Since the very start, everyone everywhere has had hard times speaking. Stutters, loss of train of thought, and wrong use of tones fill Pahrump Valley High School. We’ve all been there once, scared of being judged or just too shy to speak. In fact, being scared is one of the biggest weaknesses of being human. Those who have a difficult time speaking up tend to even be scared because of a past experience they had where they were bullied or faced an embarrassing situation due to speaking up.
“People want to be leaders, not sheep.” Charles Larssen states. Oftentimes, the fear of speaking is from thinking that people have high expectations of you, and you’ll ruin that somehow by speaking up.
To help, try to make your environment more comfortable for you, so you can eventually speak more. If you’re in public, try to calm yourself and tell yourself that you aren’t being judged, or trick your mind into comfortability by repeating positive affirmations to yourself until your fears are eased. Maybe even consider bringing a friend with you as well to calm your fears.
You could take it slow and try some baby steps. Read books, watch videos, and listen to podcasts on how to speak up that would help open up your mind. Naomi Schott, a senior in Pahrump Valley High School said in a digital interview, “Put yourself in awkward positions.” Try to put yourself in awkward positions, positions not too weird, but ones that would help you realize that this isn’t so bad after all and help you get used to it.
You can give yourself a challenge, a challenge that’ll help you speak up better, like an act of courage. Perhaps a challenge like raising your hand and sharing in class.
Giving yourself a challenge gets you more used to speaking with others. Try to push yourself out of your comfort zone, at least by a little bit.
Try speech clubs. They would generally help with speaking, and push you to the brink by forcing speech. They put you in front of a crowd and have you speak. They sound scary, but they aren’t that bad once you get used to them.
The staff of Pahrump Valley High School themselves have problems with speaking every now and then, too, so you aren’t alone in this. In fact, about half of the student body has problems with speaking up, whether it’s just stuttering or straight up not speaking.
No one is judging you, nor should you be scared that they will be. Half of the time, people are too focused on themselves to care about what you’re doing and are in the same boat as you, so don’t be scared to speak up or speak your mind. Speaking in front of others is a crucial part of life and a skill that is very beneficial to learn, and it’s important to accept that and try your hardest to accommodate to it. Speak up, speak out, and speak loud.
