Pressure

The more pressure you feel, the more your talent is “masked” and the worse you perform. You control pressure. You can’t allow yourself to feel “judged” every time you speak, write, or perform. And when and if you do need feedback, never accept it from unsolicited sources, which is always for the sender’s benefit, not yours. Seek solicited feedback from trusted people you respect. It’s fine to feel anticipation and eagerness to proceed, which should heighten your performance, but not fear and dread which will diminish it. The greatest athletes are who they are not because of their everyday performance, but because of how well they perform in championship games, under maximum pressure from the other team, the media, and fans. Maintain perspective. No one is shooting at you. You should fear a tornado in Kansas in a storm, but not a question in a conference room during a meeting. We too often create pressure on ourselves by comparing our intended performance against great performances we’ve seen, and therefore fear being seen as inferior to them. In fact, we need simply to prepare well, do our best, and then go home. Our lives are greater than a single event or a single day. When you’re afraid to post on social media, or have to rewrite or re-record something six times, you’re simply creating your own tornado. And this isn’t Kansas anymore, Dorothy.