Public speaking has always been one of those challenges that both excites and terrifies people at the same time. For me, it’s no different.
About a year ago, I had the honor of stepping onto the red dot at TEDx in Buon Ma Thuot City, Vietnam. It was a dream come true — and one of the most vulnerable, meaningful experiences of my life.
In this article, I want to share how I prepare my mind for public speaking, especially for high-stakes moments like TEDx. This isn’t a “how to memorize your script” guide — it’s deeper than that. It’s about calming the inner chaos, grounding yourself in purpose, and showing up with presence.
Whether you’re getting ready for your first classroom presentation or a global stage, I hope these reflections help you walk onto any stage with clarity, confidence, and authenticity.
1. Start with the why: Connect to your purpose
Before I ever started writing my TEDx talk, I asked myself: Why am I doing this?
Not Why TEDx? or Why public speaking? — but Why this message? Why now?
For me, the answer was simple but powerful: I wanted to share how gratitude changed my life. How it carried me through my hardest moments, and helped me build a meaningful life of purpose, service, and joy.
When I connected with that purpose, my fear shrank. My nerves were still there — but they didn’t control me. My message was bigger than my fear.
Whenever you’re preparing for public speaking, anchor yourself to your why. If your message matters to you, it will matter to others.
2. Visualize your success
During the months before TEDx, I spent time every morning visualizing my talk. I didn’t imagine perfection. I imagined presence.
I would close my eyes, take a few deep breaths, and visualize:
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Stepping onto the stage with calm energy
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Smiling at the audience
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Speaking slowly and from the heart
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Handling mistakes with grace
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Finishing my talk and feeling proud of my effort
This mental rehearsal became a key part of my daily routine. It made the actual talk feel familiar, almost like I had already lived it. The body doesn’t know the difference between real and vividly imagined experiences — so why not train it for confidence?
Try this: A week before your next presentation, set aside 5 minutes each day to visualize your success. Notice how your body responds.
3. Journal your fears — then reframe them
I’m a big fan of journaling. Writing helps me untangle thoughts, soothe anxiety, and return to my center. Before TEDx, I wrote almost daily about how I was feeling.
Some days, my entries looked like this:
“What if I forget my lines?”
“What if I’m not inspiring enough?”
“What if people judge my voice or accent?”
But here’s the magic of journaling — once I named the fears, they became smaller. And I could respond to them with truth:
Even if I forget a line, I can recover with grace.
I don’t have to be perfect — just honest.
My accent is part of who I am, and that’s powerful.
Reframing doesn’t mean pretending the fear doesn’t exist. It means choosing a story that empowers you, not paralyzes you.
4. Practice being seen
One of the scariest things about public speaking isn’t the speech itself — it’s the act of being fully seen.
It’s allowing people to witness your voice, your ideas, your expression. That can feel vulnerable — even threatening — especially if you grew up in a culture or environment where being “too expressive” wasn’t encouraged.
In the weeks leading up to TEDx, I made it a point to practice visibility. I posted more on social media. I said yes to smaller speaking opportunities. I recorded myself speaking and watched the playback.
It was awkward at first — but over time, I stopped cringing. I started embracing my voice, my body language, my natural rhythm.
Visibility is a muscle. The more you train it, the stronger it gets.
5. Use breathwork to ground your energy
Before every rehearsal — and especially before the live talk — I used simple breathwork to calm my nerves. My favorite technique is the 4-7-8 breath:
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Inhale for 4 counts
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Hold for 7 counts
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Exhale for 8 counts
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Repeat 4 times
This activates the parasympathetic nervous system — the part responsible for relaxation. It sends a message to your body: You are safe. You can do this.
Sometimes I would also place one hand on my heart and one on my belly as I breathed, just to feel connected to myself.
Your breath is your superpower. Use it.
6. Prepare your body, not just your words
Public speaking is physical. Your body is your instrument — so treat it with care.
Leading up to TEDx, I continued my usual training routine as a triathlete: cycling, running, swimming, and strength training. But I also added in daily yoga and stretching to ease tension and improve posture.
And perhaps most importantly — I slept well and ate nourishing food. I knew that a tired, dehydrated, or undernourished version of me wouldn’t deliver the best talk.
So if you’re preparing for a big speech, remember: rehearsal is only one part of the equation. Move your body. Rest your body. Fuel your body. It makes all the difference.
7. Don’t memorize — internalize
This is one of the biggest mindset shifts I had: I didn’t aim to memorize my TEDx talk word-for-word. I aimed to internalize the message.
I knew the key points. I knew the stories. I knew the flow. But I also gave myself permission to be flexible, to adapt if needed.
Why? Because memorization creates pressure. If you forget one word, your brain might panic and blank out.
Internalization creates trust. You trust yourself to return to the heart of the message, no matter what.
Speak from your truth, not from a script.
8. Focus on the one person you want to help
The night before the TEDx talk, I couldn’t sleep much. So I did one last journaling exercise: I wrote a letter to one person in the audience.
Not a real person — just a symbolic one. Someone who needed to hear this message about gratitude and resilience.
I imagined this person sitting in the crowd, feeling unsure or stuck, and needing a reminder of their own strength.
That one imaginary person became my anchor. I wasn’t speaking to 200 people anymore — just to them.
And guess what? After the talk, one young girl came up to me and said:
“I felt like you were talking directly to me.”
Mission accomplished.
9. Accept the nerves — they mean you care
Even with all the preparation — the breathwork, the journaling, the visualization — I was still nervous on the day of the talk.
My heart was pounding. My palms were sweaty. My voice cracked in the first few lines.
And that’s okay.
Nerves don’t mean you’re not ready. They mean you care.
I welcomed the nerves like an old friend. I said: Hey, you’re here too? Great. Let’s do this together.
10. Celebrate the journey, not just the outcome
When I stepped off the TEDx stage, I felt relief, joy, and pride — but also exhaustion.
It was a long road. Months of prep. Hours of practice. Dozens of self-doubts faced and reframed.
But it was worth it.
Not because I gave a “perfect” talk (I didn’t). Not because the audience clapped (they did). But because I showed up — fully, wholeheartedly, vulnerably.
Public speaking isn’t about performance. It’s about connection.
And the more you prepare your mind, the more you can enjoy that connection.
You’re More Ready Than You Think
If you’re reading this because you have a talk, a presentation, or a moment of visibility coming up — let me say this:
You’re more ready than you think.
You don’t need to be flawless. You don’t need to be the best speaker in the world.
You just need to be you. With your story, your voice, your truth.
Prepare your mind like you would prepare your heart for a meaningful conversation — with care, love, and presence.
Then step onto that stage, take a deep breath, and share your light.
The world is waiting.
