If I suggested that we take the morning off together to go bungee jumping, how many takers would I get? Probably a fair few, although it's no longer all that trendy. How about skydiving? It could happen. And it's so much more graceful than bungee jumping.

How about getting up and giving a totally off-the-cuff presentation on the topic of your choice to 500 people?

No takers? Nobody? I'll bargain you down to a hundred people. Okay, fifty. Twenty-five? Family members?

Still nobody?

The crazy thing is, I love it. I love public speaking, especially off-the-cuff. I loved it from my first college competition when I was eighteen. I've been teaching it whenever I've had the chance for ten years. And unlike many skilled public speakers, I'm not a naturally outgoing person. Years of experience as a speaker and therapist got me to my current understanding. I'm hoping to save you a few steps. I've already done it the hard way.

The gold paint has long since flaked off my old college trophies. My job now is to help you take home gold, the kind that shows up on your paycheck. I'm a business communication consultant, as well as a therapist. It's my job to help people learn to communicate better.

Because public speaking isn't just speeches. It's any occasion on which you need other people to understand what you're trying to get across. That can include phone calls, meetings, running into someone you want to know at Starbucks, and sales presentations. It's your choice of words, your choice of tone, your posture, your facial expression, your use of humor. It's understanding the difference between your public and private selves and using both to your advantage.

Start watching those around you. Who are the good communicators, and who are the poor communicators? What makes one good? How could the other improve? Where do you fall?

What civic or professional groups do you belong to? Offer to speak on your topic of expertise. Or on any topic useful to your organization. Even if your field is database management and you find yourself speaking to a knitting group on Elizabethan-era stockings, you've still made a connection, established yourself as an important person in that community, and given yourself an "in” to find out what businesses and organizations your audience members belong to, and arrange more speaking engagements.

What has been going on in your life? Did your cat just get spayed? Find an animal rescue shelter and offer to speak at a fundraising event on spaying and neutering from an owner's perspective. Did your youngest child just leave for college? Speak to a parenting support group on college funding, or dealing with "empty-nest” syndrome.

Any time you're speaking to a person or group about your profession, it's public speaking. And it doesn't have to be terrifying. In fact, it can be a big thrill. Take it from someone who's been doing this verbal bungee jump for years.