When I was a teenager, I was stuck, experiencing stage fright:
• I shook
• My palms sweat
• I spoke too timidly
All these years later, I now empathize with the timid presenter because I know how it feels. And I know there’s a way to improve.
Today, I feel confident that as long as I know 1) who the audience is, 2) what the purpose of the presentation is and 3) the context it’s being received in, I can crush any presentation.
Here’s what this journey taught me about overcoming stage fright.
Lesson #1: The audience is on your side.
I used to think my audiences wanted me to mess up. Now I know that’s not true.
The audience wants you to succeed. They’re rooting for you to inspire them!
This simple paradigm shift can immediately kill your stage fright.
Lesson #2: The audience is more generous than you think.
No one is going to throw tomatoes at you. And if someone does make fun of you, forget them. Let them go back to their troll cave. Don’t give them attention; starve them. Force them to find somewhere else to point their sickness at.
If you make a mistake, the overwhelming majority of audience members will be very forgiving and generous.
Lesson #3: You’re the speaker. Act like it.
Wherever you’re speaking, there’s a reason it’s you and not someone else. You have something unique to offer.
You don’t need to “impress” people or be someone else. Just be you and share what you’re there to share to make a difference for people.
That’s a great transition to my next point…
Lesson #4: Showing up to serve gives you confidence.
Something amazing happens when you flip the switch from trying to “impress” to trying to “serve.”
When you genuinely want to serve and make a difference for people, it gives you more confidence to speak. Your desire to help overrides all other considerations and you go from fearful to eager!
Lesson #5: Use your personal experience.
I used to think I needed to share original, awe-inspiring insights that people had never heard anywhere else! Otherwise, I’d be a fraud. But that’s not true at all…
You’re a messenger. Even if what you’re sharing was learned from somewhere else, your unique experience with that knowledge can inspire people in amazing ways.
Use personal experience, even if the lessons were learned from other people.
TL;DR - 5 lessons I learned in overcoming stage fright.
• The audience is on your side.
• The audience is more generous than you think.
• You’re the speaker. Act like it.
• Showing up to serve gives you confidence.
• Use your personal experience.