Presentations: why we need to feel the fear and do it anyway

Racing heart. Dry mouth. Sweaty palms. Wobbly voice. Red face. Foggy brain. And a general inability to breathe properly. Few of us haven’t felt at least one of these when we’ve stood (or sat) up to speak in an important meeting.

While I can’t claim to stop you from ever experiencing any of these side effects again, I can show you how to manage the adrenaline rush so that you can feel the fear and do it anyway.

Adrenaline – the public speaker’s best friend

I recently spent a very enjoyable day in the company of nine lovely people taking part in my Public Speaking and Presentation Skills workshop. Each had different reasons for being on the course but the one thing that united them all was anxiety. While apprehension can produce many unwanted side effects, it can also be the public speaker’s best friend.

Adrenaline is a remarkable hormone. Released into our bloodstream from our adrenal glands when we feel scared or stressed, it prepares our bodies for fight or flight by speeding up our heart rate and pumping up our muscles.

Unfortunately, this involuntary chemical reaction isn’t terribly conducive to the clear thinking we need for verbal communication.

In fact, some people become so aware of the physical effects of adrenaline, they can’t think of anything else. They allow the side effects to dominate their thoughts and actions and become crippled with anxiety.

Techniques to help you fake it until you make it

That’s why I teach techniques everyone can adopt to manage those unwanted adrenaline-induced side effects.

We go through some simple ways of planning (and remembering) what you need to say. The more comfortable you are with what you’re talking about, the better you’ll deliver it.

We look at ways to enhance your physical presence, improve your diction and project your voice so you look and sound confident even when you’re feeling anxious.

And I provide tips on where to sit or stand in a room (or how to light yourself online) so that you are literally presented in the best light.

Self-aware not self-conscious

That rush of adrenaline that quickens your heart rate and fuddles your brain isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Many people say they feel more comfortable sitting down when talking or presenting. Some say they prefer online meetings as they feel less exposed.

But that’s the problem.

Just because we feel comfortable doesn’t mean to say we’re coming over well. In fact, very often, the more comfortable we feel, the more likely we are to look complacent, uninterested and even bored.

Feeling slightly uncomfortable when talking to people, especially those we consider to be more important than us, isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

For example, if we’re worried that a call or meeting might not go well, that sense of anxiety can actually prompt us to be more aware of our behaviour and how we’re coming across. As a result, we might plan better and be more able to handle difficult questions.

If we think of a sense of anxiety as being more of a sense of self-awareness rather than self-consciousness, we are more capable of managing it. Self-consciousness has negative connotations. But self-awareness sounds positive.

Presentation training isn’t just for presentations

Even if you never have to make formal presentations, presentation and public speaking training will provide you with a set of skills you can benefit from in other business communications.

Without good personal communication skills, you might find people ignoring or talking over you in meetings, not taking your ideas seriously, or behaving in a demeaning and patronising manner towards you.

Presentation training provides you with the skills to be more influential in face-to-face communications – whether those are in the boardroom, on the stage, at networking events or in online meetings and calls.

Feel the fear and do it anyway

Think of that ‘fear’ of public speaking as the thing that gives you energy. By adopting and practising a few simple methods, you’ll learn how to use that energy positively so that you’ll be managing the adrenaline – rather than letting it manage you.

Find out more about my public speaking services – including talking at and hosting events, as well as speaker coaching

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