Nothing is more fulfilling than you helping others progress to a higher level. Early this year, I was working with a young lady on her nervousness, or rather stage fright. Even though she had done a few presentations, she was still so scared of presenting in front of a group that she kept on stumbling upon words. This gave her huge stress, even close to the level of trauma. Can you imagine the huge negative impact on her performance and confidence level?
All presenters and speakers feel or should feel nervous if they care about every of their presentations and speeches. Nervousness is good. We need that adrenaline rush to perform our best. In all the clients I’ve encountered, the issue is that most people focus on the wrong person – themselves, rather than their audience. No matter how well prepared you are, like all my clients did, if you are worrying about:
“What if I say something wrong or forget my words?
What if they laugh at me?
What if they feel bored?
Will I impress them …”
You are not going to perform well. Every presentation and speech we give is to add value to the audience and leave them with ideas they can apply. Every presentation and speech is not about you! (Read my article It’s Not about You to learn how to shift your focus from yourself to the audience.) It sounds so simple and straightforward yet so many people have overlooked.
In the 3 hours I worked with the young lady, she managed to shift her focus and learned techniques to connecting with the audience. Last month right after her presentation, she sent me a message,
“Cynthia, I just had my presentation yesterday. I stumbled with my words for the first 5-6 seconds but I became better after that and I could present fluently. I’m so happy to overcome this obstacle. I remembered your words and concentrated on my breathing. I focused on what I wanna present, trying to forget my fear. Thank you!”
I am thrilled for her progress.
Are you focusing on the wrong person?
