Glossophobia, the fear of public speaking, is a common fear for many people. It’s also one of the biggest obstacles that entrepreneurs need to overcome in order to grow as a business leader. Fear can mean missing out on making a sale, building a business partnership, or losing out on unexpected opportunities.

If you struggle with sweating palms, a shaky voice, and anxiety when it comes to sharing your business message with others, use these tips to overcome your fear.

1. Always Be Prepared

Knowing your material is the best way to combat fears of sharing your message with others. For a small business owner, that means having a simple mission statement that you’ve repeated so many times that it’s become second nature. Before any speaking engagement, be prepared with a few topics that you’re very comfortable with. If you ever feel stuck or lose your train of thought while speaking, go back to one of those topics that you can discuss naturally while getting back on track.

2. Face Your Fear Head-On

Take some time to think about why you’re afraid to speak in front of others. Remember that people will be showing up to hear what you have to say. They aren’t there for perfection, but to hear the message you have to share. Everyone in the audience has made mistakes, and they’re likely to understand if you make one too. There’s a very slim chance of being booed off of a stage in a professional setting. Be real and honest with your audience and trust that they’ll respond with empathy.

3. Practice with an Audience

Practice is one of the best ways to get used to sharing a message with others. While preparing alone by giving a speech in front of a mirror can be helpful, you’ll need to get used to speaking in front of others if you want to get over the fear. Start small. Ask just one person to be your audience while you practice sharing a message, making eye contact, and working through any stumbling blocks.

4. Turn Your Anxiety into Excitement

While many public speaking guides will tell you to stay calm and relax before speaking, that tactic won’t work for everyone. If you’re feeling anxious before speaking, it might be helpful to work on turning that anxiety into excited energy. An article from The Atlantic suggests that it’s easier to turn one intense emotion, anxiety, into another intense emotion, excitement, rather than trying to move from one extreme to another.

5. Interact with Your Audience

For those who are already dealing with a fear of public speaking, there’s no worse feeling than working through a speaking engagement and looking out at an audience of blank stares. You can prevent that by engaging with the people who are there to hear you speak. Including audience participation by asking questions can take some of the pressure off of you and can give you time to think if things aren’t going according to plan.

6. Focus on the Intro and Conclusion

Many public speaking guides recommend not memorizing your entire speech before going in front of a group. While it’s important to be prepared and familiar with the points you want to cover, memorizing a speech from start to finish can cause your speaking to become robotic. It can also cause problems if you miss a point. The anxiety of losing your place can make it difficult to get back on track. Instead, focus on memorizing a solid introduction and conclusion. This will allow you to start strong, work through your points, and know that you have a strong ending prepared.

7. Take a Breath

If you find yourself lost in between the introduction and conclusion, don’t be afraid of silence. You can take a quick pause, use that time to collect your thoughts, and move on. When you’re feeling anxious, any pause may feel like a lifetime, but in reality, a few seconds of silence won’t have any impact on the strength of your message. The audience will likely hardly notice, and many will use that time to take in the information you’ve already given, rather than watching and waiting for the next point.

8. Find Support

There are groups and clubs designed specifically to help develop public speaking skills. Toastmasters is one of the most well-known. Look for a group like this in your area to practice public speaking in a safe space with others who are in the same boat as you. You’ll have an opportunity to practice with little pressure and to get feedback from your peers to become better.

Being nervous and feeling some anxiety before public speaking is completely normal. Over time and with practice, the fear will likely lessen as you improve your public speaking skills. With the tips above, you can work toward becoming a more confident speaker while working toward building your business.