Public speaking anxiety?
If you’re fed up with feeling anxious speaking in public...
If you panic when asked to deliver a presentation…
If you have missed many opportunities in life because of this fear...
You’ve come to the right place…
For 24 years, I’ve been helping people change how they feel about presenting.
I’ve run over 800 public speaking courses for 8000 people who don’t like public speaking or presenting.
Is this you? Is this how you feel about public speaking and presenting?
These are some of the things that people have written to me about over the last 24 years…
Do you dread public speaking and presenting?
“I felt physically sick and was close to tears at just the thought of having to present.”
Abbie
“I want to be able to stand up and speak in front of a larger audience without completely feeling like it’s the end of the world!”
Dave
Are you scared of being the centre of attention?
“I want to feel more at ease when being the centre of attention, as I find it a real struggle. Public speaking and presenting is something I actively shy away from and avoid which has held me back professionally in the past. I want to give myself the confidence to overcome this fear.”
Aaron
“I feel very self-conscious if I have to speak to a group of people. I lose my clarity of thought. This has now become a hindrance to me and a cause of anxiety.”
Nicola
Overwhelmed by physical feelings?
“I am terrified of public speaking, I freeze, get very overwhelmed and my mind goes completely blank… I would like to overcome this freeze and also the idea that what I say has no value or is not interesting.. I don’t feel I speak from my heart, often from my head as a way of keeping detached from the experience.”
Natasha
“I have a very physical reaction to having to speak in front of a large audience - heart races, mind goes blank, throat closes etc.”
Ellie
Does your fear affect your work?
“The fear has grown even to the point where I get nervous introducing myself in meetings.”
Mark
“I want to overcome my fear of public speaking as currently it is a massive barrier for me in my career, current role and wanting to progress through the organisation, promotion etc.”
Katy
Does the fear of presenting limit the quality of life?
“I have a very intense fear of speaking in public and it is ruining my entire life.”
Az
“I have spent my whole life avoiding public speaking/presenting and I am now forced to do it. It has probably held me back.”
Roberta
Do you just want to be better at public speaking and presenting?
“To be more confident being me, to not be afraid to speak up and tell people about my business and myself.”
Kath
“I want to be able to speak to a room full of people confidently, without being full of fear and self doubt!”
Jack
“I want to be able to manage my nerves and not feel petrified and inarticulate if I’m ever asked to speak in a group at work.”
Fiona
Do you want to be a natural, authentic speaker ?
I want to learn to speak authentically without following a formula that so many people follow and I see on stage that doesn't feel right or real to me and makes me lose interest.
Catherine
To lose the fears associated with expressing myself.
Sue
I want to reduce my anxiety about public speaking so I can speak confidently in meetings at work, be able to pursue promotions and also be more of myself in every day life.
Matt
You are NOT the only one
I’m John Dawson and my goal is to help you move past your fears and anxiety, to live a life where you are not ashamed of, nor limited by your fears.
So you can live your life to the full and do all the things that you really want to do.
That’s why I have developed a two day public course course totally designed to help people like you. And I’ve worked with 8000 people who didn’t like public speaking since 2000. (Have a look below at the range of people who have come on the course)
It’s not like a normal presentation course.
I’m not going to teach how to do Powerpoint. My course and my coaching is about helping you move away from fear to build the confidence you need to speak publicly.
As a result of my two day course you’ll be able to:
✔︎ Overcome the fear of presenting and public speaking anxiety
✔︎ Learn to be the centre of attention with ease
✔︎ Feel confident in front of any audience
✔︎ Be yourself and connect authentically
✔︎ Have the confidence to lead the life you want to live without apologising for doing so.
Supporting you throughout the course
I know that everyone who comes to my course will probably be nervous. So this two day course is designed to make it as safe as possible for you to learn the new skills and the new thinking you need to make public speaking and presenting more possible. It’s a key part of my approach.
It’s an experiential course (learning through experience and discussion) which builds up the learning in very small steps, sometimes very baby steps! I know that if you are too overwhelmed you don’t learn, so 20 years of experience goes into every course. All the exercises are optional and each participant receives a lot of individual attention.
What you learn
How to understand audiences in a very different way, we start off with that and keep on learning about audiences all the way through the course. Lots of courses seem to miss this bit out and it’s vital for making things simpler.
What gets in the way for you currently as a speaker. Understanding where the fears and the pressures come from is the key to learning what needs to change.
The new skills and the new thinking. Most of the course (from mid-morning on the first day) is focussed on learning these new skills and also the mindset changes we need to make to make public speaking simpler. Such as learning how to connect with the audience, not to rush, not to imagine what the audience is thinking, to reduce the pressures we put on ourselves and make the whole thing a lot simpler. A fundamental part of the course is about building a confidence practice (trusting ourselves more) so we don’t just wait for public speaking events to build our confidence.
