Everyone Gets Nervous – Even the Pros
Why nerves before speaking are normal – and what to do with them
Over the weekend, a girlfriend of mine said something I hear a lot:
“I get nervous speaking in meetings. Even if I know my stuff or practise beforehand, I still get nervous. How can I make it go away?”
Ah, if only we could flick a switch and vanquish the nerves! As someone who spends a lot of time at the front of the room – delivering keynotes, running training sessions, facilitating workshops, or speaking virtually across the globe – I can tell you this:
You can’t get rid of the nerves. But you can work with them.
Let me pull back the curtain on what it’s really like behind the scenes of professional speaking – not to dazzle you with glamorous stage lights, but to normalise what it feels like to stand up and speak, even when you do it for a living.
My recent speaking gigs – and what was going on inside my head
PSA Conference Perth 18x18
I was the last of 18 speakers, and before I stepped on stage, my mind went blank. Totally blank! I’d made major changes to my talk just weeks beforehand. It was supposed to be a duo, and I ended up going solo. I couldn’t remember anything. It felt like I was having an out-of-body experience, and I had to rely completely on muscle memory. It was terrifying, but the rehearsal kicked in and I made it through – and I’ve been doing this for years.
Global Speakers Summit (Bali)
Picture this: I’d carefully rehearsed my movements and memorised my talk using a long stage as a spatial anchor… only to arrive and discover a short, diagonal stage. My spatial cues were gone. When I ran out of stage, I ran out of words. Oh – and the clicker only worked up close, which totally changed my rhythm. It threw me. I had to recalibrate live, in front of a room full of professional speakers. Talk about pressure. (Note: I don’t normally rehearse my movements or staging so closely, but every movement meant something in this talk, so I had to be precise.)
ANZ ‘Communicating with Impact’ Masterclass
This one was digital – 2,700 people online, no visible audience, and at my old workplace (hello, pressure). Just before going live, my smartwatch gave me a heart rate warning and asked if I was doing high-intensity exercise. I was standing still. So yes, nerves? Very much present.
Here’s what I’ve learned (and re-learned) about nerves:
Preparation is your best friend.
When your talk is in your body – not just your brain – you can let the muscle memory carry you, even when your mind takes a brief holiday.
Your body’s stress response is not your enemy.
The adrenaline, the shaky hands, the elevated heart rate – that’s your body saying, “This matters!” It’s not something to fight; it’s something to move through. I do squats, wall push-ups, or run on the spot to move that energy through my body before I speak.
Caring causes nerves.
The more you care, the higher your stress response. And that’s a good thing! Nerves are just excitement in a fancy suit.
And the biggest truth of all?
Even the most seasoned, polished, TED-worthy professionals get nervous. I’ve just come back from the 2025 Professional Speakers Conference, where speaker after speaker – all at the top of their game – admitted to feeling nervous before stepping up.
So, the next time you feel the nerves creeping in before you speak, know this:
You’re in excellent company. In fact, you’re in the company of professionals.
And hey, maybe you’re a professional speaker in the making?