When your mind goes blank

You’re about to present in a meeting with important stakeholders. You start to feel anxious, tense, hot. Maybe you’ve got a dry mouth.

If you look closely, you’re probably holding your breath.

Then it’s your turn to speak, and all eyes are on you.

Your mind goes blank. You find yourself babbling, unable to put the brakes on, and forget to say half the things you planned.

Why evolution has a lot to answer for

Your body-brain can’t distinguish between a hungry tiger and the risk of messing up in front of Very Important People.

So it does what it knows best – it swings into survival mode. Your heart races, your breathing becomes shallow and rapid, your muscles tense for action.

And, the piece de resistance? The thinking parts of your brain shut down. Because we didn’t need to think creatively when we were running away from a wild animal or playing dead.

As Dr Alan Watkins puts it, “We’ve got 200,000 year old software and we’ve never had an upgrade.”

The heart of the matter

Our heartbeat calls the shots for your whole system. 

When it senses danger, your heartbeat jumps up from as much as 70 to 150 beats a minute and becomes chaotic. It’s like a fast ride on a bumpy potholed track with no suspension. You can’t think straight and have trouble making decisions. 

When all is well, the rhythm of your heart is like an undulating country road – something called “cardiac coherence” – meaning your system can function at its best. You feel calm and think clearly.

How to regain control 

The good news is that you have a direct line to impacting how you think and feel  : your breath. When you breathe rhythmically and smoothly into your belly, you can get the heart back into coherence.

The belly bit is important : when you exhale properly, pressing your belly towards your spine, your diaphragm goes up, slowing your heart rate via pressure on the vagus nerve. This balances the acceleration of your heart rate on your inhale.

Try this : Breathe in slowly for 5 seconds then out for 5 seconds. Let your belly rise on the inhale, and fall on the exhale. Try it for a minute or more, or just a few cycles.

Practise before you need it

Your nervous system is like an oversensitive smoke alarm – when you’re under pressure, you may find yourself consumed by fear before you can do anything about it.

That’s why it’s important to practise in non-critical scenarios where you feel safe and comfortable. Little and often is best, with extra practice before situations you find stressful.

For example :

• Before you press “Join now” on teams
• When you sit down at your desk, before you power up your laptop
• On your commute
• In meetings when others are speaking