Going up the stage and making a speech in front of a crowd is no mean feat. Only a few people have the natural flair for it. And even if they do, it still takes an outstanding amount of practice and preparation to really impress a live audience, regardless of their size or standing. No wonder nervous sweating is such a huge nightmare — and reality — for many first-time and seasoned presenters.
The good news is delivering presentations is a truly learnable skill, and it gets better over time and with experience. So don’t let the thought of a presentation get you all anxious and sweaty. You can consider the following proven tips to get you started.
Fail to Prepare and You Prepare to Fail
The first thing you need to know and understand: Preparation is key. The best presentations may look so spontaneous, but it takes an unbelievable amount of planning and rehearsals to achieve that seemingly natural feel.
This entails designing and running through your entire presentation, every step of the way, from the moment you walk to the stage up to the post-presentation dialogues with the audience. This requires looking into every single detail, including every piece of clothing you’re going to wear. If you know that everything is in place, then you’ll have less (or hopefully nothing) to get nervous and sweaty about.
Another valuable step to take is to Invest in yourself. Don’t just DIY it — stakes are high. Presenting may require you to stand all by yourself on the stage, but it doesn’t mean you have to do it all alone.
The most powerful presenters often have a team of experts behind them. While you don’t have to hire an entire hair and makeup team or a production team for your next speech, you can look into making a few investments for yourself. Maybe you need the services of a copywriter. Perhaps getting a graphic designer to create your slide deck will make a huge difference.
Or, if excessive sweating is often a problem for you during high-stress, high-pressure scenarios, then it makes sense to finally take more solid steps to stop it. Investing in a shirt that’s specially designed and engineered to be sweat-proof solves that problem in one easy solution. Sweatshield undershirts have a built-in sweat shield positioned where it matters most: the underarms. The rest of the fabric also absorbs perspiration effectively. The result: no more worries about embarrassing and image-damaging sweat marks, wet spots, stains and body odour.
The secret to alleviating nervous sweating is to take care of it, and then take your mind off it. Instead, focus your energy and attention on your content, your delivery and your audience. If you do that, you’ll feel more confident on stage. This confidence allows you to build up your credibility and show how you’re the person to trust, and eventually get the sales or the “yes” that your presentation is aiming for as a result.
