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In the last email, we looked at why your mind goes blank and how structure in your speech gives your brain something to hold onto under pressure. Now let’s build on that with what happens in the moment.

The second level is the structure of your thinking in real time. Even with a well-prepared outline, high-stakes moments can disrupt you mid-delivery, an unexpected question, a technical hiccup, a moment where you lose your place. This is where a cognitive anchor becomes essential. Think of it as a compass point your brain can return to when everything else goes sideways: what you’re trying to say, why it matters to this specific person, and what you want them to do or feel when you’re done. When those three things are clear before you walk in, you always have somewhere to return to.

The speakers and leaders who perform consistently under pressure don’t have calmer nervous systems than yours. They’ve built better scaffolding, inside their preparation and inside their thinking and they’ve practised it in conditions close enough to the real thing that it holds when the pressure is on.

Here’s something practical to take into your week. Before your next high-stakes conversation, a client call, a board update, a difficult conversation you’ve been putting off, answer these three questions in writing, not in your head:

• What is the one thing I need this person to understand? Not the five things. The one.
• Why does it matter to them, specifically, not to me?
• What do I want them to do, feel, or decide when I’m done?

Research from cognitive load theory, originally developed by educational psychologist John Sweller, shows that reducing the number of decisions the brain needs to make under stress dramatically improves performance quality. Three questions answered in advance is three fewer decisions in the moment.

Try it this week. Write the three answers before one conversation. Notice whether the words come easier.

If you’ve been feeling like nerves are running the show and you’re ready to do something about it, “Your First Step to Public Speaking Confidence” is where we start, building the foundations of structured communication, including outline frameworks, in a way that works with your nervous system, not against it.

P.S. The blank mind is not evidence that you’re not ready. It is evidence that your brain is doing exactly what brains do under pressure. The question is what infrastructure you’ve given it to work with. ♥️
Much Love,