How to Relax Before a Presentation in English: 4 Techniques for Calming Down

Struggling with presentation anxiety is totally normal. Indeed, 75% of people have admitted that they felt nervous before giving a public speech at some point in their lives. So you’re not the only one feeling this way. Presentations are inevitable, be it for a wedding speech or idea sharing at work. It has a huge importance for many roles. That means you cannot avoid public speaking, you’ve got to go through it! However, speaking up in front of a crowd is not easy. For this reason, we will tell you about a few techniques to make it easier for you to present in English. If you are ready, let's take a look at these techniques that will ease your anxiety to speak in front of a community.

1. Accept the Fact that Your Presentation Won’t Be Perfect

Starting by accepting the fact that your presentation will not be perfect is a very important step to alleviate your worries. Of course, just because something is not perfect does not mean that it is not great. You have probably seen that small mistakes made at a show, theater or concert do not harm the show at all. Small flaws during a performance do not affect the audience badly, but make the performer more sincere. Especially mistakes related to language are never judged by the audience. Because these language errors are a sign that the presenter is any human being, just like the audience. For example, consider the presentations that you attended as an audience. You will probably remember that it doesn't matter to you if the person making the presentation makes some mistakes. Because each presentation is evaluated as a whole. In other words, the mistakes you make out of excitement will not cause you to ruin your presentation. That's why being at peace with making mistakes is very important for you to relax. Instead of constantly thinking “What’s going to happen tomorrow? Is everything going to go well?”, you should let go of the mistakes you will make in your presentation. So that you can prepare for your presentation in a more confident way.

2. Fake It Till You Make It

Everyone wants to have confidence while giving a public speech However, you might still come across as confident even if you don't feel it. The most important thing that will allow you to do this is your body language. Even if you feel anxious, it is possible to hide it by moving your body correctly. Body language is an effective instrument. Your body language, tone of voice, eye contact, and facial expressions all play a significant role in how you communicate. Many musicians, comedians, actors and people who work on stage also suffer from nervousness but they manage to hide it with their body language. So taking a deep breath and acting confident till you actually feel confident is not a bad idea. You can put a smile on your face and move on…

3. Consider Your Anxious Energy as Enthusiasm

Although excitement and anxiety do not feel the same way, they have the same effects on your body. Thanks to this similarity, you can fool your brain. How? By convincing yourself that you are happy to be presenting in English. Because the biggest difference between excitement and fear is the feeling of happiness. The adrenaline can make you feel scared. However, turning it into a positive feeling is in your hands. In other words, the way to be excited and not worried about your presentation is to feel happy. So you can trick your brain by smiling and feeling joyful before starting the presentation.

4. Start Practicing English with Flalingo!

We have studied some relaxation techniques that you can apply before making a presentation in English. However, it is more important than anything else that you master English before your presentation. To achieve this, you should practice speaking English frequently. Flalingo gives you the opportunity to practice speaking English from home. With the online English lessons of Flalingo, you can improve your English anywhere and anytime you want. So that before your presentation in English, you can practice speaking English. If you want to avoid making language related mistakes in your presentation, take a look at online English training opportunities provided by Flalingo!