The best way of overcoming a fear is confronting it and exposing yourself to it. It is true that scary things become not so scary as soon as we try them, and I've been able to prove this to myself this past Thursday.
"Do the thing you fear, and the death of fear is certain" ~Ralph Waldo in "Creative Confidence"
I remember some months ago, before entering 11th grade, evaluating the Innovation Academy, deciding wheter applying to it or not, asking myself if it was what I actually wanted, and if it was the best option for me. I have to confess that I was indecisive, nervous and even scared. Since it is kind of a new program, it's not very common, not many people apply to it, and I received many discouraging comments from others, I was afraid. Although I knew it was a great option for me, I was being influenced by others' actions and comments - I was terrified of stepping out of my comfort zone.
I have to confess than one of my biggest fears of getting into the IA, besides its "rareness" and others' people comments, was having to deliver a TED Talk. I was excited and good with every project that I would be supposed to do, but when I realized I would have to deliver a TED Talk, I was frightened and even more indecisive about applying to the IA. I had always watched TED Talks, admired the people who delivered them, and found them very interesting and inspiring, but I never imagined I'd deliver one myself someday. I finally decided to ignore all of the negative comments and follow the path that would allow me to pursue my passions and enjoy my learning, I applied and got accepted into the Innovation Academy class of 2016.
I've always feared speaking in public, I get very nervous and I've never considered myself good at it. I've always been given tricks and tips to avoid my anxiety before a presentation, such as imagining the audience in their underwear, use notecards, imagine to be having a conversation, etc., but none of these techniques helped me overcoming my fear or made public speaking easier for me.
As I mentioned above, one of Innovation Academy's projects, and the final one this semester, is to deliver a TED Talk. I waited for this event all semester with a lot of anxiety, fear and nervousness. This past Thursday, the day of presentations finally arrived. I couldn't believe the day I had been so nervous about had actually arrived - I had spent all past week practicing, creating the visuals for my presentation, and biting my nails.
It was time for me to present. I stood up from one of the seats in the PAC, after watching many of my peers successfully present, and walked towards the stage. I couldn't believe it, I was about to present my own TED Talk. I was very nervous, my hands were kind of shaky, my throat was getting dry, I couldn't put the microphone on, and I even felt I had forgotten everything that I was going to say. I went up the stairs and found myself on top of the stage, in front of everyone, with my presentation on the huge screen behind me, and the control in my hand. I started. At first I felt very nervous and scared, I remember my hand shaking each time I pressed the button in the control to pass to the next slide. Once I got the hang of it, I became more confident, the fear went away, my hand stopped shaking, and I even enjoyed being up there.
My presentation went very well, I remembered all I had to say, I had no errors, my visuals worked perfectly and were relevant, and I was able to feel confident. I was very satisfied and it was super rewarding to receive many claps, my teacher's high-five as soon as I got down from the stage, and many positive comments. It was a great accomplishment, and definitely an amazing way to end my first semester in the Innovation Academy.
I can now tell you full of certainty and with evidence that the best way to overcome any fear is to accept it, expose yourself to it, and confront it.
“To escape fear, you have to go through it, not around.” ~ Richie Norton
"Do the thing you fear, and the death of fear is certain" ~Ralph Waldo in "Creative Confidence"
I remember some months ago, before entering 11th grade, evaluating the Innovation Academy, deciding wheter applying to it or not, asking myself if it was what I actually wanted, and if it was the best option for me. I have to confess that I was indecisive, nervous and even scared. Since it is kind of a new program, it's not very common, not many people apply to it, and I received many discouraging comments from others, I was afraid. Although I knew it was a great option for me, I was being influenced by others' actions and comments - I was terrified of stepping out of my comfort zone.
I have to confess than one of my biggest fears of getting into the IA, besides its "rareness" and others' people comments, was having to deliver a TED Talk. I was excited and good with every project that I would be supposed to do, but when I realized I would have to deliver a TED Talk, I was frightened and even more indecisive about applying to the IA. I had always watched TED Talks, admired the people who delivered them, and found them very interesting and inspiring, but I never imagined I'd deliver one myself someday. I finally decided to ignore all of the negative comments and follow the path that would allow me to pursue my passions and enjoy my learning, I applied and got accepted into the Innovation Academy class of 2016.
I've always feared speaking in public, I get very nervous and I've never considered myself good at it. I've always been given tricks and tips to avoid my anxiety before a presentation, such as imagining the audience in their underwear, use notecards, imagine to be having a conversation, etc., but none of these techniques helped me overcoming my fear or made public speaking easier for me.
As I mentioned above, one of Innovation Academy's projects, and the final one this semester, is to deliver a TED Talk. I waited for this event all semester with a lot of anxiety, fear and nervousness. This past Thursday, the day of presentations finally arrived. I couldn't believe the day I had been so nervous about had actually arrived - I had spent all past week practicing, creating the visuals for my presentation, and biting my nails.
It was time for me to present. I stood up from one of the seats in the PAC, after watching many of my peers successfully present, and walked towards the stage. I couldn't believe it, I was about to present my own TED Talk. I was very nervous, my hands were kind of shaky, my throat was getting dry, I couldn't put the microphone on, and I even felt I had forgotten everything that I was going to say. I went up the stairs and found myself on top of the stage, in front of everyone, with my presentation on the huge screen behind me, and the control in my hand. I started. At first I felt very nervous and scared, I remember my hand shaking each time I pressed the button in the control to pass to the next slide. Once I got the hang of it, I became more confident, the fear went away, my hand stopped shaking, and I even enjoyed being up there.
My presentation went very well, I remembered all I had to say, I had no errors, my visuals worked perfectly and were relevant, and I was able to feel confident. I was very satisfied and it was super rewarding to receive many claps, my teacher's high-five as soon as I got down from the stage, and many positive comments. It was a great accomplishment, and definitely an amazing way to end my first semester in the Innovation Academy.
I can now tell you full of certainty and with evidence that the best way to overcome any fear is to accept it, expose yourself to it, and confront it.
“To escape fear, you have to go through it, not around.” ~ Richie Norton