According to surveys, for many people, fear of public speaking almost equals their fear of death. You would think hard-charging CEOs would be different, but unfortunately that’s not the case. So how does a nervous executive or entrepreneur get better at speaking?

Recently I conducted a one-day “Marketing War College” in the U.K. That event came 48 hours after I conducted a four-day, 17-hour-a-day program for professional speakers in L.A.

The speakers program included a number of “showcases” I critiqued along with Steve Siebold. In these, a volunteer comes on stage and delivers a short section of his or her speech. We then critique for them how they can better connect with the audience and get their message across.