From Red-Faced Speaker to Loving the Experience

I still remember how red my face turned when I got called on to speak up in the classroom.

It burned. I imagined looking just like a cherry tomato from the outside. I felt the heat radiating from my skin.

It happened in class when I was called on, when it was my turn to speak up, or when a boy I was crushing on walked by.

I later learned what was happening scientifically. The blood vessels in your face can widen when you get embarrassed, allowing for more blood to flow through them. Maybe by knowing what it was, I could fix it.

I learned some techniques that would help ease some of the anxiety around tensing up and reddening. Headspace, perspective, and remembering to breathe all helped. That saying of pretending the audience is in their underwear never helped me, but preparation always did.

Yet, preparedness only got me so far. I didn’t want to be reading literal slides or just going by what was planned. I wanted to be better. I wanted to inspire and speak from my gut in the moment, and show up as me. I was smart and had I’d seen others do it so why shouldn’t I be able to?

Last year, I graduated from a board training certification program with Michele Ashby and ACE alongside an incredible group of women. Many were 10–20+ years older than me and had far more experience running and growing successful businesses, but I held my own. I also recognized how impactful my WHY made me. Sharing the story of…