How get
rid of
my
stage
FRIGHT?
-
How will I do??
What if I lose my place?
What if I don't have time for everything?
What if I get blushing?
What will happen if Carlson thinks that my proposal is terrible?
What if Nelson thinks I'm playing up to management?
What if Green says that this looks just like his proposal?
What if I get questions I can't answer?
What if I get interrupted?
And what about all the private thoughts: Does my hair look OK? Did I use the wrong shade of nail polish?,
Have I got dandruff on my shoulders? Does this tie match this jacket?
Is this you? Welcome to the club! Stage fright strikes most people! Don't think you're alone!
While you speak you feel dissatisfied because you know that you'r better than you sounds!
Stage fright is a consequence of not thinking clearly! If you think about the "wrong" things (worry or begin thinking about facts) you'll be unable to perform at your best. For most people, the stage fright will disappear as soon as they see they've made contact with their audience.
I propose an completely different type of preparation and a different way of presenting. All you really have to do is to give a short introduction and then be prepared to answer questions. And, you should be convinced that this will work before you appear!
What is required is the right preparation and the right way of presenting,
but you are not going to hold a lecture reciting from a text
– so don't compare this occasion with how you have felt before!I've claimed that giving a great presentation is not difficult
– but that getting prepared to live up to your audience's expectations can be.
So, devote your concern and your effort to your preparation.
Your audience has come to listen to what you have to say – and not to find out how nervous you are. And they definitely didn't come to see what you do – if you make the right gestures, or if you're good looking, etc. They want it to be good, they don't want to be losers. The audience is on your side!
And if you let the audience guide you with questions, you'll be even more popular! If your audience will notice that you are nervous, they'd probably just recognize themselves in the same situation.
Maybe you feel uncomfortable while your colleagues never seems nervous. In general, other people can't see how you feel. When people see video tapes of themselves giving a presentation, one of their first comments is often that you can't notice how nervous they were.
But even if anxiety can't be seen, you feel it! You know that you are smarter than you sound. You are frustrated because you're only about half as effective as you could be and then you get even more nervous – and you're caught in a vicious circle.
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