How to Overcome Stage Fright
Performance anxiety and stage fright are perfectly normal phenomena that occur to many people. It is important for you to understand what stage fright is, in order to overcome it.
what is stage fright ?
Stage fright or performance anxiety is a persistent phobia which is aroused in an individual when required to perform in front of an audience.
Well these are some things to know to 'work' with stage fright, you see what i did there the word "work " is in quote . This is because people think they can entirely overcome stage fright but the truth is you can learn to manage it and thus enhance your performance on a daily basis.
Know What You Are Doing
Nothing reduces stage fright in it’s gripping tracks like being prepared. Know your content, your speech and more importantly your audience. If you know what you are talking about then you have no reason to be nervous. You don't need to go all there looking like someone who has seen a ghost. You gotta be confident of what you are doing , just behave like you own the audience and whatever you say they will understand.
Understanding your topic will enable you to speak more naturally and hence more confidently. Also, should a technical hitch occur, this won’t faze you as you are already confident on the subject.
Practice Makes Perfect
Trying building your confidence before the D-day, probably gather some friends and speak to them, let them access you and give some tips on how to improve. Don't go around talking to a mirror as though it is a person, a mirror won't laugh or frown at you. You need people who can tell show you some loopholes you need to fix
Knowing your stuff helps, but it doesn’t necessarily eradicate the problem. You need to practice as much as you can before the performance or public speaking d-day.
Really know your content inside out and practice as much as possible to build your confidence.
Visualize the Outcome
Call it what you will: reflection, visualization, meditation. Whatever you call it, just do it. Spend time visualizing yourself giving a perfect presentation and speaking in public – filled with humor, warmth, confidence and intelligence.
The more you imagine being great, the more likely you will achieve it.
It is Not All About You
Though you might feel like everyone is out to laugh, criticize or judge you, that is not the case. Get over the feeling that the world is going to hang on your every mistake.
Focus on your speech, audience and what they deserve from you. This will ease the pressure that is already accumulating.
When Things go Wrong
Sooner or later, something will go wrong. Your projector or microphone might stop working. If you already know your content, then chances are that this won’t faze you as much. If, for instance, your microphone stops working, don’t stress over it, carry on with a louder voice. Chances are the technical people are already stressing and working to sort the problem out, so you getting worried over the same issue won’t help.
Be Calm
Don’t rush your presentation. Start slow and allow yourself time to get into a comfortable pace. You need time to get used to the audience and the audience also needs time to get used to you.
Be Focused
Try always to stay on track, there are several things that will come up which will or may distract you and you don't want that standing between you and your audience. keep your attention in line with the matter at hand , if someone raises up a question you can't answer at that very moment you may tell them to wait till the concluding part of the session . this will give you time to think on such questions.
Never Apologize for Being Nervous
Seriously no one notices when you are nervous , well except yourself so why tell them? You may feel yourself shaking and shivering, but your audience might not be aware of it. Don’t mention it. It will make your audience nervous too and they will be too worried about your performance to get much out of your presentation.
Don’t Share Your Mistakes
You have prepared, practiced and feel good about your speech or presentation. Suddenly, on stage you realize you mixed the order of topics or you forgot an important point. But remember, you’re the only one who knows about this. Your audience doesn’t. So, don’t make them aware of a mistake that they didn’t even know existed. If you bring it up, some people might start looking for more holes, which ultimately distracts from the whole purpose of your presentation in the first place.
Arrive Early
Late coming is a mood killer, you should arrive on time to get comfortable with your environment. you don't want to get on stage looking confused .Arrive early and acclimate to your surroundings. You can even check out the stage and the auditorium as get yourself used to the environment.
Stretch
If you are nervous, odds are your body will be stiff and your muscles tight. now you are speaking to an audience chances are you would be tense before them, why not try out some few stretches. This will loosen the tense muscles and relax your body.
Breathe
Nervousness is always accompanied by fast, short breaths and if this is not addressed, it will throw you off balance. Minutes before you go on stage, take some slow, deep breaths, so that by the time you get to the stage your breathing is relaxed.
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