Visualization is for the body as well as the mind

Visualization is a valuable tool for preparing to speak. By visualizing yourself in the venue, giving 100%, speaking to an appreciative audience, and running through your complete presentation successfully, you ready yourself mentally for the event.

Visualization creates a positive mental framework for your performance, and by using visualization and positive affirmations together, you reframe the way your mind anticipates the event.

However, what you may not realize is that you can also reframe the way your body anticipates the event. Visualizing the speaking situation can actually change the way your body responds to nervousness, taking you from adrenaline-fueled shakiness to relaxed stillness.

The trick to changing your body's reaction to anxiety is to imagine physical sensations during your visualization.

Don't just see the room and the audience; feel the sensations in your body as well.

Visualizing yourself on the stage might make you feel that adrenaline rush, so while you're visualizing, take control of the feelings in your body and imagine yourself relaxing and breathing -- the same way you imagine yourself giving the presentation. Or imagine yourself taking that adrenaline rush and turning it into energy and excitement. Or both: it's your choice!

As I pointed out in my article about the power of the mind, each of us has the power to control our anxiety, just as each of us has created that anxiety in our minds. Well, we have the power to control how our body reacts to anxiety as well.

Athletes are known to visualize themselves performing precise actions in order to imprint their nervous system and muscle memory with proper technique. For elite athletes, mental training is as important as physical training.

The important thing to remember about visualization is that it requires focus. You have to be in the moment, in your mind, seeing and feeling the room, the audience, the stage, your words, and your body -- using all of your senses as though you were really there. It's a powerful technique that can have a profound impact on your success as a speaker.

Try it the next time you're getting ready for a presentation and see if you don't feel more physically as well as mentally prepared.

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