3 Top Tips to combat nerves & bring your A game 💪

Have you ever experienced this....

You've prepped your speech & you're ready to go. It's time.

You're standing in the wings, you're up next to speak...and suddenly the nerves take over and you just lose control...

Your legs are trembling, your heart is beating so fast it feels like it could run away, your breath feels tight, your face feels hot and flushed. Your palms are sweaty. Your brain is foggy. Your breath feels tight and fast. Your voice is shaking. Your mouth is dry.

You step up on the stage. And now, the speech you had carefully prepared goes out the window. You're in survival mode and you just have to get through it and get off the stage.

Sound familiar? I've definitely been there. But the really exciting thing is that you are not powerless to these nerves, you can take back control.

There are so many skills and techniques you can learn to combat those nerves - here are 3 of my top tips to manage nerves & boost confidence before a big presentation or public speaking event.

1 - SQUARE BREATHING

Breathe in for 4.

Hold for 4.

Breathe out for 4.

Hold for 4.

Do this a few times and you should feel your heart rate start to come down, a calmer energy start to wash over you. If you spend some time breathing like this, you should feel more grounded, assertive and in control of your breath - ready to speak with confidence.

2 - MAKE A POWER PLAYLIST

Hop on Spotify and make a playlist of songs that make you feel how you want to feel when you step out on stage. For me that's songs that make me feel happy, fierce, unstoppable & vibrant - songs I just wanna dance around or strut to! Listen to this for the 10-30 minutes (whatever you need) before you go on stage to speak or perform. It gets you pumped up and ready to go - channelling that nervous energy into excitement and buzz rather than worry and fear.

3 - BODY SCAN RELEASE

Working from your toes up to your head, you're going to tense and release one body part at a time (I'll do an example below) to make sure every muscle in your body is relaxed and under your control.

Start with your feet. Crunch up your toes, curl your feet, feel that tension and hold it. Squeeze even harder if you can. Hold for 8 seconds, and then release your feet & exhale. If you've got time, repeat the whole thing, before you move on to your calves, quads, glutes, abs, back, shoulders, arms, hands, neck, face. End with a few of your full body.

Take a deep breath and enjoy the exhale of relaxation. Now you should feel your body is still, grounded, assured and ready to support you through your speech.

There are just a few of favourite techniques for managing nerves when speaking in public. If you're keen to learn more, why not follow me on instagram @stepupvocalcoaching for more free tips & tricks.

Or if you're ready to transform your public speaking & performance skills, drop me an email at info@stepupvocalcoaching.co.uk . I offer a free no-pressure discovery call to get to know each other and find out how I can help.

Lydia is the Founder & Lead coach at Step Up Vocal Coaching. She is passionate about helping people speak with confidence, personality and impact.