Pitshanger Village Therapy

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Monday, 1 August 2011

Managing Your Performance Anxiety

Performance Anxiety (PA) is the anxiety or persistent fear aroused when required to perform in front of an audience.  Those completely new to performing and those who have done so for years  can suffer from performance anxiety (PA).    Famous people such as Kim Bassinger, Barbara Streisand and Sir Laurence Olivier all were afflicted with PA at some point in their lives.  For many of us, PA strikes when giving a presentation at work or a speech at a wedding. 

Fear is the core emotion in PA and it manifests itself with physical symptoms such as sweating, a racing heart, blushing, trembling, a dry mouth, nausea and/or a shaky voice.  A threat of failure or judgement from others is often at the root of PA.  Months of training, preparation and practice can be erased in an instant causing real or imagined negative effects to self esteem, career and status.

Here are some practical tips to help you overcome your performance anxiety if it is of a mild or moderate nature.  Psychotherapy, specifically Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, can be highly effective if you PA symptoms are on the severe range.

1.  Shift attention away from yourself towards your audience.  PA sufferers engage in common thinking errors that lead to emotional distress and self-focused attention (concentration turning inwards towards the self rather than on the task at hand).  This takes the individual out of the present distorting his perspective and putting him at risk of losing the relaxed awareness essential for a successful performance.  Take your time during your presentation and pause occasionally.  Pick a colour and search for it in the audience while pausing.  Ask your audience a question that will link you to the next part of your presentation.  Engage with the audience.  This will take self destructive attention away from yourself and redirect it constructively towards the people who matter.

2.  Avoid mindreading and get constructive feedback.  Ask questions about areas you struggled with.  What was problematic to you may not have been noticed nor have been an issue for the audience.  You are not a mind reader and attempting to do so will fuel your insecurities.

3.  Avoid Perfectionist thinking.  Be realistic!  Be prepared for your presentation, but don’t expect to know the answer to every question.  You can often bat questions back to the audience to add a participative dynamic to your presentation – again directing attention to your audience and away from you.   

4.   Gather Evidence – design a short questionnaire for all delegates to complete after your presentation.  Find out what they’re experience of your presentation was.  The questions should seek feedback on key aspects of the whole presentation – the facilities, presentation materials, presentation style, value of the content.

5.  Engage in relaxation and mindfulness techniques to cope with your physical responses to anxiety pre- and during the presentation.  The Alexander Technique is one such technique.

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