Can't agree more. I actually have a stutter and avoided any public speaking until a pretty ripe age. At some point I just had to do it. I had nightmares, night

Can't agree more. I actually have a stutter and avoided any public speaking until a pretty ripe age. At some point I just had to do it. I had nightmares, nightsweats, couldn't sleep or eat. But that is not what mattered. What mattered was that I did it anyway. I was nervous, wanted to run away, but I did it. It was for small groups first, giving status updates to a few colleagues - even those used to stress me. Then after some speaking at conferences, I was surprised that these status updates ever caused me any stress. From there I went to a key note in front of 800 or more people (a few years back I would quite literally preferred to die rather than doing that). Suddenly the conference engagement became less daunting. The funny thing is: On stage I do not stutter. I guess I'm too busy delivering the message. And what if I do? It doesn't really matter. Some people might find it funny (I certainly had my share of that when I was younger, but those folks are typically inferior on an intellectual level and are just looking for compensation.) And, yes, I am still extremely nervous before each public engagement and I still not like it per se, but you know what? That's part of it.