Speak at a conference

“I spent the hour before my talk in the speaker’s lounge. I reviewed my slides and then sat there, paying attention to my emotions. I wished my talk was over already. I reminded myself that this was an exciting experience, and I should savor it. Then, I walked down into the main hall where I would be presenting. [...] About halfway through the talk, my nerves calmed down. I felt so calm that it was weird. I felt like I was simply talking to another engineer next to me. It’s unbelievable how the brain works and how quickly you can get used to the patterns around you. I was in front of a giant screen, in the bright lights, with 100s of people looking at me (plus some unknown number watching the live stream).”

“On the day of my talk, I put on the nice sweater my wife packed for me. “You’re going to Europe,” she told me, “so you need to dress properly.” The day was humid and warm, so I started sweating when I got in the Uber to go to the venue. The sun was shining at me through the window of the moving car, which made things even worse. I moved to the other side of the vehicle, and the driver looked at me suspiciously. I ended up sweating most of the day.”