Seven tips from professionals for soothing stage fright

Practice your presentation

Imagining people’s perceptions of your performance and negative self-talk can fuel anxiety as you approach the stage. We want our presentation to be memorable, for no one to perceive nervousness, and for some, nothing less than perfection. Attempting to control natural reactions is difficult, but one thing a presenter can control is their readiness. Practice your presentation to increase your confidence and to help prevent stage fright. If you struggle with preparing for a presentation, learn how to practice and rehearse your presentation.

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Replace negative self-talk

Overthinking and being hypercritical before and during your presentation are more likely to debilitate your presentation than help it. The more you feed into negative self-talk, the more it will detract from your delivery. To stay focused on your presentation, try reframing negative thoughts with ones that are reassuring.

Connect with your audience

Since stage fright is largely internal, shifting your focus to your audience can help. Connect with your audience by making eye contact, smiling, and being personable in your presentation. And if you’re funny, you can also include humor in your presentation. Make sure your jokes are appropriate for your audience. Inappropriate jokes can backfire and create a rift between you and your audience, making your stage fright worse.

Try mindfulness meditation

To alleviate stress presenting and in your daily life, implement a mindfulness meditation routine into your life. Mindfulness meditation is directing awareness to yourself (breath, thoughts, feelings, etc.) and accepting those feelings without judgement. When preparing for or beginning a presentation, this helps to eliminate unhelpful emotional reactions or negative thoughts, according to studies by psychology researchers.

You can extend your mindfulness practice into your presentation to help ground yourself. Notice where your feet stand on the ground, and how it feels on the stage. Draw attention to your breath, and make sure you are breathing deeply and exhaling slowly to stay calm. Bring awareness to the rest of your body, from the arches in your shoulders down to your spine.

To introduce yourself to mindfulness meditation, consider using a guided meditation. There are plenty of meditation apps help you get started. You can find them on the Microsoft Store and download them to your computer.

Pick a place to focus on

Divert your nervous energy to a specific area in the room. Look around the room for an area to focus on – a chair, door, corner, or anything you can use to keep yourself centered. This is a great technique, but you don’t want to appear disengaged staring at one place the entire presentation. Choose a few spots to focus on and alternate between them during your presentation.

Talk to your doctor or therapist

If the fear of presenting is debilitating, consider talking to your doctor or therapist. Stage fright can be a symptom of underlying social anxiety. If diagnosed, your doctor or therapist can help you make a plan to help reduce your anxiety.

Exercise and maintain a healthy diet

Exercising can help release endorphins and alleviate stress. Maintaining a consistent exercise routine and healthy diet can help lower stress, and potentially improve your fear of presenting. Make sure you are eating a balanced diet and drinking plenty of water. Limit how much caffeine and sugar you consume so you can stay clear-headed and calm while you present.

Alleviate your stage fright and feel confident presenting. Take control of your speaking engagements and performances with more presentation tips.