Presenting

I see that in schools there are many opportunities that the classroom gives to students to present, whether it be to the class or to parents/caregivers.  One of the tips they give the kids is to take a couple of deep breaths before you go on to calm your nerves. My personal experience has shown that it works when you take a couple of breaths prior to presenting.  However, those breaths are not to push away the worry but to bring me to a state of mindfulness and unless you have an understanding or have embodied what mindfulness is then you are going to take a couple of deep breaths and your mind will still be in a state of “oh no”.   What fires together wires together and your mind may be set in that state of ‘fight or flight’ when making a presentation.  Mindfulness has the misconception that is calms you down so people tend to look at it as a onetime event or something they use when they are stressed out or nervous.  That’s not at all how it works, and for most people, they may not feel that mindfulness really works because they are using it for these certain instances without using it every day for a healthier mind. 

I’ll admit that presenting brings on feelings of…I don’t know what they are!  Yet, isn’t that one of the glories of mindfulness?  Having these feelings, knowing they exist, and maybe, just maybe not really labeling them.  As I move on with my practice this is something that is hard for me to accept, or rather let go – the idea that I could have a feeling surface and not know what “it” is.  Then someone suggested to me that I don’t need to know what “it” is, just know that it’s there.  What a relief that was!  Acceptance is such a great feeling, it gives a sense of letting go and freeing myself from angst.  And, the added knowledge that I’m being non-judgmental on myself makes me happy.  So with acceptance and happy in one’s life, why wouldn’t you practice mindfulness every day and to top it off, get out there and make that presentation that you have been meaning to make!