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Im a year and a half into practice the one thing I realized is it really is not. That. Serious. I spent all of law school/my first few months terrified of speaking to a judge or giving an argument or doing any kind of public speaking and eventually I realized that the judge is just a person and everyone else is just a person and no one is grading you or critiquing you in any way that is relevant or important in your life. In law school they stress being perfect during arguments and not stumbling over your words so little things like that would stress me out but in practice, literally no one cares. There’s a good chance that you’ll go against attorneys who are less prepared and are overall a hot mess despite being “seasoned” so that helped me relax a lot. Just be prepared and know your stuff, and it’s all gunna be fine!
Propranolol
It’s a beta blocker available by prescription that has been shown to be effective in reducing anxiety in public speaking situations (weirdly, there is also a study showing it significantly reduces implicit bias in the taker). There are online doctors that will prescribe it specifically for public speaking anxiety if you Google for it.
Practice. The more I was in Court, the more comfortable I felt. And for what it’s worth, I was so terrified in law school I actually contemplated skipping my mock oral argument.
I over-prepare for the stuff that scares me, write down the first sentence or two so that my brain has a chance to catch up with my mouth (but don’t write out everything otherwise I’ll end up reading), and try to look at the extra adrenaline as helpful energy.
I suffer from panic attacks so there’s not much controlling it for me I’m afraid. It’s quite embarrassing.
Like others have said, practicing makes a big difference. I used to be terrified of public speaking but I did debate in high school, took every class with public speaking in undergrad, presented as much as I could, and now have tried multiple cases on my own. I still get nervous starting out but after a couple-few minutes it goes away, so it is a matter of getting rolling and then I am good. Some other tips are to make sure you aren't making yourself small because that psychologically and physiologically has an effect. Get good at deep breathing exercises like box breathing to make sure you are fully oxygenated when you are doing some speaking etc. Wear warm clothes or make sure you have a jacket if that will be an issue (I find I have more issues with nervousness when I am colder). As you practice and realize that everyone is a regular person like you it will become much easier. Attorney 2's point on this is excellent. Sound confident and if you make a mistake no one will care/notice. Don't say things where you trail off and it is kind of a question. Say it in a definitive, declarative way and if you are wrong you are wrong. Everyone is at some point. Judges aren't out to make people look silly so they will cover for you and nudge you in the right direction.
Beta blockers and improv classes
What beta blockers? Are these by prescription only?
This may be a very hot take because it sounds very arrogant and pompous, but I struggle a LOT in general with confidence/imposter syndrome, so one thing that I’ve done to try to hype myself up is to convince myself that I’m “better” than everyone in the room at the moment. On one hand I’m so insecure that it takes a fake superiority complex to bring myself to an average level of confidence to get through it, but on the other hand, it’s kinda true, in that moment no one is more knowledgeable about my position and the argument I’m making than me. No one in the room is more prepared to argue this position than I am. I have worked harder developing my argument than anyone else has. I am the BEST attorney to do this job at this moment, so I AM better than everyone else in the room right now. Sounds super cocky, but whatever you have to tell your anxious mind in the moment to get through it. As long as I know that I don’t ACTUALLY have a superiority complex, I can live with myself. Especially knowing that some of the people in the room really DO have a superiority complex when they are unprepared and generally don’t know what they’re talking about.
Move to an in house role
If only. We’re all (or most of us) are trying.
Therapy.
Meditations and maintain being “present” has helped me tremendously. And also like the comment above said, realizing that it’s not that serious.
Take the butterflies in your stomach and make them fly in formation. Maybe after 10-years, you will have it down to a science.
Good luck~
Generally the only around anxiety is through it. I would get some coaching / exposure therapy.
No, I love public speaking. But I've heard some people do toastmasters etc.
I took a public speaking class in college and it changed my life. If there’s classes you can take, I’d recommend it. Sometimes you just have to know the skills and know you’re prepared and that’s enough