BEFORE GIVING A PRESENTATION, TAKE A MOMENT TO RELAX
DEBORAH ODAGBODO
As final exams quickly approach, many students may be
required to complete a presentation. Public speaking is the world’s most common
phobia, and forty percent of Americans says it is their biggest fear. Do you
fit into that forty percent?
One of the main reasons people give bad presentations is because of nervousness. Recently in one of my health classes, I was required to give a presentation. I spent weeks preparing and felt very confident when I walked into the class. Before I was to present, the professor told each student his/her current grade in the class. To my surprise my grade in the class was much lower than I had anticipated. This situation caused me to feel nervous about the presentation I was about to give. The nervousness decreased my confidence level and affected my presentation skills. I did not get the grade I wanted—not because I wasn’t prepared. The reason why I did not do as well as I could have was all because of simple nerves.
To help cure my nerves in that situation I could have done a physical activity, created a mental distraction and/or done some mental relaxation techniques.
1. Physical tension contributes to nervous thoughts. Completing some sort of quick physical activity before you present could reduce the amount of anxiety and mental tension you have. I could have went into the hallway and done some squats and maybe quickly jogged up a few flight of stairs.
2. Creating several mental distractions could make your brain redirect its focus. The combination distracts all of your senses and makes it much harder to focus on the anxiety you may be experiencing. I could have excused myself from the classroom and went to listen to my favorite song while looking at some pictures on Instagram.
3. Relaxation techniques also help reduce anxiety. However, they key is to do them correctly so that they could have an affect on your overall mood. I could have done some deep breathing or visualization techniques.
Hopefully with these tips the next tome you and I start to feel the nerves about a presentation we are able to get them under control to deliver the best presentation we can.
One of the main reasons people give bad presentations is because of nervousness. Recently in one of my health classes, I was required to give a presentation. I spent weeks preparing and felt very confident when I walked into the class. Before I was to present, the professor told each student his/her current grade in the class. To my surprise my grade in the class was much lower than I had anticipated. This situation caused me to feel nervous about the presentation I was about to give. The nervousness decreased my confidence level and affected my presentation skills. I did not get the grade I wanted—not because I wasn’t prepared. The reason why I did not do as well as I could have was all because of simple nerves.
To help cure my nerves in that situation I could have done a physical activity, created a mental distraction and/or done some mental relaxation techniques.
1. Physical tension contributes to nervous thoughts. Completing some sort of quick physical activity before you present could reduce the amount of anxiety and mental tension you have. I could have went into the hallway and done some squats and maybe quickly jogged up a few flight of stairs.
2. Creating several mental distractions could make your brain redirect its focus. The combination distracts all of your senses and makes it much harder to focus on the anxiety you may be experiencing. I could have excused myself from the classroom and went to listen to my favorite song while looking at some pictures on Instagram.
3. Relaxation techniques also help reduce anxiety. However, they key is to do them correctly so that they could have an affect on your overall mood. I could have done some deep breathing or visualization techniques.
Hopefully with these tips the next tome you and I start to feel the nerves about a presentation we are able to get them under control to deliver the best presentation we can.