[nodemaker]

>stop saying "I am not a good public speaker" and start saying "Some of the speeches I have delivered have had a lot of umms in them"

Totally agree.

One thing that I have observed in many social activities especially public speaking and sports is that how good you are heavily depends upon how good you think you are.

Interestingly perhaps the converse is true with respect to creative (non-social) activities like writing and programming.