and your abilities. You must show how much do you know and why you are the perfect candidate for that job.
This is also vital when you’re looking for new projects and opportunities inside the company for which you’re already working. Why should you have another position? Why should your boss give you extra responsibility? You need to be clear, concise, and persuasive, and that’s just the beginning.
Work environment
There is something that most of us don’t really focus on: interpersonal relationships with our co-workers. Yet, we all love to work in a place with a good work environment.
A good place to work is where you feel respected and recognized. It is the dream of any professional, but that’s not only due to your technical skills. A good professional is more than that. Since your first day of work, your communication skills are being tested. They establish first impressions and allow you to build a relationship with your colleagues.
Good relationships produce an excellent environment to work. When you feel good, you’re more creative, focus, and dedicated to the task. Inevitably, productivity raises. Engaging in good professional relationships inside the company is the first step to recognition. No one likes that person that barely talks, and it’s never available to help others.
Knowledge and Confidence
No matter the professional field you work in, you need to show your abilities and expertise. A good communicator knows how to demonstrate and share their knowledge. Being able to stand up and speak up in a meeting is usually the first step to earn trust and admiration.
Also, if you are able to speak to large groups, speak up in a meeting, or simply share your ideas with your co-workers, it shows confidence. This will make you stand up from the crowd, leading to new opportunities and developing your career.
When the best technique is communication
At senior levels of leadership, it is required for you to be comfortable in presentations. You’ll need to be persuasive and inspirational. If you show this ability from your early stages in the company, you’ll be more likely to move up faster in the hierarchy.
Good communication skills make you more promotable. If you are a good communicator, you’ll more likely fill managing positions.
Besides that, your career and your happiness as a professional is not only related to your position in the company. When you can stand up and send a clear message before your team, it means that you have a good profile to be the face of the company or speak on their behalf. Your chances of being invited to give presentations increase. Those can have a good impact on your career as well.
Conferences, meetings, seminars. Your participation in these events, especially as an orator, can have a tremendous positive impact in your professional life, and don’t forget your self-confidence.
No Longer Avoiding Risks
Fear of public speaking is an important barrier to career evolution. Either because you can’t apply for managing jobs that require a lot of communication skills, or because you are unable to show how much you know and all the good ideas you may have.
Developing your communication abilities will give you the confidence to accept more challenges and expose yourself in a good, prolific way to your career. You’ll stop avoiding risks, and you’ll see the positive impact that can have.
Public speaking is no longer optional. It is a requirement for a successful professional life. Do you want to do it right? The secret is preparation and courage.
Cátia is a psychologist who is passionate about helping children develop and train social skills.
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