9 Public Speaking Tips for Introverts

'Thoughtful and thought-provoking' is as powerful as 'dynamic and entertaining'

It’s hard to find art that deals with the theme of public speaking. I have no idea what kind of public speaker the Russian landscape painter, Isaac Levitan, was, but his gaze, and his body of work, suggests a man who knew and was comfortable with himself. And so today, I share his work - here, his self-portrait.

Yesterday, I was chatting with a podcast host who is a very comfortable (and extroverted) public speaker. He said that, despite his love of public speaking, he gets butterflies before every talk.

“I know exactly what you mean,” I said, and mentioned that sometimes-terrible feeling of having all eyes on you.

He replied that this feeling doesn’t bother him at all! For him, the main issue is worrying that he’ll be revealed as not knowing what he’s talking about.

This exchange made me think about how public speaking has a way of bringing out each person’s particular insecurities.

And how there are certain insecurities that I hear a LOT from introverted speakers.

So that’s who today’s post is for. Over the years, I’ve gathered many public speaking tips for introverts, and I thought I’d share some of them with you today. These tips are meant for speakers who don’t love “performing", but who’re very interested in offering something of value.

These ideas won’t turn you into a showman; they won’t ask you to become someone you’re not. On the contrary, they’re meant to help you feel more at home in your own skin — even with a hundred pairs of eyes on you.

Here they are: