IOP How can I overcome my nervousness?

[KarenOcean]

Personally, I'm a very outgoing person and I love to perform. I'm in forensic speech, choir, and orchestra, so I'm very used to and love to be in front of people. However, when it comes to Spanish, I find that I'm suddenly taken with a sort of stage fright and can hardly get out a sentence. It's my favorite subject and I'm quite proficient in the language though, which makes my nervousness even stranger. Any ideas how I can help this?

[Award Winning Boss]

Do you practice enough?

[Emmi]

Try to speak in front of your family members, even if they don't understand what you're saying. It helps you get used to an audience when speaking a different language.

And this may sound silly, but have you ever considered speaking to a pet or a stuffed animal? It sounds strange, but it's similar to having an audience (if you line up several stuffed animals in a row ), and the audience can't judge you or make fun of you if you make a mistake. You can practice timing, intonation, and try different phrases as much as you want until you feel confident in your presentation. And you audience will never get tired of listening to you

[KarenOcean]

AHiddenName: I practice a lot, and I usually end up adding more while I'm presenting, so that's not a problem for me...

emyski: I have done that before actually that's what I do to practice for speech! My stuffed animals love me ;D My mind just turns off when they're actual people though I was only barely able to do my oral the other day because I glared at the table in front of me to ignore everyone else! O: