how to overcome fear of speaking in public

Most people lack confidence when speaking in front of others beacause they are too worried about what other people think about them. I've found that if I want to increase my confidence when I have to speak in a group situation, whether it is a meeting or a presentation/speech, I just think about my audience and how important my information could be to them rather than trying to be a mind-reader. As soon as I switched my thoughts to other people's needs rather than my own insecurities it became much easier to speak in these situations. In fact there are times when I positively enjoy it, especially when I get a bit of banter going with the audience - then everyone has some fun.