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Stage Fright? Five Ways to Get Over Yourself!

By Patricia Ebrahimi

Home Stager with SHOW SMART! HOME STAGING & Color Consultant

March 20, 2007 03:10 AM

FIVE WAYS TO GET OVER STAGE FRIGHT AND GIVE A GREAT PRESENTATION.

1. Realize that nobody is asking or expecting you to talk about Rocket Science. This is Home Staging, something you know and love. You are the rocket scientist as far as these people are concerned. Relax and share the wealth of your natural passion.

2. Realize that people will only be looking at you if you are the only thing to look at . So, relax. Give them something else to look at, a Power Point Presentation, pictures, props, anything to take their eyes off you. Much better for your talk, too.

3. Get ready. Really ready. Proper planning of your presentation automatically gives you confidence. Practicing it, yes, out loud, will automatically make you calmer. You have valuable info to give these people. Get organized. Get ready. Give it to them. Realize that they want it.

4. Realize that by being yourself, YOU will get out of way of the information you came to share. They are only listening to you for the information anyway, not because of anything about YOU at all really. They don’t actually even care who YOU are if you have something they want. Realize that they are much more interested in THEMSELVES. They may even be nervous that you will look at them. Again, divert their attention to the info for yours AND their comfort.

5. Spend your energy and attention on your audience’s reaction to your message. Watching to see if they are getting it will keep you focused and allow your info to get through to them as well as allow you to Get Over Yourself.

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Tina Parker

EXP Realty Canada Inc. - Halifax, NS

Managing Associate Broker

Great tips! My first presentation was supposed to be for 15 minutes. Finishing after 5 minutes (spoke way too fast) I couldn't believe just how long 5 minutes was. Thank God I have a natural talent for laughing at myself, it could have been a disaster. Anyway, I ended up having a question/answer period which helped identify the level of knowledge in the audience.

Then I went to a Life Coach to learn to get over my fear. The best money I ever spent!

Mar 24, 2007 11:09 PM

Patricia Ebrahimi

SHOW SMART! HOME STAGING & Color Consultant - Rockville, MD

Home Staging the Washington DC Area from Rockville MD

Val, Tina: Excellent points and adviice, both. Thanks.

Mar 25, 2007 06:06 AM

Sue Shockley

Setting the Space - Plymouth, MA

Thanks for the post! This week we are going out to do our first powerpoint presentation. The advice is timely!

thanks Sue

Mar 25, 2007 03:39 PM

Patricia Ebrahimi

SHOW SMART! HOME STAGING & Color Consultant - Rockville, MD

Home Staging the Washington DC Area from Rockville MD

Sue: Best of luck, no best of confidence in your passion for the subject and your ability to listen to your audience! Let me know how it goes.

Mar 26, 2007 01:17 AM

Abby Roselli

ALR Home Staging and Showcasing, LLC - Staten Island, NY

Staten Island Home Stager

Patricia, now, I really know you were directing this to me! LOL Although, I'm not necessarily shaky about the speaking part of it...it is the process of setting it up, organizing it and getting there to do it. Once I get the first word out, I'll be fine. I love your advice for #4. So true!

Thanks!

Mar 26, 2007 06:26 AM

Home Staging

Reston, VA

Oh great post and great points. Group speaking can be so tough. I always try to think of something funny as an opening statement to relax the group. Its really more to relax me though!

Mar 26, 2007 07:01 AM

Patricia Ebrahimi

SHOW SMART! HOME STAGING & Color Consultant - Rockville, MD

Home Staging the Washington DC Area from Rockville MD

Abby, Denise: I guess lots of people feel as you do. that's why there's even a term for the beginning - icebreakers, so everyone can relax a bit.

Mar 27, 2007 03:12 PM

Craig Schiller

Trempealeau, WI

I say the same thing ALL the time... STAGING AIN'T ROCKET SCIENCE! (Actually that woudl make for a GREAT blog headline.)

BUT... running a staging business is!

Mar 27, 2007 04:27 PM

Darlene Raymond

Staged Right - Beverly Hills, FL

Great Post, your right staging isn't rocket science....Funny though, how when you get in front of a group it seem like its Rocket Science..but once I start talking, I find my level of excitement and love for staging takes over

Mar 27, 2007 11:29 PM

Anonymous

Leeanne Norlin

So glad I took more time to read more blogs today. Tomorrow I will be giving a talk to 10 agents and I'm already getting nervous.

