How to look confident and collected… when you really are nervous

In business, there are many situations that make you feel stressed. A meeting with the boss, a sales call, giving a speech, or speaking out to present an idea at a meeting, are some instances.

The basic tools for performing well under these circumstances are preparation and self-confidence, but sometimes they aren’t enough.

* It helps to calm yourself before a meeting with physical exercise to decrease your adrenaline level. Take a walk or push on a wall to burn adrenaline. Walk slowly to the meeting to reduce your heart rate.

* Focus on the material and the information you have to offer. Don’t think about yourself or the impression you are making.

* Know that you don’t have to be perfect. If you make a misstep, just move on.

* When speaking to a group, remind yourself that the audience really doesn’t care very much about how you look or whether you are a good speaker. They are interested in your subject.

* Some advisors recommend finding one or two agreeable faces in an audience and looking at them rather than scanning an entire group.

* Avoid nervous gestures such as putting hands in and out of pockets, buttoning and unbuttoning a jacket, moving a hand to your eyeglasses, or toying with a pencil.

* If the situation allows it, focus on the others at a meeting and let them do more of the talking.

* Psychologists say it’s important to look at the person you are talking to. Even if you don’t make eye contact, which is best, look at them.

With practice and more self-confidence, you won’t look nervous even if you are.