There’s a misunderstanding of what counts as “public speaking.”

Any time you’re speaking to a group of people, advocating for yourself or others in front of someone you don’t know, or someone in a position of power, talking to the media, teaching or training others - all of that would fall under the umbrella of public speaking in my book.

To me, all of these things count:

• Speaking on a stage

• Speaking to media

• Speaking in meetings

• Speaking in job interviews

• Speaking up in your day-to-day role

• Speaking about yourself in front of friends and strangers

Sure, each of those situations are unique and require a different type of speaking or preparation. But the core skills for how to present your ideas and yourself and to do it without seeming terrified - are the same.

Potentially failing in front of other people is awful, I get it.

Few things will get campaign people (from a particular period of time) to light up faster than talking about storytelling in organizing. It reminds us of being young and hopeful and new to this exhausting, low-paying, and often thankless work.

We love the good ol’ story of self, us and now more than just about anything.

I remember learning to tell my personal story for the first time way back in 2007 at Camp Obama (a multi-day training for field organizers). The camp I attended was held at a church in Harlem that had been part of the Underground Railroad, helping enslaved people make their way to the North.

I still remember my small group when we practiced sharing our stories. There were a couple of young guys and an elderly woman who had been a secretary to Robert F. Kennedy during his run for President in 1968. And there was me, a slightly clueless girl in my early twenties who was just happy to be there.

I remember when we went around in a circle to share our stories.

I remember getting sweaty and wondering if they could tell I wasn’t listening to them because I was thinking so much about the perfect way to say something about myself.

I remember counting down the minutes until we switched speakers, and it was my turn to share.

It’s been years, and I don’t know exactly what I said, but I know I went in circles, forgot the best parts of the stories I’d been thinking of, and kept jumbling my words. When my few minutes were over, I felt like I’d run a 5k, my face felt hot, and I was so sad because I hadn’t said the things I’d wanted to. I’d forgotten the little details that would make my story stand out and be special.

I felt like a total failure once again.

These types of things had happened to me my entire life, ever since I was a little girl and got laughed at while performing a song and dance with my brother.

And until around 2015 I had paralyzing stage fright that impacted every part of my life, from the personal to the professional.

But I knew, deep down I had things to say. And I learned on that first presidential campaign that telling our stories has power and can change the world.

So, I invested thousands of dollars working with a speaking coach and countless hours practicing speaking in front of people.

- I said yes every chance I got to train volunteers on a moving bus to door knock in Philly for GOTV.

- I made myself ask questions on the microphone at seminars I went to.

- I forced myself to contribute to meetings.

It was hard, and I sweat through a lot of really cute clothes, but eventually, I started realizing that I was beginning to feel comfortable using my voice in front of other people.

Along the way I figured out what I needed to do to feel prepared without sounding stiff and overly rehearsed.

- I could be present enough to read the room and adjust what I was saying on the fly.

- I created my own “pre-speaking” warm-up routine.

- I stopped talking so fast people couldn’t understand me (although I admit I’m still a fast talker).

- I no longer black out from nerves and instead get excited to stand up in front of a group of strangers and talk.

I’m hardly a perfect speaker, but it’s something I’ve learned to love. Genuinely. Whether it’s in meetings, while leading a training, or being interviewed by the media you’d never know how terrified I used to be.

And it’s all because I learned to connect to my deeper motivation for speaking and manage the surge of energy I was feeling before speaking.