Fifteen fears of public speaking you should conquer

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is a useful Facebook post by Kathryn Esther Clement on July 15, 2020 titled 15 fears of public speaking you must conquer before you think of getting on any stage.

 

Those 15 (listed in alphabetical order) are the more detailed fears of:

 

asking or answering questions

being judged

criticism

failure

forgetting your lines

looking nervous

making mistakes

not being good enough

rejection

silence

a small audience

speaking to influential people

starting

success

using a microphone

 

For each fear she has a sentence with discussion, like for being judged to:

 

“Stop worrying about what people think. Focus on the value you’re bringing.”

 

Must is too strong a word in the title though. And, back on December 12, 2009 I blogged about how Almost nobody wants to see your Top 15 list: please use either a Top 10 or a Top 20 list.

 

There is an article by Jason Teteak at Rule The Room Public Speaking on March 9, 2021 titled Top 10 Fears of Public Speaking, which are in alphabetical order the fears of:

 

competition

embarrassment

failure

futility

inadequacy

leadership

people

self

selling

success

 

Those 15 snooker balls came from OpenClipArt. I added the numbers.

 

 

Why did a keynote speaker overestimate his research skills?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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There is an article by John Eades at Learnloft on June 25, 2026 titled Why Most Leaders Overestimate Their Presentation Skills which opens by stating a startling ‘statistic’ that: 

“Fear is real, and there are a couple of common things people fear.

A survey revealed that people’s two biggest fears are public speaking and death.

Comedian Jerry Seinfeld landed a joke about the survey when he said, ‘Most people would rather be in the casket than giving the eulogy.’

It’s funny because it’s true. Most people despise the idea of public speaking.”

John did such superficial research that he confused a joke with a 1973 survey where death actually was seventh. Both are shown above. And that misquote is a paraphrase of what Jerry said in 1993. Back on April 8, 2018 I blogged about Misquoting Jerry Seinfeld and inflating fear five times.

 

He also has a 9-minute YouTube video at The Leadership Lens on June 25, 2026 titled Most Leaders Think They’re Good Presenters. They’re Not. Both the article and video have some useful content:

 

“The Three Types of Presenters

 

Since leadership is more art than science, leaders can be introverted or extroverted. They are women and men. They are quiet and loud. However, after watching leaders across industries, most fall into one of three categories when presenting.

 

The Informer

The Informer knows their content cold. Their slides are detailed, their data is accurate, and their presentation is thorough. However, they confuse information transfer with communication. That doesn’t mean it’s bad, but it can be boring. The audience might even learn something. Their presentations are forgettable, not because they couldn’t be better or because their content is weak, but nothing makes it stick.  

 

The Rambler

The Rambler has real experience and genuine passion. When it lands, it’s magnetic. But without structure, the audience works too hard to follow. They leave inspired by the energy but unclear on the point. The Rambler’s biggest blind spot is thinking passion is enough. While it’s better than someone who doesn’t care, passion without structure is just noise with enthusiasm.

 

The Inspirer

The Inspirer knows their content and their audience. They don’t present at people, they present for them. They use story, tension, and intentional moments to connect ideas to emotions. They take chances by using authenticity to show their true self. The audience doesn’t just remember a few of the things they said – they remember how it made them feel.”

 

 

A claim about public speaking that wasn’t really in the 2023 Chapman Survey of American Fears

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is an article by Kathryn Janicek at LinkedIn Pulse on May 24, 2026 titled Your Body Is Sabotaging Your Speech Before You Say a Word. In her section titled The Part Nobody Prepares For she claimed:

 

“According to the Chapman University Survey of American Fears (2023), public speaking anxiety ranks among the most prevalent fears in American adults - above financial concerns and job loss for a significant portion of those surveyed.”

