Facing someone or a situation we are unsure of can be a challenge for anyone if you are lacking in self confidence and self esteem. This can involve simply talking to someone, giving a speech, a performance, interview, or the first date.
If you are confident in your looks, knowledge, and abilities you will probably face this challenge with ease.
Many of us are afraid of making a fool of ourselves and this may keep us from pursuing new opportunities that could improve our lives.
If you are one of the millions of people that would like to stop fidgeting in front of others, trying to squirrel out of such situations, and being so unsure of yourself when facing presentations, here are a few tips to set you on your way.
1. Creating Confidence – creating confidence involves becoming competent at what you do to the point you have no doubt in your knowledge and abilities. Some organizations, like the Toastmasters, help those afraid to speak in public toughen up by stressing this idea. One of the secrets to confidence and self-esteem is being able to trust what you are capable of doing. This comes with a lot of practice and study. Whenever you practice a given skill, you increase your own confidence in your capability to perform even in front of other people.
If you are planning a presentation you should make learning your topic, inside and out, your primary focus.
Practice presenting your topic to people that care for and support you, so that you can receive some valuable feedback that will help you with your performance.
Practicing in front of supportive people you trust will help you get feedback on how to improve your performance.
2. Believe in Yourself – if what you are doing is truly a passion, then your presentation and knowledge of the topic will be easier. You most likely will have indepth knowledge and believe in what you are doing. This will boost your confidence and help you in creating enthusiasm in your listener. A positive response from your listerners will increase your self esteem. Believe in yourself, what you do and that you are a success. Do not let failure become an option.
3. Welcome Criticism- Most people are bad at taking criticisms. Instead of taking the criticisms personally, use every comment and suggestion to make yourself better. If the criticism does not have any value in helping you improve yourself then discard it and keep moving forward.
4. Maintain Your Composure – becoming anxious and panicking when things do not go as planned will just destroy your confidence. Knowing how you are going to respond if something does not go as planned will help you relax and improve your confidence and self esteem. There is nothing wrong with saying you do not know and you will get back with them on that. Just staying calm and telling them you do not know is better than fumbling with coming up with an explanation or answer to something you are not sure of.
This is why it is important to know your topic as well as possible prior to facing the crowd.
5. Don’t be Afraid to Fail – do not be afraid to fail; look at each failure as a stepping stone to achieving your goals. Each failure is a tool to help you achieve excellence in whatever you may be pursuing.
6. What People Think Of You- the opinion of others can influence your thinking and how far you go with some aspects of your life; however, it is important to believe in yourself and what you stand for. Only you live inside that brain and know what you are truly capable of, so take the negative opinions of others with a grain of salt.
7. Focus On Your Passion- spend some time each day working on things you have a passion for. This will help boost your moral and confidence, since you probably have alot of knowledge about your passion. Feeling good about what you do and know will carry over to other aspects of your life and help you achieve excellence when it is demanded of you.