Does public speaking have you running for the hills? Do you avoid applying to your dream job because you know there will be more public speaking?  Does being the center of attention in groups trigger an insane amount of anxiety? 

If so, you might be experiencing performance anxiety.

First, what is performance anxiety? 

Performance anxiety is a specific anxiety or phobia that a person experiences when there is an audience and there is an expectation of achievement that the person feels they need to meet. This could be giving a formal presentation at work, talking at an office meeting, during an athletic performance, or even ordering dinner at a restaurant.

What does performance anxiety look like? 

When a person experiences performance anxiety, they experience increased heart rate, perspiration, a feeling of warmth, feeling flush, dry mouth, tightness in their chest, a shaky voice, and racing thoughts. This activates a person's fight or flight response signaling DANGER! 

What is stage fright performance anxiety? 

Stage Fright: This type of performance anxiety is related to getting in front of an audience or group of people. This includes giving a presentation at work or at school, going on a job interview, performing at an athletic event, or a musical or singing performance. This type of performance anxiety can negatively impact people's careers, hobbies, and interests, and negatively impact self-esteem.

Additionally, people also experience a fear of failure, negative beliefs about one’s skills and abilities, and judgement from others. 

What if you could feel self-assured, confident, and better about yourself when you are called to task? With a little bit of work, you can! 

Read more to find out how you can overcome performance anxiety.

Five Techniques to Overcome Performance Anxiety 

Coping Techniques and Stress Reduction:

Having a tool kit of coping, relaxation and stress reduction techniques can be helpful to reduce performance anxiety. Several effective techniques include diaphragmatic breathing, and grounding techniques through guided imagery, mindfulness, and meditative practices. It is recommended that you practice these techniques in your day-to-day life, not only during a performance or when you find you get anxious. The more often you're practicing these techniques, the more likely you are to use them when the time calls for it. Additionally, regular use of coping techniques will reduce baseline anxiety, calming your sympathetic nervous system, the part of your nervous system that is activated during times of anxiety and stress.

Controlling the variables you can:

Limit caffeine, avoid foods that may upset your stomach, and do your best to try to sleep well the night before a planned performance. Wear clothing you're comfortable in, and I suggest for public speaking engagements that you arrive early and speak informally to guests and other people at the event.  Having some control over these variables gives you agency and autonomy, allowing you to feel more grounded when you're going to a particular performance.

 Self-talk:

You may not be aware of it, but often there is negative self-talk and self-criticism surrounding a particular performance. You might think of yourself as a "failure" or that you're "not good enough.” Using positive self-talk in these situations acts as a mechanism to break the chain of negative thought patterns. Find a mantra that is helpful to you, so you can use it when feeling distressed or overwhelmed.

Separate anxiety vs excitement:

Oftentimes performance anxiety shows in activities, hobbies, and environments that we want to do well in and in places that we want to succeed. Anxiety and excitement share many of the same qualities, so it's important to try to tease out what you're worried about and what you're excited about, allowing these emotions to exist together.

 Try not to overthink it:

Oftentimes accompanying performance anxiety is overthinking and ruminations. You may overthink every element of your athletic performance, however we cannot predict what will happen or how we will feel. This overthinking generates a lot of unnecessary energy. The first step of this is awareness. Once you are aware of these overthinking patterns, name it and use the above techniques to calm and soothe. 

Some helpful types of therapy for performance anxiety:

Behavior therapies such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) are effective therapies to address specific phobias and performance anxiety. Additionally, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy is another type of therapy that has proven to be helpful for many symptoms, diagnoses and clinical concerns, including phobias and performance anxiety.

Want more information?

This guide was completed to provide practical skills and action steps someone can take to work through performance anxiety. If you or anybody you know is experiences this type of anxiety please reach out to schedule your free consultation to learn more about my services and how we can work together.