Francia Raísa Conquered Her Fear of Public Speaking

Francia Raísa faced her public speaking fear head-on and came out victorious.

Public speaking can be a daunting task, even for celebrities, surprisingly.

Glossophobia, or the fear of public speaking, is something that Francia Raísa, who fearlessly donated a body part and took on a leading role in Freeform’s highest rated show, can relate to.

Despite having an acting career that spans over a decade, with works including Grown-ish, The Secret Life of the American Teenager, and Bring It On: All or Nothing, the accomplished actress didn’t consider herself a “speaker.”

Challenging herself earlier this month at the Teen Vogue summit, Raísa can now add public speaking to her resume.

I’ve never seen myself as a speaker. (It’s actually been a fear of mine) I’m grateful @teenvogue gave me my first opportunity to do so and proud that I faced my fear. I was really nervous and these wonderful people were so encouraging and so was the audience. Being able to look at you guys and hear you speak gave me the courage I needed and the inspiration to keep doing it. I thank you for that. #thefirstofmany #teenvoguesummit

A post shared by Francia Raísa (@franciaraisa) on Jun 7, 2018 at 8:25am PDT

Thanks to the encouragement of her fellow speakers and the audience, the Grown-ish actress was able to banish her nerves and deliver her speech on representation in television and the media.

“The door is ajar. We haven’t walked in yet. We’re just getting started,” said Raísa.

Now that Raísa has conquered her fear of public speaking, you might hear more of her take on breaking down barriers for people of color in the media.