How to manage performance anxiety
Insights on dealing with nerves when in the spotlight from my experiences as Chief Joy Officer at Makers
Whether it’s introducing yourself on Day 1 at Makers, Karaoke night, feedback sessions, code reviews, project presentation or job interviews, being in the spotlight can be daunting for many of us.
Performance anxiety is essentially stress about your performance in front of people. It’s very common for people to feel this as performing at the centre of others’ attention is a skill that doesn’t come naturally to everyone.
Your body reacts to these situations much the same way as it would if you were in actual physical danger: your fight-or-flight mechanism kicks in.
It spurs anxious feelings causing uncomfortable physical feelings such as shakiness, dry mouth/throat, sweating, tingling hands and feet and racing heartbeat.
Emotionally, you may experience uncomfortable feelings like embarrassment, fear, frustration and mentally, your brain might not be doing what you expect it to do like recalling something you know well.
Below is my four-step system for dealing with performance anxiety in the moment: it’s helped many a Maker and I hope it helps you too.
How to remember this easily? SEGA. Not the game company (but if remembering the catchy Sega jingle helps you claim your brain when you’re anxious — go for it!)
S: Stop (and slow down)
E: Exhale (twice as much as you inhale)
G: Greet your emotion (“hi, ‘Fear’, take a seat, I’m in the middle of something”)
A: Awareness/acknowledgement (“I’m regulating, it’s normal to feel nervous, this is an opportunity, not a threat”)
1. Stop (and slow down)
Much of the time we’re on autopilot in ultra ‘doing mode’. Let your symptoms of tension be a signal to stop — this moment is sometimes referred to as “the sacred pause” — and slow down.
In this instant, you can claim your brain back as you move away from default reactions to a situation to deliberate action to calm and regulate this heightened state.
Time feels faster when you’re stressed so there’s a chance that you might be rushing. There’s a fear that taking pauses will come across negatively to the audience/interviewer/assessor but that’s not the case:
- Not only do pauses and slowing down allow time for information processing, it shows that you are being thoughtful as to deliver most effectively which others appreciate.
- I’m not suggesting long stretches of time where you’re silently pondering to yourself — instead, it’s worth remembering that we often give ourselves far less time to respond than we would someone else.
- Practice holding that space for yourself and you will not only come across as more confident but will also feel more confident when ‘on the spot’.
- Pauses are healthy as it allows you to take deep breaths to aid your brain, swallow, or drink water.
2. Exhale (twice as much as you inhale)
We can take it for granted because it’s happening all the time but our breathing can tell us a lot about our state and is also a powerful way to regulate ourselves when we’re experiencing intensity.
- When we take deep breaths we stimulate the vagus nerve. The Vagus nerve is the longest nerve in the body responsible for the digestive tract, respiration, and heart rate functioning.
- When we’re anxious we are in ‘fight or flight’ mode. Rational thinking and problem solving are not as accessible in this mode as the body is preoccupied with survival.
- By taking deep breaths (with focus on longer exhales) we are able to move to a more rational state — from fight or flight to relaxation mode.
- An easy to remember exercise is “2X breathing” or “2:1 Ratio Breathing”. Inhaling for three counts, exhaling for six counts (e.g. exhale twice as much as you inhale).
- 2X breathing is virtually unnoticeable to others yet the deep breaths will help ground you in the moment and help your brain function better.
3. Greet your emotion
You might feel performance anxiety symptoms at any time before or during the event. When these feelings arrive, they can nudge us into a downward spiral of fear and doubt.
- As mentioned, this reaction is common, experienced by many millions of people all around the world. Along with death and loneliness, public failure, looking incompetent and rejection are the biggest human fears — this reaction is normal.
- Instead of seeing the uncomfortable feelings as signals of doom, consciously welcome them as normal parts of the experience as you would friends who are stopping by for a visit eg: “Oh hello clammy hands, greetings tight chest, dry mouth… scared, doubtful voice! Welcome!”
- Practicing this allows you to create space for natural nervous reactions while not letting them dominate by over-identifying with them. They’re there, you’re not fighting them, and therefore you’re more able to carry on with the task at hand.
- This lighter approach also helps you to ease the pressure on yourself. By poking a bit of fun at your humanness, your energy of self-acceptance will be positively received by others.
4. Awareness/Acknowledgement
It may not seem like a big deal at the time but consciously self-regulating in the heat of the moment is one of the best things we can practice for ourselves and others who experience us.
- Reinforce your practice by acknowledging that you’ve come off autopilot reacting and are being deliberate in support of yourself and your goals.
- The point isn’t to feel fabulous in an instant, but to stay with yourself and to have your own back. The more we show up for ourselves, the more resilient and confident we become.
- Zoom out of the situation for a more balanced perspective and realise that it’s an opportunity, not a threat.
- There’s always something to learn, even if it’s just that you are going to keep ‘having your back’ while stay determined to reach your goals.
- Remind yourself that people want you to succeed. No worthwhile person is waiting for you to fail so that they can point at you and mock you.
- Try viewing your performance as a service rather than a series of hoops to jump through. That way you take the focus off yourself and act from a place of giving to the other rather than a place of needing from the other.
More tips
- Practice, practice, practice — when we are prepared, we give ourselves the best chance for success.
- Shift your focus from what could go wrong and visualise what success would look like. Try to emotionally connect with your visualisation — it works. #science
- Be mindful of your caffeine and sugar intake to avoid jitters. Nourish yourself properly to feel sustained and grounded.
- If you have excess energy then go for a walk, shake your body, jump, shout into a pillow to release some of that energy.
- Our state of mind follows our physiology. Hack your mind with a confident and relaxed body language.
- Don’t take yourself too seriously, we are all works in progress — a lighter mind is a more agile mind.
Have you ever felt performance anxiety? What works for you? Share in the comments below.
