How to be not Shy and Face the Camera with Confidence?

With the significant rise in technology and demand for digital media, many digital platforms are now playing a vital role in grabbing the audience’s attention. To stand out from the crowd and dominate the market, brands are heading toward these mediums, especially popular digital audiovisual platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube with instant video-sharing and live-streaming capabilities. It not only helps in winning the lion’s share but also helps in building a strong connection with the viewers.

Now, the main challenge of adopting these platforms is “facing the camera.” Facing the camera is not everyone’s cup of tea; it can be intimidating, jittery, and awkward for many. So here the question arises, how to face the camera? And what can be done to draw people into it? Based on these questions, below you can find 12 steps, which will help you become comfortable with the camera and make it your friend with whom you can share your thoughts easily without getting nervous and face the audience with ease without retreating yourself inside a shell.

1. Understand the power of words: When you repeatedly say, “I can’t do it,” your subconscious mind takes it seriously and blends your words with your belief, and unfortunately, that becomes a reality. Hence, instead of the negative thought, say it positively, “I can do it,” and believe it. In this way, you will see the positive results.

2. Practice a daily affirmative program: Daily affirmation is very impactful because it reprograms your mind, thoughts, and beliefs. Do it consistently every single morning after you wake up and you will begin to develop the new confidence. Even if it is not natural at first, if you feel like the words are not believable, still stick to them like glue. The only goal is to feel as though you already have those things you always wanted. Whatever words are right for you, write them down and recite them loudly daily. That’s the key, “repetition and feeling the words.”

3. Embrace your awkwardness: Remember, no one is perfect in the entire world. Mistakes happen, sometimes you will mess up with a few things, but it is quite perfect because you will learn from those things and this will make you stronger. Even you can share your embarrassing moments with your audience; this is a strategy where you can connect with many people. Be open and laugh at your own mistakes.

4. Come out with the right amount of energy and a welcoming smile on your face: Whenever you start a session, mark that curve on your face. A smiling face is contagious. No one wants to see a grumpy face on their screen. Always come up with a bright smile because when you smile, it does wonder to your inner energy and widely affects the perception of your viewers. To come out with the right amount of energy before your session, you can do some yoga, exercise, or simply dance on your favorite beats.

5. Calm your nerves before you face the camera: There are a few techniques by which you can calm yourself like drinking a glass of water, doing some breathing exercises, listening to some good soothing music, and carrying out some stretching exercises. It would be best if you do not look like a scaredy-cat to your audience, so calm your nerves before switching on the camera.

6. Body language: You should portray your body language as if you are giving something valuable to your audience than receiving. You can add perfect hand moments, open your arms in between your talks, and reveal an ideal hand gesture wherever is needed. Eye contact is essential; it gets you connected to your audience and gives a feeling as if you are physically present in front of them. Your eyes should focus on the camera lens and avoid seeing side to side or up and down while speaking because that will immediately disconnect you from your audience.

7. Let go of managing people’s opinion of you: Keep aside people’s judgment toward you. Don’t think about what people will think about you or how they are going to judge you. Keep all these thoughts in the deepest corner of your mind where you will never be able to reach in your wildest dreams because these are the same thoughts that will become an obstacle in the path of your very own success. Many people lose the battle, just fighting with their suspicion of how they are going to be perceived. In case if you have a similar situation, kindly ask yourself what perception am I fighting right now! And relax, knowing that it is only a perception of you because your most deep-seated confidence is not controlling the opinion of others but embracing the truth who you are.

8. Have the confidence throughout: Be comfortable in your skin. Don’t think much about how you will look in the video. Don’t feel like you are looking unpleasant, don’t let your baggage of dark circles or tiny mountains of pimples bother you at this time. Just be confident. Speak out! It is not your skin but your inner voice, which is doing a miracle, so forget about your outer surface. With the right mindset, awkwardness disappears.

9. Find your corner: Find a place where you are comfortable and settle down. You should be able to feel the positive energy and should get a good vibe from that place. New places, new corners may make you little edgy, but before choosing it, make sure it should have proper lighting and be soundproof.

10. Dress up appropriately: Most of the time, your attire speaks a lot about you. Your audience’s perception depends on the attire you are putting in. Dress up as per the subject of your video. Suppose you have a meeting, you cannot enter the room wearing a shiny party wear dress or when your subject is on astrology you cannot wear something funky as if you are going for a nightclub. Similarly, when you are on the camera, you should dress up appropriately.

11. Speak with ease: If you are new to this field, practice your notes thoroughly before delivering them in front of the camera. Try to make it an interactive session by involving the audience in it. Keep your words and spacing wisely. Suppose you are stating a vital point then, at that point, you should slow down.

12. Note down bullet points: Do your homework correctly and break the entire session into small bullet points so that you should not skip anything during the session. Keeping a handy note is always advisable.

If you want to grow, the best mantra is to speak effectively so that you can connect with your valuable audience to share your ideas, views, values, and suggestions. And remember, no one except you, can do this. Only you need proper guidance and proven methods to develop your skills. This will open the doors of opportunities, going through which you can inspire, educate, persuade, impress, and help other people.

Written by: Suchismita Pradhan, Digital Writopreneur (paid for writing the article – screenshot attached)

Edited by: Rajinder Soni, Digital Writopreneurs Coach