Whatever your vlogging goals are, learning how to overcome stage fright is the first step you need to take if you want to succeed, especially if you have to vlog in public. Here are nine simple methods to help you overcome vlogging stage fright. Master these, and you’ll notice a huge difference when recording.
1. Prepare
Being prepared for your vlog is one way to avoid being uncomfortable or having stage fright. Layout your script in a logical manner and make some notes for yourself. Knowing what you want to say and being ready to discuss topics you’ve already reviewed will help give you confidence during your presentation. So make sure you fully understand your issue. If you can’t clearly explain your point to others without notes, then you need to take more time to familiarize yourself with the content.
2. Learn from other vloggers
Ever hear the saying, “Monkey see, monkey do?” Watch other vloggers’ videos. Choose vlogs that cover the topics you want to talk about or similar ones. Pay attention to what they say and how they say it. How does the video flow from shot to shot? What do they do well and where can they improve? Try to mimic what you like and avoid what you don’t. Understanding what you like and don’t like can help you avoid making those same mistakes when recording. Looking for pro photography shots or inspiration, tips and advice to drive your own photography goals? Check out Dreamstime for all the pro images and inspiration you need.
3. Keep it simple
If you try to take on too much at once, it’ll be easy to feel frustrated and appear flustered in front of the camera. When you’re first starting, stick to creating simple vlogs. Take your time to learn how to edit videos and get familiar with the software. Take small steps to create a strong foundation, then build up from there.
4. Learn your equipment
Feeling confident as you record is key to getting over stage fright. But remember, you can have the best camera on the market, but if you don’t understand how to use it, you might as well record yourself with an old flip phone. When you buy your camera, familiarize yourself with its settings and how and when to make adjustments. Look into what attachments you need and understand when to use them.
5. Text and graphics
You might have noticed that most vloggers incorporate text and graphics into their videos. These are valuable aids for making a point, highlighting a specific element within a scene or providing additional information. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed if you’re trying to record yourself but are also thinking about adding text or subtitles. This is a skill worth learning with your editing software from the start, so you have one less thing to worry about while you record.
6. Practice
As with most things, it will take more than one recording session to get the look and sound you want. You may need to reposition the camera, annunciate or fiddle with the software. Try recording a series of short videos to practice. Record yourself explaining or doing something simple. Review the footage, pay attention to the audio quality, and note where you can improve. Remember, practice makes perfect.
7. Don’t quit before you start
One thing you need to realize is the high-end vloggers with hundreds of thousands of subscribers started at the beginning. No matter how great your content is, you need to start at the beginning, too. Experienced vloggers understand their equipment, and some even hire video editors to do the hard work for them. You can’t start off believing you should be as good as a professional right out the gate, or you’ll quit before you even start. Take a few minutes to realize you’re a beginner, and you can’t compare yourself to those who have years of experience. Take time to learn from scratch and focus on having fun along the way.
8. Topics
It’s too easy to give in to fear while on camera. It’s how you end up rambling instead of getting to the heart of your chosen topic. Avoid this mistake by focusing each recording on one specific topic. Do all your research and consider the many ways you can convey that information while being interesting and entertaining. When you start to focus on the content, you’ll notice you’re not as concerned about things that don’t matter.
9. Tell a story
There are many ways to share the same story. Consider the angle you want to take and focus on how to make your topic engaging. What story do you want to tell, and who is your target audience? Once you master how to tell stories, you might become the next big thing on the internet. But don’t focus on big dreams. It’s okay to have them, but your focus needs to be on how to create the best videos and content and how to record them with confidence. And most importantly, the best way to scare away stage fright is to make sure you’re having fun every step of the way!
