This is the last of our series about concrete ways to conquer stage fright<\/a>. \u00a0This tip offers a surprising approach to make almost anything<\/em> in your life better–mental practice. \u00a0Or, in other words:<\/p>\n

3. Don’t just rehearse; sit there<\/h3>\n

We all know that practice makes perfect, and that rehearsing<\/a> your presentation is important. But did you know there’s even a better way?<\/p>\n

Mental practice can get you closer to where you want to be in life, and it can turn you into a confident and effective presenter<\/a> too. In fact, just practicing physically is less effective than combining traditional rehearsal with visualization.<\/p>\n

[ctt tweet=”Mental practice can get you closer to where you want to be in life @simswyeth” coverup=”Ke47u”]<\/p>\n

Natan Sharansky<\/a>, a computer specialist who spent nine years in prison in the USSR after being accused of spying for the U.S. has a lot of experience with mental practices.<\/p>\n

While in solitary confinement, he played himself in mental chess, saying: “I might as well use the opportunity to become the world champion!” Remarkably, in 1996, Sharansky beat world champion chess player Garry Kasparov!<\/p>\n

A study looking at brain patterns in weightlifters found that the patterns activated when a weightlifter lifted hundreds of pounds were similarly activated when the weightlifters only imagined lifting the weight. In some cases, research has revealed that mental practices are almost as effective as true physical practice, and that doing both is more effective than either alone.<\/p>\n

For instance, in his study on everyday people, Guang Yue, an exercise psychologist from Cleveland Clinic Foundation in Ohio, compared “people who went to the gym with people who carried out virtual workouts in their heads.”<\/p>\n

He found a 30 percent muscle increase in the group who went to the gym. However, the group of participants who conducted mental exercises of the weight training increased muscle strength by almost half as much (13.5 percent).<\/p>\n

If world champions can get results by sitting around and thinking about stuff, you can certainly reduce your stage fright by doing the same thing.<\/p>\n

Begin by establishing a highly specific goal<\/a>. Imagine the future; in fact, picture yourself as already having achieved your goal. Speak about it as though you had already achieved it. Hold a mental “picture” of it as if it were occurring to you right at that moment. Imagine the scene in as much detail as possible. Engage as many of the five senses as you can in your visualization. Who are you with? Which emotions are you feeling right now? What are you wearing? Is there a smell in the air? What do you hear? What is your environment?<\/p>\n

Sit with a straight spine when you do this. Practice at night or in the morning (just before\/after sleep). Eliminate any doubts, if they come to you. Repeat this practice often. Combine with meditation or an affirmation (e.g. “I am courageous; I am strong,” or to borrow from Ali, “I am the greatest!”)<\/p>\n

These three counterintuitive and evidence-based approaches to managing stage fright can shrink your fear, and help you be your best in high-stakes<\/a> situations, when all eyes are upon you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is the last of our series about concrete ways to conquer stage fright. \u00a0This tip offers a surprising approach to make almost anything in your life better–mental practice. \u00a0Or, in other words: 3. Don’t just rehearse; sit there We all know that practice makes perfect, and that rehearsing your presentation is important. But did… Read More »Mental Practice Helps Conquer Stage Fright<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9635,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","_ti_tpc_template_sync":false,"_ti_tpc_template_id":""},"categories":[960,24,461],"tags":[18,618,146,117,185,58],"yoast_head":"\n