Using Nervous Energy Effectively and Planning To Create A Successful Presentation

This past Monday was the kids’ first day back at school.  While many parents, me included, dread this event, our kids tend to look at it from different point of views.  Some kids love it. Other kids hate it.  My son, Justin,   who started middle school this year, was both nervous and excited.  After going to his  new school’s orientation, he spent every spare moment he had not only meticulously planning his wardrobe, but mapping his daily schedule, memorizing his lunch PIN and locker combination, and setting and resetting his alarm clock. His also made sure to learn his bus schedule and bus number, too. Like I mentioned, he was excited.  

But, he was also nervous.

 The first thing that I asked him on Monday morning was how he felt. He smiled and responded that he had been too excited to sleep.  I asked him if he meant nervous. He replied, both: though, he believed he was more excited than nervous. Having felt this way myself, I told him that I could understand what he meant.  The two emotions can often feel the same and evoke the same energy.  Being nervous can help us become aware that we need more preparation for an event. Many times, being nervous can also make it seem as if we are excited, therefore optimistic, as we take on a new challenge; such as the first day of school, a much bigger school.

What my son did to prepare for his milestone moment exemplifies what we, as Toastmasters, can all do in undertaking our presentations. The first thing to do is plan, plan, and plan some more. My son is not obsessive-compulsive at all.  Sadly, he is somewhat scattered-brained like his mom. However again like his mother, he will plan well for something that he is particularly excited about. He even devised backup-plans for his big day.  For example, he set up two alarm clocks in case one did not go off. How often have we seen ill-prepared speakers waste time trying to get their slideshows to work at the onset of their scheduled presentations? A practice run or backup presentation would have saved the day and more importantly time and effectiveness.  A second thing to do is to use our nervous energy while we speak. Using nervous energy effectively makes us appear to our audience as peppy, confident, and excited about our topic.  Since, Justin was nervous, his adrenaline was high, his spirits were up, and he tackled the day ahead of him. He channeled his nervousness into excitement and made his first day seem like an adventure, not an obstacle course.  This allowed Justin to help many of his friends find their classes, work their lockers, and become more comfortable when around the worldly 7^th- and 8^th- graders. Using nervous energy can bring life not only to the presentation, but build the audience’s confidence in what the speaker is presenting, too.

Hopefully, Justin will be able to use his nervous energy during his first tackle football game this Saturday. It may not be pretty, but he is excited. 

submitted by Carolina Little, VP of Education