Mind Performance Hacks

Hack #54. Harness Stage Fright

At some point, nearly everyone has to speak to a group about something, but most of us find ourselves overwhelmed with fear when the time comes. However, if you reduce the fear to a manageable level, you can channel its energy into making your presentations more powerful.

If someone walked up to you today and asked you to give a lunchtime talk about your favorite hobby tomorrow, how would you feel? If you're like most people, you'd probably think fast about an excuse to get out of it, and if you couldn't, you'd lose sleep tonight. Public speaking is terrifying to many people, even in such a low-pressure setting and with a topic that we find pleasant.

Because so many people fear public speaking, overcoming and harnessing that fear can give you a distinct advantage. It's a powerful skill, and it comes into play for almost everyone at some time in their lives. Most businesspeople will be called on to give a presentation about something in their careers, for example. Even if you don't have that kind of job and aren't an actor, stage fright can sneak up on you if you attend a meeting of your church or neighborhood association, take a class and need to ask questions, or decide to lead a Girl Scout troop.

Tip

Even writer's block can be a form of stage fright, proving that you don't need to face a roomful of people to use these techniques.

In Action

The best basic strategy to handling stage fright is to first reduce it to a manageable level and then to use what's ...