Shaking in Your Boots and Why That is a Good Thing

Public speaking, which I thoroughly enjoy, is the source of great fear for many people.  There are all kinds of concerns that make the butterflies started fluttering in the stomach, from the appropriate dress for the presentation, to being able to connect the dots as the presentation is being made and how best to open and close remarks.  There is also a fear of what people will think of you as you present and whether you and your thoughts will be accepted.

The blog for the next several installments is going to focus on this area of life that causes so much consternation for people because it need not.  In fact, being scared, uncertain, antsy, or worried about speaking in public I believe can actually help you become a better public speaker.

Nervousness has two courses it can take in a speaker.  It can freeze them in their tracks because the speaker dwells so much on being scared they cannot concentrate on their remarks to the audience.  The result is a lousy presentation which also reinforces the negative experience associated with public speaking making the next one just as difficult.

The other course is actually one of motivation.  I have been speaking for well over a decade and to this day I still get a little nervous before I am introduced and suddenly I am"on."  But over these years it became apparent to me that in order for me to make a killer of a presentation I had to rise above those fears. So now, when a butterfly starts flittering in my stomach, a leg starts to quiver or I find myself wringing my hands as the inroduction begins, I mentally focus on being on top of those fears.  If I am on top of them, there is no way they can affect me.  So I am actually using fear as an assets to making a great presentation.

The butterflies become less and less as time goes on and you do become more comfortable being in front of people and talking to them because each time allow for a little more practice.  I know I am a heck of a lot better as a speaker now than I was ten years ago.  You will be too as time goes on.

Next Tuesday, the 4-2-1 approach to preparing for a presentation and what to do on the day of your remarks.

Be Well!

Great Idea; Now What

It is a very perplexing situation.  There is this idea that pops into your head and its one that could reduce or eliminate the dilemma you are facing.  But how do you know if its the right thing to do?

I have found myself from time to time frozen in indecision because of an inability to move forward with an idea.  It is extremely frustrating for someone who prefers decisivness in day to day expereicnes.  But through trial and error and a moderate dose of paitence I have found the "Cup of Coffee or Tea" approach is often the answer to the dilemma.

When that voice inside us provides an idea for a situation we are facing and we are not sure if it is the right way to go, we need only go as far as a friend.   While spouses or significant others would be the logical place to turn, their judgement could be clouded because of the relationship.  A third party is preferable to examine the idea that has been presented.

It is also critically important to ask the third party to be objective based on their knowledge of you.  There are many a times when someone who sees me from a distance will recognize a factor I have missed and it usually is something that can be a determining factor for whether I pursue the idea further or drop it.  The friend may actually be helping to prevent hurt, sorrow and even pain by analyzing the situation from a distance and turning me in another direction.

While many ideas that come from within for dealing with a perplexing situation in life appear to be good , I have found it best to first ask before acting.  The next time you have quieted yourself so the inner voice can be heard, remember it may be time for a "Cup of Coffee or Tea" with that friend. 

And maybe throw in a danish or scone too.

See you Thursday.

Creative Juices

Have you ever had a notion just seemingly pop into your head when you least expected it?  There are times such an idea may be questioned and other times it may be dismissed almost as fast as it presented itself. It might also be something that is recurring as you contemplate what it might mean.

I advocate action..  I cannot begin to count the number of times I vacillated to the point of talking myself out of acting on an idea.  It may have been fear of the consequences, believing there is "no way that could be right" or making excuses for not pushing ahead.  

I spoke recently at the Optimist International www.optimist.org Convention in New Orleans to a group of incoming leaders and was charged with getting them fired up but also how they could deal with the ups and downs of the office they were about to hold and even those situations that come out of the blue for which there are no blueprints for handling them.  I told them that's when they have to quiet themselves and wait for that notion to surface.

There is no way for your conscience to overtake the overwhelming buzz that exists in our lives today.  Computers, cellphones, social media, blogs, (including this one) family, friends, our employer and everything else make our 24/7 lives cry out, at times,  for a few more hours in one of those days. Or there is the alternative.  Simply set aside some time to disconnect. 

 It's like the backyard exercise related in Tuesday's blog. When we get rid of all the clutter, that's when ideas will surface and maybe those ideas that come along will enable you to overcome whatever hurdle is standing in your way.  It's what I told the incoming leaders of Optimist International to do and I am certain it will help them.  There will be a few steps to take so it can help you, in next Tuesday's blog.  

Make it a good weekend

Unexpected Inspiration

It is sometimes almost funny when an idea surfaces that in turn can get the creative juices flowing.  Last, Sunday was a prime example of this out of the blue phenomenon.

I enjoy vitamin D.  I like how I feel after getting a dose.  Sunday afternoon was a perfect opportunity for one.,  The temperature was in the low 80's  The humidity that had plagued Iowa for the past week was gone.  There was an ever so gentle breeze from the north.  It seemed only appropriate to put a lawn chair out n my postage stamp of a back yard, point it slightly to the southwest and recline with eyes shut, ball cap on, water bottle within arms length and the proper amount of sunblock.

It hit me within five minutes which is when I saw two squirrels chasing each other through a neighbors oak tree. Being still, in the quite of a Sunday afternoon interrupted only by the occasional hum of the neighbor's 30 year old air conditioner, is a tremendous opportunity to position ones self for ideas to pop into your head.  One of my grandchildren recently commented as she sat on our deck one overcast and rainy day how peaceful it was near the postage stamp.  It was peaceful last Sunday to the point of coming up with the the framework for a series of blog posts on the topic of "Unexpected Inspiration,"  the first installment of which is being shared here.

This won't be rocket science.  But it will, I hope, provide readers with suggestions for getting past roadblocks in their lives by creating an environment for problem solving, creativity and peace.  I am hard pressed at the moment to thing of something more peaceful that watching squirrels in an oak tree chase each other while basking in the sun on a picture perfect day in the back yard.

Next post on Thursday.

An Interesting Change of Pace

I've come to believe that there is a lesson to be learned in every experience whether expected or unexpected. So it has been over the last two weeks ending July 3rd.

I spent the first 20 years of my broadcast journalism career in Cedar Rapids at WMT before moving to Des Moines to be news director at WHO .  Late May brought word of a resignation at the station in Cedar Rapids who was one of the last people I hired before moving on.  The departure came at a time when another news person was on a promotional trip for the station meaning there were not enough news people to cover the bases.

I had seen a couple of the emails asking for help.  I later learned they were sent in my direction because of my problem solving capabilities. I do not say that to be boastful but am relaying the comments of a superior. There was a very straightforward answer to the dilemma.  I would say I would do it, ask for some additional compensation and a place to stay and to iron out all the details and responsibilities that had to be covered at WHO in Des Moines during my absence.  Everything was squared away in a couple of days.

The two weeks in Cedar Rapids were a trip back through an earlier part in life. Yes, most of the faces had changed, there was a new coat of paint on the walls, but it still vividly reminded me of the time from 1980-2001 that I spent at WMT, even to a flashback of walking in the door at 4:00 AM and throwing on the light switch as the first person in the building.  I renewed some old acquaintances, but more importantly the experiences of the past made the transition, albeit a short one, from Des Moines to Cedar Rapids very easy.
You will be surprised, if you just look for it,  how much experiences and memories can play in your life today.  Something that may have happened several years ago can be applied to a current experience.  It can guide you and make whatever it is you are doing now easier and better than it would have been otherwise. There will still be frustrations but I submit fewer of them if you rely on the road already traveled for some guidance.

Even if it is at 4:00 AM.