How to Minimize Anxiety When Presenting - Part 1

Author note: This article is co-authored with Maria Soriano Young

On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being “I LOVE presenting” to 10 being “Seriously, please don’t make me do this”), how would you rate your comfort level with presenting in general? Now, how would you rate your comfort level with presenting online? We’re willing to bet that the number for presenting online might be higher, for a couple of reasons: worries about technology failing or not working correctly, the inability to see all of your audience members at once, concerns about lack of engagement, and so on. If you have anxiety about presenting (whether in general or online), you’re not alone—and the good news is, we are here to help.

Most interventions that aim to minimize public speaking anxiety are behavioral (e.g., they focus on the psychology of the individual) or pedagogic (e.g., they focus on skill development). (1) While some people can address the issue of nerves on their own, others might benefit from working with a professional to get to the source of the nerves to make lasting changes. A cognitive-behavioral therapist can help you better understand your psychological and physiological reactions before or when presenting.

We will divide this topic into four posts, with 25 suggestions in each. In total, we will list 100 techniques for navigating nerves. However, the reality is that for each of you reading this article, it will be a different combination that works (and hey, you may find that something not on this list is what works for you. If that’s the case, we encourage you to share your methods with us!). Positive self-talk combined with double-checking your technology might do the trick for some. For others, not so much. For Scott, deep breathing and visualizing never really made a distinct difference, but touchstones, letting go of perfection, early audience engagement, and playing the right music ahead of time helped him manage his nerves. For Maria, a lengthy planning process, handwritten notes to help with memorization, and rehearsing beforehand are helpful strategies. We suggest picking one or some combination of techniques and running some experiments.

We also want to remind you to be patient with yourself; the fact that you are even reading this post says a lot about you! You are actively working to improve. As you read the list of strategies below, we encourage you to identify and write down 1–3 that sound realistic and then experiment! And if you don’t find anything that works this time, then you’re in luck because there will be three more posts with ideas for you to try. Let us know which you try and how the strategies work for you!

Strategy list, part 1:

1. Positive self-talk. Place a sticky note with a positive reminder next to your computer.
2. Keep the temperature cool or warm in your presentation space. It depends on you!
3. See a therapist and talk about the source of your anxiety.
4. Join Toastmasters or a similar organization and practice presenting.
5. Ask a seasoned colleague to mentor you and provide feedback.
6. Ask your organization to hire a presentation coach.
7. Take a presentation skills course in the community, or teach a presentation skills course in your organization.
8. Use technology to plan, and use the results to help you track your anxiety (e.g., Yoodli)
9. Practice the presentation and ask a colleague for feedback. As scholar Chris Ireland suggests, “The lower the level of mastery, the greater the level of apprehension is likely to be.” (2)
10. Incorporate appropriate humor and win the audience over early. Design for humor in a couple of places
11. Begin with a fun activity like Point North or Changing Perspective .
12. Ask people to answer a question in the chat beforehand (e.g., first concert, favorite show growing up).
13. Practice the technology platform you will be using days in advance.
14. Design short breaks for yourself by showing a video or placing the audience in a discussion.
15. Be proud of yourself—honor that. You are putting yourself out there with this presentation, which can be scary!
16. Arrive online 30 minutes early and test everything.
17. Build relationships before you begin, perhaps by networking with people who arrive early—e.g., ask, “Carl, what is your role at XYZ Corp?”
18. Dress in a way that makes you feel confident. In other words, dress the part.
19. Tailor the talk to your audience in some meaningful way.
20. Use a touchstone to ground yourself; perhaps that is a small keepsake, an important piece of jewelry, or something meaningful. Place it next to your computer (or if it’s jewelry, incorporate it into your outfit).
21. Design your setting. Invest a little time and money to ensure it’s an ideal environment for you.
22. Compliment an audience member on their setting or background.
23. Start your day in the best possible way. Perhaps it’s a long walk, yoga, workout, meditation, or even a better breakfast than you normally have. (3)
24. Focus on the larger meaning and purpose of your talk. Tap into your energy and enthusiasm for the topic.
25. Let go of perfection. The presentation will not be perfect, and that’s ok.

What strategies have worked for you? Place your thoughts in the comments!

And remember, you will not overcome your anxiety in one day or even one week. But as you practice and experiment with anxiety reduction strategies, we hope you feel more balanced and at ease.

References

1. Ireland, C. (2016). Student oral presentations: Developing the skills and reducing the apprehension. IATED, 1474–1483.
2. Ireland, C. (2020). Apprehension felt towards delivering oral presentations: A case study of accountancy students. Accounting Education, 29(3), 305–320.
3. Morgan, N. (2008). How to become an authentic speaker. Harvard Business Review, 11(86), 115–119.

We explore this topic and others in our book Captovation: Online Presentations by Design .