Early signs of public speaking anxiety
I just received a note from one of my coaching clients and I thought it would speak to you…
…especially if you are still working on getting over your speaking anxiety.
In my articles, I’ve been helping you learn how to recognize the early signs of anxiety. When you can notice the discomfort, you can stop it.
Let’s look at a scale of 1-10, 1 being total, Buddha-like peace and 10 being a complete panic attack… then learning to catch your heart beginning to beat faster or your breath shortening sooner will help you stay at a 1 or 2.
And this moment to moment awareness is what we call mindfulness: the ability to “catch” physiological changes as they happen. And why is mindfulness important? Because when you notice changes as they happen, you can then alter your state in the moment.
And you want to alter your state of being at a 1 or 2, since by the time you get to a 5 or 6 you begin to fall over the edge into anxiety. It will take hold and you’re caught in its clutches.
Develop the inner presence muscle to manage your anxiety
Sooooo back to what I wanted to share with you today.
It’s a note from one of my clients who describes how mindfulness helps her develop an “inner presence muscle.”
I think she is awesome. By exercising her “inner presence muscle,” she is learning to self-regulate when anxiety starts to take hold.
Pay attention so you can get it as well.
“I practiced this [mindfulness] on my morning walk where I found a lovely serene pathway through a nearby park that has amazing trees overlooking and surrounding a gully that the pathway leads one through.
“The trees seemed like an audience of sorts, all looking down and out at me as I walked on the pathway through what seemed like a natural amphitheater.
“I imagined the trees as my audience and practiced having available eyes, and looking out and up at the trees, bushes, root systems, and smaller plants in the underbrush. I appreciated each one’s unique features.
“This seemed like a good exercise to practice before speaking to a group. And, it was very meditational at the same time. I was definitely in the present as I listened to the birds and the sound of my shoes on the pathway, and the trees as leaves fell to the ground intermittently.”
I can help you find that inner place of presence so you can regulate yourself when speaking anxiety first begins to appear. To learn how you can speak with ease, click here to learn more about the courses I offer or click here to contact me directly.