A Harvard study of people anxious about a forthcoming business presentation found that those who tried to convert it into excitement outperformed those who tried to calm down.
Members of both groups were still nervous before the speech, but the participants who had told themselves "I am excited" felt better able to handle the pressure and were more confident of their ability to give a good talk. Not only that, but observers who rated the talks found the excited speakers more persuasive, confident and competent than the participants who had tried to calm down. With this one change in mind-set, the speakers had transformed their anxiety into energy that helped them to perform under pressure.
