Letter from Getting Over Stage Fright Workshop Participant

I went to Janet's class a few months ago and found it incredibly helpful.

I am a senior marketing professional who has had to give presentations in various formal and informal settings over the last 10 years. Over that time, and as my visibility within my organization increased, my anxiety associated with formal presentations also grew. It got to the point where I dreaded getting up in front of anyone senior to me or potentially new clients. I began looking for excuses not to be at meetings and presentations and with each avoidance the fear got worse.

I have read plenty of books and have experimented with anti-anxiety drugs which just made me lethargic. So, Janet's class to me was my decision to approach my fear like I would approach anything else I wanted to learn.

Janet's class is about 15 people all of whom have varying degrees of performance anxiety....each person inevitably feels as if no one could possibly be as challenged as they themselves are and this is the great equalizer. You are in a room for a weekend with people just like you. Doctors, Lawyers, Executives, Teachers, Military, you name the career. That coupled with Janet's supportive and holistic approach creates environment that allows one to really get in touch with the some of the psychological and resulting physiological symptoms that fear in general can produce in us.

I also feel that what makes Janet's class so powerful is that she encourages one not to fight the feelings we have, rather get comfortable with their existence. It is a cruel characteristic, to say the least that with the fear we have the more you fight it, the more it can overcome you. The secret, as many spiritual teachings including Buddhism will tell you, is that letting go and embracing what you are experiencing is the only way to break its grip...

I also felt that Janet's level of credibility is accentuated because not only does she understand both the psychological and physiological issues, but she too was a sufferer of it. You're not just listening to the advice of a clinical individual, you are working with someone who has been there...that, to me, adds a great deal of credibility.

Lastly, I believe it is important to note that neither this workshop nor anything else is a magic bullet. Like anything else in life worth having this requires ongoing work. And that is the last and most empowering part of Janet's program; it is focused on each person creating their own action plan on what they were going to do after the weekend to continue to make progress.

Since Janet's class I have stuck to about 80% of my plan which I am very happy about.

I could go on, but I think you get the picture. I highly recommend Janet and her class. It is a spark, a motivation and a beacon in what can, I know, feel like an lonely situation. I couldn't recommend Janet and her class more.

Best Regards,
David S.

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