 

Why was she vague about the exact percentage and rank for the allegedly prevalent fear of public speaking? The survey has a web page with list of 97 fears ranked by percent. Public speaking was feared by 28.7% and only was ranked #53, which is not even in the upper half. There was not a question about financial concerns; Economic/financial collapse was #2 at 54.7% - far above public speaking. And there was not a question about job loss; Computers replacing people in the workforce was #47 at 31.6% and Being unemployed was #74 at 24.9%. On October 20, 2023 I blogged about how Corrupt government officials (60.1%) was the most common fear in the ninth 2023 Chapman Survey of American Fears. Public speaking was only ranked #53 (28.7%).

 

I also tried Google searching on the phrases “financial concerns” and “job loss” along with “Chapman survey” but came up empty.

 

But why didn’t she look at the most recent 2025 survey? On October 23, 2025 I blogged about how In the eleventh Chapman Survey of American Fears for 2025, public speaking was only ranked #46 of 67 fears at 33.7%.

 

 

Two more silly claims that 95% of the world population fears public speaking

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I get extremely irritated when I read claims that almost everyone fears public speaking. At Facebook on June 1, 2026 there is a post from Manish Gupta which states that:

 

“Around 95% of the world’s population has the fear of Public Speaking. It also means that only 5% have the courage to stand up in front of a crowd. Do you want to join the 5% brigade? Do you want to be a part of the select few who walk around confidently with this skill? Do you want to master this one skill which can do wonders in your life? If yes, then do call us right away!”

 

Also, in a 2022 book by Peter J. Copeland titled How to Overcome Work Stress: An Office Survival Guide it is claimed that:

 

“In fact, statistics show that some degree of fear/nervousness in public speaking affects about 95% of all speakers.”

 

But those assertions are without any backing, just ipse dixits.

 

On December 1, 2024 I blogged about Does 95% of the population experience public speaking fear? And my answer was no. There are no surveys covering the whole world. And back on December 20, 2016 I blogged about Bursting the overblown claim that 95% of Americans fear public speaking at some level. On October 23, 2025 I posted on how In the eleventh Chapman Survey of American Fears for 2025, public speaking only was ranked #46 of 67 fears at 33.7%. Detailed results from that survey are:

 

Grand Sum for Very Afraid,

Afraid, and Slightly Afraid  68.5%

Sum for Very Afraid

and Afraid                             33.7% 

Very Afraid                            15.5%

Afraid                                     18.1%

Slightly Afraid                       34.9%   

Not Afraid                             31.4%

Web Blank (Don’t Know)      0.1%

 

That Grand Sum is more than 25% lower than the 95% Mr. Gupta claimed. According to the Wikipedia page on Demographics of the United States the 2025 estimated population is 341,784,857. 21.5% are under 18, so 78.5% are over, for an adult population of about 268,300,000 adults. 33.7% of that is about 90,417,000 people who significantly fear public speaking. Or, using the Grand Sum, about 68.5% or 183,790,000 people fear public speaking at some level. Those real numbers are more impressive statistics than overstated percentages.

 

My cartoon was created in PowerPoint from a globe and monkey at OpenClipArt.

 

 

The Spanish Agency for Medicine and Medicine Products issued a report on Homeopathy and Homeopathic Products which said homeopathy was ineffective

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Homeopathy has been touted for treating fear of public speaking or stage fright. On April 13, 2024 I blogged about An extremely peculiar homeopathic remedy for stage fright.

 

There is an article by Edzard Ernst on April 22, 2026 titled “Homeopathy and Homeopathic Products: Evaluation of Evidence on Their Efficacy and Safety” by the Spanish Agency for Medicine and Medicine Products. He described the Spanish language content of that report as follows:

 

“The Spanish Agency for Medicines and Medical Products (AEMPS) has just published a comprehensive technical report entitled “Homeopathy and Homeopathic Products: Evaluation of Evidence on Their Efficacy and Safety,” which categorically concludes that there is no scientific evidence supporting the efficacy of homeopathy as a therapeutic tool. After a systematic review of scientific literature and evaluations by state agencies internationally, the report states that the observed effects are comparable to placebo.

