Terrified about presentation

@gentleBook3741

sometimes writing things out helps ... i hope it did for you as you are aware of why this seems harder for you then others ......

i used to have a hard time with things like that but i reached a point that like you said it may never be remembered even later on why am i stressing myself so hard.

@gentleBook3741

Its perfectly okay to feel that way. Presentations are difficult for a lot of people. In college we once had someone come to us and talk about presentations. It's apparently the UKs second worst fear (after spiders).

I can offer you some pointers as someone who also dreads presentations but have been told many times I'm very professional at then.

1) Writing things down/making notes is very useful so you don't lose your way.

2) Don't think of the room being full of people. Talk to the people like you're on a one to one with a friend. Make eye contact with one person as you talk, smile and use body language and then move your eyes to meet someone else in the room. Move between people so it feels more like a one on one talk. You don't have to look at everyone. Move at your own pace.

3) Hand gestures and body language go a long way. It makes you seem more alive and into it. Helps you feel more relaxed and natural too.If you have a presentation behind you, some pointing to the screen can help.

4) If you don't want to read a lot of text, just have little pointers or one sentence written down that will trigger what you need to say. Whatever you have to talk about next write down "what is *thing*?" "What have I discovered about *thing*?" "this is a fact about *thing*". Then allow your brain to fill in the rest based on what you've researched.

5) Try to stay relaxed. Don't talk too fast to get it over with. Take your time, go at your own pace.

6) It might seem absolutely terrifying but the relief you'll feel once it's over is amazing. And even a nice high from jt for a job well done and doing such a brave thing.

Best of luck to you!

Dude your feelings are valid. Presentations are scary and you’re allowed to be afraid even if it’s “easy”. When I was in high school even the most extroverted kids where terrified of presentations. I actually thought about dropping out of school for a presentation because I was so afraid of one. It’s okay to be afraid of things and face them anyways. That’s what life is about.

I’ve been there. My freshman year was ruined as a whole because I spent it worrying about just one presentation at the end of it. The day of the presentation turned out to be the best day of my life and I hardly did it perfectly. I forgot some of the script and thought I looked nervous but no one even noticed. Just think of it as a portion of a time on a random day that’ll pass. You’ll totally forget about it, everyone else will forget about it, but you’ll definitely remember the time you spent worrying about it. You’ll do okay, and if you didn’t, It won’t make much of a difference bc everybody screws up a lot on their lives. Hope you do well.

Hello @gentleBook3741,

You sound overwhelmed and anxious about an upcoming event. It is normal to feel this way when we are not sure what the outcome will be. There are some resources here which might help with your anxiety! :)

@gentleBook3741 I understand you very much. Confidence during presentations stems from impeccable preparation. To banish nerves, I am using help from professionals Their pitch deck design expertise guarantees a polished and professional presentation, allowing me to focus on my projects.