Use these fail-safe tactics to convert your jangly nerves into performance-boosting allies
A presentation at work
How anxiety shows: You completely blank on your key points and stumble over your explanations.
Your strategy: Befriend your
fear. Just before you go on, steal away to the bathroom or your office
and take inventory of this groundswell of nerves. "Nerves are normal.
The problems arise when people try to ignore them," says the
psychologist Robert Rosen, Ph.D., author of Just Enough Anxiety.
Acknowledging your fear helps you manage it. It's like being aware of
your body before a big game. "Suddenly, it's just the right amount of
anxiety for healthy excitement and power," Rosen says.
A party full of strangers
How anxiety shows: You develop a case of wallflower syndrome.
Your strategy: Make it a game:
See how many people you can meet in half an hour. Stand back, pick your
spots, and then attack. Start by striking up conversations with people
standing on the outskirts of a larger group or conversation circle. By
secretly including everyone in the game, you're not adrift in a sea of
strangers. Instead, you're compartmentalizing each social subgroup into a
task, says Paul J. Rosch, M.D., president of the American Institute of
Stress. A surefire conversation starter: "How do you know the host?"
A job interview
How anxiety shows: You talk at breakneck speed and appear desperate.
Your strategy: Interview the
interviewer. When you're up for your dream job or one that takes you a
step closer to it, anxiety has a way of throwing fuel on the eagerness
fire and making you seem needy. Reverse the roles, says Rosch. Yes, you
want to be agreeable, but make the boss sell you on the position. Prompt
him or her with penetrating questions that go beyond the norm. Ask
about hurdles the department or company faced when it tried to make a
recent change, or the qualities and skills you'll need in order to take
the boss's job in 5 years. These show passion and ambition and will
force your interviewer to give you an on-the-ground view of the
company's culture.
The 2-foot birdie putt
How anxiety shows: You're suddenly conscious that all eyes are on you.
Your strategy: See, smell, hear,
and feel it in your mind. You already know to visualize your shot, but
you may not know how detailed that vision should be, says Rosen. The
more sensory details you pack in, the more your scenario becomes an
actual rehearsal instead of a mental exercise of hope that only amps the
pressure. In addition to seeing the ball go in, feel the heat of the
sun, hear the traffic, smell the cut grass, hear the ball hit the cup,
and feel the breeze on your face as you walk toward the hole,
triumphant.
Source: MenHealth.com