The report, which analyzed 64 systematic reviews published since 2009, highlights that most studies suggesting benefits from homeopathy have low methodological quality, often invalidated by small samples, short follow-up periods, or biases in randomization. Furthermore, it notes that as the quality and rigor of clinical trials increase, the supposed effect of homeopathy diminishes until it disappears entirely.”

That conclusion of ineffectiveness is not new. On January 6, 2016 I blogged about how According to Consumer Reports, homeopathy is an emperor with no clothes.

The sugar pills were cropped and flipped from this image at Wikimedia Commons.

 

 

A recent post on LinkedIn incorrectly claimed that no credible study has ever demonstrated people fear public speaking more than death

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A couple weeks ago there was a post at LinkedIn from Robert Owen of Mission Viejo, California about Debunking the myth of public speaking fear:

 

“The claim that people fear public speaking more than death is a myth. It traces back to a misunderstanding of a 1973 market research survey known as The Bruskin Report. In that study, 2,543 American adults were asked a simple question: ‘What are you afraid of?’ They selected answers from a list. Forty-one percent chose ‘speaking before a group.’ Nineteen percent chose ‘death.’ The survey didn’t rank these fears. After the 1977 Book of Lists published the results, the idea that people fear public speaking more than death spread like wildfire. Here’s the bottom line: No credible study has ever demonstrated that people fear public speaking more than death.”

 

Percentage results for all fourteen fears in the Bruskin survey were as follows (death was really seventh):

 

Speaking before a group  40.6%

Heights                                 32,0%

Insects and bugs                 22.1%

Financial problems             22.0%

Deep water                          21.5%

Sickness                                18.8%

Death                                    18.7%

Flying                                     18.3%

Loneliness                             13.6%

Dogs                                       11.2%

Driving/riding in a car           8.8%

Darkness                                  7.9%

Elevators                                  7.6%

Escalators                                 4.8%

 

This blog discussed them on October 27, 2009 in my most popular post titled The 14 Worst Human Fears in the 1977 Book of Lists: where did this data really come from?

 

Robert is wrong. I can easily name three surveys which found people fear public speaking more than death. (There may be more. Before you can say there is ‘no credible study,’ you would have to do a lot of research.)

 

First, we need to note there are two distinctly different questions. One is how many people fear public speaking, which can be answered by a percentage such as in the Bruskin survey. The other is how much do people fear public speaking, which only can be answered using a fear survey schedule to find a Fear Score on a scale such as from one to four or even ten (as shown above).

 

Back on October 10, 2012 I blogged about how In a 1965 study of university students, fear of public speaking ranked sixth for men and seventh for women. Fear of speaking before a group outranked death, but the death of a loved one came first. And on October 29, 2017 I blogged about What do Americans fear most? Fear Scores from the 2017 Chapman Survey of American Fears. Fear Scores were 2.425 for People I Love Dying, 1.909 for Public Speaking, and 1.852 for Dying. And on September 23, 2025 I blogged about how Public speaking was the most common and greatest fear found by a Croatian survey of ten fears published in April 2023.

  

 

Can crystals protect you from psychic attacks?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Probably not. There is a paranoid article by Deborah King at Psychology Today on February 9, 2011 titled Are You Under Psychic Attack? and subtitled Is someone out to get you?

 

Crystals are claimed to be useful against such attacks. A recent Coast to Coast AM radio show on April 14, 2026 discussed Operation Fishbowl/Crystals & Self-Defense in the second half:

“In the latter half, author Nicholas Pearson shared insights into the mystical and energetic properties of crystals, and how they can be used for protection and to counter negativity. He described crystals as ‘cells and substances with a regular composition and a periodic and symmetrical structure,’ emphasizing their inherent order and coherence. This structural perfection, he continued, allows crystals to influence human energy fields by bringing ‘clarity, structure, organization’ to otherwise irregular human psyches, which can lead to tangible effects on mood, perception, and overall well-being.

