This unusual method for improving any skill was described by Maxwell Maltz as "Theatre of the Mind". He developed it into a course on sales techniques but it can be [...]]]> I want to share a technique that I have been experimenting with, I first came across it on Dr Maltz’s Psychocybernetics course.

This unusual method for improving any skill was described by Maxwell Maltz as "Theatre of the Mind". He developed it into a course on sales techniques but it can be applied to mentally practising speaking in public to an individual, a group or even a large audience, using the power of your imagination.

Sit quietly with your eyes closed. Maltz suggests that you imagine a theatre where you can perform on stage and rehearse your performance, perhaps giving a talk in French or Spanish to an eagerly receptive audience about a topic you are familiar with. The beauty of this approach is that you are in charge of every aspect of your imaginary performance, you can rewind, go into slow motion, overwrite as often as you want until it is exactly as you want it. Then strangely the skill and confidence from your mental rehearsals will start to bleed through into your everyday reality. You will find yourself confidently using the words and phrases that you have rehearsed without even trying.

The method is not limited to theatre performances, imagine yourself in a sports stadium practising your football skills, or in a gym reaching a personal best on your favourite machine, or on the golf course or tennis court, playing the perfect shot over and over again, or better still imagine yourself in a social situation confidently speaking beautifully fluent Spanish.

Don’t just take my word for it – try it for yourself. As an experiment I suggest trying it for 10 minutes every day for a couple of weeks and then you will have some idea of the power of this method.

New Psycho-Cybernetics by Dr Maltz and Dan Kennedy