Hi, pastor here. I speak publicly every week. Not sure how late I am to this, but here’s my two cents:

In addition to doing the prep work, public speaking becomes less intimidating the more you know both the material and the audience.

Think about something you’re really good at and/or know pretty well. Chances are you could talk about it for around 10-20 minutes relatively easily.

When we think of public speaking, many of us likely remember a time in school or college when we were forced to present on something we didn’t really care or know too much about to a group of people who were more or less uninterested. The results are a less than favorable memory.

But if we’re presented with the opportunity to talk to a group of interested or likeminded folk about something we’re very passionate and informed about then public speaking becomes a lot less daunting.