Highlighting the symbolic qualities of crystals, he noted their enduring nature as ‘ancient parts of Mother Earth’ that have been used for spiritual and ritual purposes across cultures for millennia. Crystals can shield individuals from ‘discordant, intrinsic, and outright malevolent’ energies, he said, and can act as a form of psychic self-defense to filter out these undesirable elements, whether worn as jewelry or carried with you. When asked about a single protective crystal, Pearson chose labradorite, describing it as a ‘broad spectrum protection tool’ that reflects away harmful energies while enhancing one’s natural radiance.

According to Pearson, psychic attacks occur due to three factors: openness of the recipient, a power imbalance, and a connection between attacker and target. ‘Crystals can eliminate any one, or hopefully all three of these causes,’ by reducing sensitivity, severing connections, or balancing energetic power, he suggested. Signs of psychic attack include persistent bad luck, insomnia, unexplained illnesses, and even physical marks. Pearson cautioned against jumping to conclusions without ruling out medical causes and recommended divination or consulting reputable practitioners for diagnosis. On interacting with crystals, he advised mastering selection, cleansing, and programming of stones to imbue them with purpose, after which their applications are ‘just about infinite,’ including manifesting abundance and supporting healing.”

And, of course, he has a 2025 book titled Crystals for Psychic Self-Defense: 145 gemstones for banishing, binding, and magickal protection. There is a preview at Google Books.  

 

There also is a 2018 book by Ethan Lazzerini titled Psychic Protection Crystals: The modern guide to psychic self defence with crystals for empaths and highly sensitive people. He also has an article on August 12, 2019 titled 7 Crystals for Protection from Psychic Attack.

 

I think crystals are questionable even for healing. On October 4, 2009 I blogged about Crystal therapy for stage fright. And on February 5, 2017 I posted on Can turquoise and other crystals heal fear of public speaking? Also, on October 2, 2019 I blogged that Crystal healing is still questionable.

 

RationalWiki has an article on Crystal Healing and another on Crystal woo which has a section on Protection crystals. Wikipedia has an article on Crystal healing that includes pointing out:

 

“In 1999, researchers French and Williams conducted a study to investigate the power of crystals compared with a placebo. Eighty volunteers were asked to meditate with either a quartz crystal or a placebo stone, which was indistinguishable from quartz. Many participants reported feeling typical ‘crystal effects’; however, this was irrespective of whether the crystals were real or a placebo.”

 

There is an article by Steven Novella at Science-Based Medicine on September 18, 2019 titled Crystal Healing. He says:

 

“Crystal healing has many of the hallmarks of alternative medicine pseudoscience, and is just another manifestation of many common themes. It is a form of energy medicine. Proponents claim that different types of crystals either contain, amplify, attract, or repel different kinds of energy. Like energy medicine in general, we are not talking about any kind of real energy that can be identified or measured by physicists. This energy is not predicted by the standard model of particle physics, and don’t expect the Large Hadron Collider to find any force carrying particles related to crystal energy. There is no Higgs Boson of energy medicine.

The ‘energy’ referred to in energy medicine is purely metaphorical and mythical. Proponents generally claim that it is ‘spiritual’ energy, which is just a way of saying that the energy has no physical properties that can be detected, and is therefore outside the realm of scientific discovery. But at the same time they claim that this mysterious ‘energy’ can affect living things, which is the inherent contradiction at the core of this belief.

Invoking undetectable ‘energy’, without defining it in any testable way, as an explanation is a common tactic of pseudoscience. Types of energy medicine include straight chiropractic, Reiki, acupuncture, therapeutic touch, healing touch, and is a good fallback position for any other treatment lacking a plausible mechanism.