The last time I did a presentation I lost total concentration, looked down at my notes and couldn't find where I had left off. My next thought was to ask questions. It worked. Tomorrow I plan on doing a lot of question and answer time because I want to pick their brains on what their thoughts are on Staging, and hopefully they can give me new ideas on how to approach sellers and agents.

Mar 28, 2007 10:17 AM

#17

Teri B. Clark

http://www.teribclark.com - Sanford, NC

Just about anything you do, from saying ummm or shoving your hands in your pockets, is forgivable as long as you provide good information! They are all there to learn and get info they can use. Provide that and they will overlook everything else!

Mar 28, 2007 11:02 AM

Alyse Bromberg

Dressed for Success - Kingston, ON

Excellent points Patricia, thank you for sharing them. I think I'll print this out and review it again and again again before my next presentation.

Mar 28, 2007 01:08 PM

Patricia Ebrahimi

SHOW SMART! HOME STAGING & Color Consultant - Rockville, MD

Home Staging the Washington DC Area from Rockville MD

Craig: You are so right. I'm having a b....in' Staging :), but I'm also having a b....in' time with the business side of it :(!

Darlene: EXACTLY

Leeanne: An excellent idea, focus on what they can do for you by doing Q&A. I love it.

Teri: Absolutely true! Just the facts, ma'am, just the facts.

Alyse: Glad to have helped.

Mar 28, 2007 02:13 PM

Sandi Gerrard

Toronto, ON

Good advice, Patricia. The fact that a Realtor or homeowner called already shows that they need your expertise ... therefore the stager (or redesigner) already has an edge.

Mar 31, 2007 02:09 AM

Patricia Ebrahimi

SHOW SMART! HOME STAGING & Color Consultant - Rockville, MD

Home Staging the Washington DC Area from Rockville MD

Sandi: You are so right. Being asked to speak at all is such a privilege really. Having people who want to know what you know is exciting and most certainly an edge if you think about it that way, not scary! Scary actually has no business here at all. It's all about the info.

Mar 31, 2007 03:20 AM

Lori Kim Polk

Premiere Home Staging : Home Staging Services - Roseville, CA

Home Stager - Roseville, Sacramento

Even though I have been "on stage" most of my life as a teacher, I still get the jitters when presenting. I set up my Power Point presentation with pictures that make ME feel comfortable, ones that when there is time, tell a story, or ones that I can just zip through depending on how I feel. I have one that makes me stop... to ask questions and one that make the audience laugh. So I use this presentation to educate the public on Staging but I set it up to be my "blankie" if needed :)

Apr 05, 2007 04:30 AM

Sherry Mouncer

Sherry's Home Staging - Salem, OR

Patricia, thank you for posting this advice. I dread the thought of speaking in front of a group of realtors, but after reading these posts, maybe it won't be as terrifying as I thought. I will remember that they want information from me, and want to know how it will help them. Q & A always there if I start going into a coma.

Feb 02, 2008 12:45 PM

Lisa Sherman

Interior Aura - Salem, OR

Home Stager, Interior, Redesign & Decorating - Salem Oregon

Great advice and some that I will take note of. Presentations are something I dread, but that is a goal of mine for 2008... get out of my own way! I'm so glad they teach and require kids today to learn the art of speaking/presenting... definitely something that was lacking in my day.

Feb 02, 2008 04:22 PM

Patricia Ebrahimi

SHOW SMART! HOME STAGING & Color Consultant - Rockville, MD

Home Staging the Washington DC Area from Rockville MD

Sherry: I'm glad this is helpful to you. Really simply remembering that speaking to a group is about them, not you seems to help everyone.

Lisa: You are absolutely right. It's better now what with speaking being included in most secondary curriculua.

Feb 04, 2008 01:54 AM

Anonymous

Sarah Gershman

Terrific advice - especially the suggestion to focus on the reaction of the audience.

I am a speech coach and work with people who have severe stagefright.

One thing that I would add is thinking about the root causes of the anxiety. Often stagefright is a learned response that begins with some kind of traumatic performance experience in childhood. By attacking the root of the anxiety, people can learn to truly overcome it.

I just posted about this in my speaking advice blog - http://sarahgershman.blogspot.com/2009/10/getting-to-root-of-stagefright.html

It would be great to hear your feedback.

Thanks,

Sarah

Oct 12, 2009 02:45 AM

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