It makes sense to be nervous before giving a presentation. After all, most people give boring presentations; why should you be better than most? Okay, I know that sounds depressing, but I’m just being realistic. It actually is quite rational to be nervous before a presentation. But the main reason that most people get these kinds of jitters is a fear of the unknown. If you haven’t actually seen yourself give your presentation, then you don’t know what you are presenting to the outside world. After all, a presentation is not what is on a PowerPoint slide or a chart; it’s you standing or sitting in front of people and talking. If you haven’t seen yourself on video giving your talk, then the rough draft of your presentation is the one you give to your final, intended audience. And since rough drafts are—by definition—rough, it makes sense to be nervous if you are going to wing it in front of people.

This article was taken from my new book “How to Give a Pretty Good Presentation“ You can order a copy from Amazon.com or from your local bookstore.