How do you know which kind of crystal to use for which problem you are having? You can find many guides, which use the typical CAM standard – ‘It can be used’, ‘Is often used’, or ‘Is known to’. That’s it. There is no supportive framework in theory or in evidence. This is the equivalent of parents saying, ‘Because I said so.’ What this illustrates is the human tendency to develop explanatory systems and elaborate on them. We are good at finding patterns and inventive at making stuff up. The history of pseudomedicine is full of such systems, complex and detailed, but ultimately based on nothing. These systems then take on a life of their own, they become culture, and then authoritative knowledge – but again, it is ultimately vaporware.

Some of the claims are based on another common theme in some alternative systems – the superstition of sympathetic magic. This is the intuition that something will have effects suggested by what it looks like. So walnuts must be good for the brain because they kind of look like a brain. One tradition of homeopathy is entirely based on sympathetic magic. Many traditional remedies make this connection as well.

In crystal healing, rose quartz ‘is commonly used for attracting and keeping love, as well as protecting relationships’. Of course it is – it’s pink, so it must be infused with the energy of love. Whereas, ‘Obsidian crystal stone also protects you from shadow traits — addiction, fear, anxiety, and anger– by acting as a mirror to your inner self.’ It’s black, so it must have to do with negative energy. This is metaphor, not reality.” 

An image of healing crystals came from Wikimedia Commons.

 

 

Did a Gallup poll find that Americans feared public speaking more than death? No, not ever!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some surveys about fear of public speaking have been misquoted repeatedly for many years. There is a post at the SpeakUp PUBLIC SPEAKING PRACTICE blog on April 2, 2026 titled Fear of Public Speaking Is More Common Than You Think. The second paragraph gave a nonworking link and claimed:

 

“A Gallup poll found many Americans reported fearing public speaking more than death.”

 

But that survey actually looked at two surveys from 2001 and 1998 on what more people feared, which is a completely different question than what people feared more. And death was not on those fears lists. The quarter-century old article by Geoffrey Brewer at Gallup News on March 19, 2001 is titled Snakes Top List of Americans’ Fears. For 2001 the list of 13 fears and their percentages is as follows:

 

Snakes: 51%

Public speaking in front of an audience: 40%

Heights: 36%

Being closed in a small space: 34%

Spiders and insects: 27%

Needles and getting shots: 21%

Mice: 20%

Flying on an airplane: 18%

Crowds: 11%

Dogs: 11%

Thunder and lightning: 11%

Going to the doctor: 9%

The dark: 5%

 

And for 1998 the list of 13 fears and their percentages is as follows:

 

Snakes: 56%

Public speaking in front of an audience: 45%

Heights: 41%

Being closed in a small space: 36%

Spiders and insects: 34%

Mice: 26%

Needles and getting shots: 21%

Flying on an airplane: 20%

Thunder and lightning: 17%

Going to the doctor: 12%

Crowds: 11%

Dogs: 10%

The dark: 8%

 

Another earlier article by Roxine Kee at CollegeInfoGeek on September 17, 2018 titled 5 Tips for Crafting Great Speeches and Presentations stated:

 

“If you’re like most people, you probably would rather die than present in front of a classroom. I’m not exaggerating: in this Gallup poll from 2001, the fear of public speaking is ranked #2, ahead of the fear of death (#6).”

 

There is an undated article by Kathy Varol titled The secret that turned my public speaking anxiety into excitement which also claimed:

 

“A 2001 Gallup poll found that 40% of Americans cited public speaking as their top fear – more than double the number who feared death.”

 

But Kathy confused the Gallup poll with the 1973 Bruskin survey I had blogged about in a post back on October 27, 2009 titled The 14 Worst Human Fears in the 1977 Book of Lists: where did this data really come from? It found 40.6% feared speaking while 18.7% feared death.

  

Another undated article from Eileen Hopkins titled Are you afraid to speak in public? said that:

 

“Public speaking is one of the greatest fears people face; in fact, according to a Gallup poll, 40% of people are more scared of giving a speech than they are of dying!

 

Also, on July 18, 2025 I blogged about Spouting nonsense – a YouTube video from Amrez with fairy tales about two surveys on public speaking fears. One was the Gallup article but they incorrectly claimed it included death, illness, old age, running, losing a loved one, or other.  