The way of teaching
I keep the course numbers to 6-10 people so it’s a small enough course to have individual attention and big enough to feel like public speaking
Individual coaching through the course after each stage
Group conversations and exercises, building confidence and changing what it means to be the centre of attention
Gentle public speaking practice, building on what we are learning all the way through the course
Using ground-rules to set up the learning space to be as safe as possible
Talk to me before a course
Quick Chat: Want a 10 minute chat with me to ask some questions? You can book a “Talk to me for free!” 10 minute slot at your convenience. My availability is limited because Im teaching most weeks but slots are offered when I can including up to 19:30. Book here
Longer chat with coaching: My one-to-one coaching hour sessions are via Zoom with an introductory session for £45 for an hour’s session instead of my normal £95. The Zoom sessions are to help you as much I as can to re-frame public speaking and whatever you want to explore. For some people it’s just about checking me out before they sign up!
If you wanted to message me, you can Whatsapp’s me on 07730 550842
Use this link https://wa.me/message/PMWJLAVSAZCWI1
Please note, I can’t always answer quickly as I’m coaching or running a course
Who comes on the course?
Anyone and Everyone! The courses are not aimed at a particular group and I don’t ask about your background before you come on the course. But in case you’re interested, here is a list of participant backgrounds that I've gathered over the years, and it really is an A-Z of occupations and activities:
Academics • Accountants • Actors • Actuaries • Architects • Army Officers and ex-Army (most ranks apart from Field Marshal!) • Artists • Arts People • Authors • Barristers • Best Men (lots of them) • Brides (not as many) • Cage Fighter (one of them - I was extra polite!) • Carers • Carpenters • Celebrants • CEOs (usually anonymously) • Civil Engineers • Civil Servants • Change Managers • Charity Workers • Church Organisers • City Council Officers • Clinical Psychologists (lots of them) • Coaches • Comedians • Company Directors • Complementary Therapists • Computer Programmers • Concorde Pilot (retired) • Consultants for the NHS (lots of them) • Counsellors • Cruise Ship lecturers • Designers • Doctors • Documentary Makers • Dominatrix (just one as far as I know) • Editors • Educational Psychologists • Electricians • Engineers • Environmental Consultants • Entrepreneurs • Estate Managers • Events Organisers (lots) • Facilitators • Factory Inspectors • Fathers of the Bride (lots) • Film People • Fire people • Freelance people • Fundraisers • Funeral Directors • Furniture Makers • Gardeners • Geographers • Golf Club Captains (lots) • GPs • Grooms • Head Teachers (a fair amount) • Health Administrators • Health Visitors • Homemakers • Hypnotherapists • Human Resource Managers • Investors • IT People • Job seekers • Lecturers • Managers (lots) • Managing Directors • Mathematicians • Mums returning to work • Naval Officers • Neuroscientists • Nuclear Submarine Captain (retired otherwise he couldn’t have told us) • Nurses • Occupational Psychologists • Opticians • Osteopaths • Painters • Personal Assistants • Personal Trainers • Pharmacists • Photographers • Physiotherapists • Pilots • Planners • Podiatrists • Police Officers • Politicians (not many) • Preachers • Probation Officers • Project Managers • Property People • Psychiatrists • Psychotherapists • Psychologists • Public Health Consultants • Public Speaking Trainers • Registrars • Retired people • Researchers • Sales Reps • Scriptwriters • Secretaries • Scientists • Self-Employed • Sex Therapists • Sex Worker (just one as far as i know) • Social Workers • Software Engineers • Solicitors • Speech and Language Therapists • Statisticians • Story Tellers • Students (lots of them) • Tax Inspectors • Teachers • Tefl teachers • Thai Kick Boxers • Town Clerks • Town Planners • Trainers • Tree Surgeons • Vicars • Volunteers • Wedding Photographers • Web Developers • X-ray people (otherwise known as Radiographers and Consultant Radiologists) • Young People • Zoologists
John's approach is unique, authentic and not at all scary. I entered believing public speaking was a pressured, perfectionist, fearful thing and left realising it’s just a chat and it's ok to be myself in front of others.
Nat Harrison
John has a unique approach to teaching, which helps you to step-by-step become comfortable with being in front of a crowd.
Sanne de Vries
(What I liked about the teaching was) John’s sincerity and passion for why he does what he does. He brought kindness, understanding and interest to every part and every hour of the course. John made himself available to everybody, and gently encouraged without forcing or shaming anybody into doing something that they didn’t want to do. He created a safe space for everybody on the course, himself included, which enabled us to open up and always assume support.
Rachel
Of course you can talk to me before you come if you are still not sure
If you are still not sure you can email me to ask questions or you can arrange an initial consultation with me at a reduced price before you come on a course for £45 for 60 minutes instead of £95. Click to Book a coaching session
Or just simply book a two day course with me right now
I teach in Bristol, London or Manchester throughout the year. To see ALL my courses click here. To go to Bristol, London or Manchester click on the cities.