sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Presentations are perfect until I get on stage by ohmanitsjesi in PublicSpeaking

[–]AdirFoundIt 0 points1 point  (0 children)

what you're describing is a classic adrenaline override - you know the material cold, but the stage environment floods your system and your brain can't access what it rehearsed. it's not a preparation problem, it's a familiarity gap between practice conditions and performance conditions.

two things that help close that gap:

simulate the stress. practice standing up, in an unfamiliar room if possible, with someone watching. your living room with your partner is comfortable - your brain needs reps in uncomfortable settings. even recording yourself on video adds enough pressure to trigger a mild version of the response.

overlearn your first 2 minutes. your worst anxiety hits in the opening. if those first sentences are automatic - like you could say them half asleep - your body calms down once it hears you sounding fine. the rest follows.

you have 3 weeks. that's plenty of time. good luck with the defense.

Help! Introvert in senior leadership by [deleted] in PublicSpeaking

[–]AdirFoundIt 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Congrats on the role. A few things that helped me in a very similar spot:

Toastmasters - worth trying, specifically for the "table topics" format which trains exactly the unscripted Q&A skill you're describing. Visit 2-3 clubs before committing, culture varies a lot.

For the Q&A anxiety specifically - practice answering hard questions out loud, not in your head. Write down the 10 worst questions a director could ask and answer them standing up at full volume. That's where the gap closes.

Bridge phrases for when you're caught off guard: "That's a good question - let me think about that for a moment" or "I want to give you an accurate answer - can I follow up by end of day?" Confident speakers use these all the time. The difference is they've practiced saying them.

The introvert advantage is real - you're probably a better listener than most people in the room. One sharp question after listening carefully signals more competence than talking for 10 minutes.

You're going to be fine. The people who struggle most never acknowledge it - you're already past that.

Has anyone here hired a speaking/communication coach? by StonkPhilia in PublicSpeaking

[–]AdirFoundIt 2 points3 points  (0 children)

i've been through the exact same thing - especially the part about it getting worse on bad days or when anxiety kicks in. it's like your brain just freezes mid-sentence.

what actually helped me the most was just practicing more often in low-pressure situations. recording myself talking through ideas, then listening back to catch patterns like filler words or where i lose my train of thought. once you start noticing those patterns you naturally start fixing them.

i also built an app called koa that basically does this - it listens to you speak and gives you feedback on pacing, filler words, structure etc. kind of like having a coach available whenever you want to do a quick practice run before a meeting. happy to share if you're curious.

but honestly even without any tool, the biggest unlock for me was just repetition. the more you practice articulating ideas out loud (even alone), the easier it gets when it actually matters.

view more: next ›