How to Stay Calm and Speak Confidently, Even When the Pressure’s On
- Natalia Yusenis
- Apr 28
- 4 min read
Updated: Sep 24
You’re calm, collected, clear until the pressure hits. Suddenly, your thoughts scatter. Your voice tightens. You second-guess yourself just when it matters most.
Here’s the thing: even the most experienced professionals freeze under pressure. It's not a weakness, it's the nervous system not feeling safe. When stress kicks in, your brain goes into survival mode. The part that solves problems shuts down. The part that protects you takes over.
Many high-achieving professionals, especially in fast-paced cities like Sydney, struggle with performance anxiety. But here’s the truth: staying calm under pressure isn’t something only a lucky few are born with. It’s a skill.
If you’ve ever wondered how to stay calm and speak confidently when the stakes are high, you’re in the right place.
In this blog post, I will talk about the psychology of stress, powerful practices for stress like breathwork and hypnosis, and find out how top execs stay grounded even under high pressure when all eyes are on them.
How Stress Changes the Brain and Affects How You Make Decisions
Stress doesn’t just feel overwhelming, it actually changes how your brain works. When you’re under a lot of pressure, your brain goes into survival mode and floods your body with stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. The part of your brain that helps you think clearly and solve problems (aka the prefrontal cortex) takes a back seat. Meanwhile, the part that handles strong emotions, like fear or panic(i.e. the amygdala), takes over.
This is why even the most experienced professionals can forget what they're doing, second-guess themselves, or overreact when the stakes are high. Your brain is doing what it's supposed to do: keeping you safe from what it thinks is dangerous.
The brain doesn't know the difference between a bear chasing you and your boss asking you a hard question in a meeting.
Repeated exposure to intense stress without enough time to recover can change the way your nervous system works over time. You become overly alert, quick to react, and more likely to feel anxious, even in normal everyday situations.
That's why advice like "just take a deep breath" or "visualise success" doesn't always work. Those tools just don't go deep enough when the nervous system is out of whack.
For more information, read my blog post Best Stress Management Techniques.
The Secret Weapon of Top Execs for Staying Calm Under Pressure
Breathwork is more than simply a wellness craze; it's a strong, science-based way to keep your nervous system in check.
Research from the National Library of Medicine says that conscious breathing can stimulate the parasympathetic nerve system, which can slow down the heart rate, lower cortisol levels, and make the body feel calm.
When you’re under pressure, your breathing is often shallow and erratic. This makes anxiety worse. But if you pay attention to your breath, you can break that pattern and tell your body, "I'm safe."
Explore how breathwork in Sydney can help regulate your stress response.
Here's a way I teach my clients in Sydney to deal with stress at work:
A Quick 2-Minute Breathing Technique to Clear Your Head
Sit tall, feet flat on the ground
Inhale through the nose for 5 seconds
Hold for 2 seconds
Exhale slowly through the mouth for 7 seconds
Repeat for 2 minutes
As you breathe, focus on the words "I am steady". "I'm safe." "I am capable."
If you do this before a meeting, presentation, or hard talk, your body and mind will know that it's alright to be seen and that you are in charge.
Want more strategies? Explore techniques in my blog on Overcome Work-Related Stress with Hypnotherapy & Breathwork in Sydney.
How Hypnotherapy Can Help You Deal with Stress
Logically you know you’re safe. You may even feel confident about your expertise. But if your subconscious mind is holding onto outdated beliefs like “I have to be perfect” or “Mistakes mean danger,” those thoughts will override logic and the emotion will take over your mind and your body.
Hypnotherapy really makes a difference here. As a qualified Subconscious Mind Expert and Clinical Hypnotherapist in Sydney, I help high-performers figure out what causes their stress and change the beliefs that trigger their automatic fear response.
Hypnotherapy goes straight to the subconscious, which is where the true change happens, unlike verbal therapy. We don't just deal with stress; we change how you react to it.
Want to learn more about how your mind works? Read What is Hypnotherapy? How It Works, Pros, and Cons.
Mental practice has a real power to help you stay calm when things go tough. Visualisation isn’t woo-woo, it’s neuroscience. When you mentally rehearse a high-stress situation while in a calm, focused state (such as during hypnotherapy), your brain begins to code it as familiar and safe.
This means that when the moment arrives, you don’t go into panic mode. You go into practice mode because your brain has already “been there.”
This is the foundation of many hypnotherapy sessions I facilitate for professionals preparing for big meetings, public speaking, or career transitions.
Want to see how this looks in real life? To find out more, go to my Hypnotherapy for Confidence page.
Train Your Mind to Thrive Under Pressure
Being resilient doesn't mean not feeling stress. It's about learning ways to deal with stress that keeps you calm and centred, where instead of reaction, you choose a conscious action.
Whether you're dealing with executive pressure, anxiousness about public speaking, or just trying to stay calm in regular settings, having the right skills will help you shift from being reactive to being responsive.
And let me say this again, staying calm under pressure doesn't mean you aren't afraid. It's about being aware of your fear and responding with calm assurance. And the good news? That’s something you can learn. Starting now.
If you feel ready to see this change for yourself, let’s work together. I help professionals like you get rid of stress, modify negative subconscious patterns, and talk effectively in high-stress situations, including on stage, in a meeting, or when you're going through big changes in your life.
Book a free consultation today and let’s explore how hypnotherapy and breathwork can help you unlock a calmer, more confident version of you.
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