I really hate presenting. Since high school, when assigned with a presentation, I've had this feeling of dread until the presentation is over. There is something about having in the class stare at me that makes any presentation a nightmare. In college, this disdain for presentations only got worse because the classrooms were bigger and the assignments were worth more. Freshman year, I did not have any presentations, and I remember the relief I felt looking at syllabuses all year with just essays or exams. Sophomore year I had two group presentations, which I'm good with (probably because I'm not up there alone.)

Then comes junior year. I knew I was going to have presentations because I'm a Journalism and Media minor. Going into the year, I told myself, "This is the year you're going to get over your performance anxiety." In one of my classes, I was assigned a presentation that was seven minutes long. We had the option of not presenting, but I knew this was my time to rise to the occasion. Plus, I needed the ten points. The time we presented during the semester depended on what topic we chose. I didn't want to go too late in the semester, but I didn't want to go too early either. Eventually, I chose my topic and I had five weeks to prepare, which was perfect.

That weekend, I started to work on my Prezi. As days went by, I continued to add more, little by little. Since there was a seven-minute time limit, I had to be cautious of how much info I had on the slides and what I was going to say. With about three weeks left, I completed the final version of my project and I began to practice presenting. I knew if I practiced a whole lot, it couldn't be that bad. For past presentations, no matter how much I practiced when I was standing in front of the room, all that practicing would be for nothing.

My heart would start to beat uncontrollably, my palms would start to sweat, and I'd focus on trying to just remain calm. I didn't focus on what I was saying, which resulted in me rushing through it and finishing the presentation feeling disappointed. I knew I couldn't let this happen again because the seven minutes would feel like forever, and my presentation would end in disarray. I practiced in front the mirror. I practiced for my suitemates. I practiced practiced and practiced. Before I knew it, the dreaded day finally arrived.

The day of my presentation, I practiced some more in the morning as well as before I got to class. On a scale of one to ten, my nerves were at a six, which is not bad considering my levels of anxiety. Finally, it was time to present, and what I expected to happen, happened. Before I began to speak, I could feel my heart beating out my chest, and I started to fidget at the podium as I tried to calm my nerves. I kept telling myself to turn my fear into confidence. So when I started, instead of letting my voice shake, I tried to project my voice and sound confident. That way, although I was a nervous wreck inside, it would not show to the teacher or class. Before I knew it, I was done. As I was walking back to my seat, I knew I could have done better. I forgot additional information that I wanted to say, and I stumbled and stuttered over some of my words. Regardless, I was relieved for it to be over.

Anxiety is something I've learned to live with and adapt to. For me, small things people wouldn't even think of, like raising a hand to speak in class, makes me anxious. So you can imagine how I felt speaking in front of 40 people. The next day, two of my friends in the class told me I did well, which boosted my spirits about my performance somewhat. I was just proud of myself because I didn't completely panic like I usually do presenting, and my plan of appearing confident seemed to work. Weeks later, I got my grade: a 9/10. After all the thought and planning i did for the presentation I was happy with my grade.

To grow as a person, one has to step out their comfort zone and try new things. The old me would have opted to not present, but I knew I had to conquer my fear and it paid off. I'm nowhere as calm as the normal person should be presenting, but I did alright. Hopefully, others suffering from anxiety or those who are just generally scared of doing something new, can read this and be motivated to do that one thing they've been holding back on. To others, it may be minor, but to you, I know how hard it is to take that step forward. But if I can do it, so can you.