 

The skull and crossbones cartoon came from here at Wikimedia Commons.

 

 

Botched statistics on fear of public speaking from an article in the March 2026 Toastmaster magazine

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There is an article by social psychologist Jennifer Fidder on pages 10 and 11 of the March 2026 issue of Toastmaster magazine titled Fix Your Fear of Speaking. She begins with these three paragraphs:

 

“If you’re afraid of public speaking, have no fear – it’s one of the most common phobias. You’ve probably heard the saying that most people fear public speaking more than they fear death. And that’s true to an extent – nearly everyone has an impending fear of death; however, public speaking is something we all face having to do on a regular, even daily, basis.

 

Estimates suggest that around three-quarters of the general population report some level of anxiety about public speaking. An estimated 15 – 30% of them have a formal diagnosis of public speaking anxiety.

 

That fear of public speaking is called glossophobia, and it can prevent you from participating in activities, receiving promotions at work, and even being able to converse individually.”

 

Her first sentence mixes up fear and phobia. As shown above via a Venn Diagram, a phobia is a fear that also is intense, persistent and interfering. Back on December 11, 2013 I blogged about a previous article in a post titled Spouting Nonsense: July 2013 Toastmaster magazine article fumbles fears and phobias.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When we discuss fears and surveys, it is important to ask when a survey was done, where it was done, and what level(s) of fear were examined. We don’t need to hear stale old statistics again! There have been eleven Chapman Surveys of American Fears done from 2014 to 2025. They examined four levels of fear, as shown above via a bar chart for public speaking in the 2025 survey.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another bar chart looks at the fear of dying at any level (Very Afraid + Afraid + Slightly Afraid), which only applies to from 49.7% to 66.8% of us - with a mean of 60.5% or about 3 out of 5 of us, and is not anywhere near everyone. But fear of people I love dying (shown in a similar chart) ranges from 73.3% to 86.9% - with a mean of 82.1% or more than 4 out of 5 of us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Still another bar chart looks at the fear of public speaking at any level - which ranges from 57.9% to 69.2% (with a mean of 63.0%) and quite a bit less than the three-quarters (75%) Jennifer claimed. Yet another bar chart shows the fear of public speaking for the levels of Very Afraid plus Afraid used in Chapman’s press releases (with a mean of just 28.5.%). Back on February 3, 2014 I blogged about Busting a myth – that 75% of people in the world fear public speaking. That ~75% (really 73%) came from back in 1977!

 

And the estimated 15 – 30% for public speaking anxiety appeared in a 2012 review article. I blogged about it in a post back on January 19, 2013 titled A recent review article on public speaking anxiety.

 

Also, Jennifer’s saying that most people fear public speaking more than they fear death is not right. There were two surveys long ago that instead found that more people (but less that 50% of them) feared public speaking than feared death. One was done in 1973, and I blogged about it on October 27, 2009 in the most popular post on this blog titled The 14 Worst Human Fears in 1977 Book of Lists: where did this data really come from? Another was discussed in a post on May 19, 2011 titled America’s Number One Fear: Public Speaking – that 1993 Bruskin-Goldring Survey. 

 

What about in the Chapman surveys? More people feared public speaking (at any level) than dying in 2015 (60.0% vs 49.7%), 2016 (60.2% vs 50.8%), 2017 (57.9% vs 55.0%), 2022 (69.2% vs 66.8%), 2023 (65.0% vs 59.8%), 2024 (65.75 vs 65.0%), and 2025 (68.5% vs 62.3%) while less did in 2018 (58.3% vs 64.4%), 2019 (64.1% vs 66.3%), and 2020/21 (61.7% vs 65.0%).

 

Finally, I don’t think it is useful to refer to the fear of public speaking by the word glossophobia. On May 6, 2022 I posted on Who popularized the word glossophobia? What is a better Plain English alternative? I suggested instead using the term speech fright, as a specific type of stage fright.