Years and years ago, at the dawn of time probably, a bunch of sour white dudes got together and agreed that every single University degree should contain a class presentation. No matter that it’s almost universally loathed, or that everyone else in the class just sits on their phone the whole time anyway. They declared it a necessary course requirement. And then drank their rich wine and did rich, male things.

Yes, class presentations suck. Whether you’re amping up to present to your tute in the coming weeks, or just need a general public speaking pep talk, here are our tips.

#1 Do Work You’re Proud Of

Sure, we all set out to do work that we’re proud of but sometimes we don’t quite get there. We leave it to the last minute and race to the submission deadline with nothing but Red Bull and Doritos to fuel our intellectual capabilities.

If you’re super nervous about getting up in front of the class, don’t leave it to chance. Prepare as far in advance as you can, revise it, edit it and rewrite it. Feeling like you’re proud of your work will make you excited to present it to the class and less worried about how potentially embarrassing it could be. Because how could it be embarrassing if it’s pure freakin’ gold?

#2 Practice, Practice And Practice More

Call your Mum, Dad, sister or fluffy cat Nemo into the living room and make them listen to your speech. Sure, they couldn’t give a flying fuck about linguistic methods of post-war communication, but they do give a flying fuck about you. So they can gosh darn sit there and listen to your four to five minute yarn.

It’s also a good idea to practice in front of the mirror as it familiarises yourself with your facial expressions and frequency of eye contact.

You’re doing amazing, sweetie.

#3 Turn The Nervousness Into Excitement

As Nick Morgan pointed out for Forbes, “Adrenaline is your body’s way of preparing you for crucial moments such as chasing down woolly mammoths and saber-toothed tigers.” Your speech isn’t a woolly mammoth that’s coming to squash you into oblivion. It’s just a speech. A few words that you’ve strung together and have to recite in front of a room of bored people. Remind yourself that there’s no real threat to your safety and go from there.

If you turn that sweaty palm, fast-heart feeling from pure vomit nervousness into an excitement to just get it over and done with, you’ll be surprised how much better equipped you are to tackle the day. All it takes is a shift in perspective.

#4 Breathe Deeply

Steady your heart rate by breathing deeply in and out. If you need some help, you can listen to this extremely good meditative guide by your girl Amandla Stenberg.

#5 Get Physical (Physical)

Get your blood pumping to relieve some stress and anxiety. Jump up and down, go for a brisk walk and indulge in a few lunges just before class.

Or if you’re a little worried about looking like a dweeb on campus, go for a run before you leave for uni that morning. As Michael Hopkins from Dartmouth’s Neurobiology of Learning and Memory Laboratory pointed out, “the positive stress of exercise prepares cells and structures and pathways within the brain so that they’re more equipped to handle stress in other forms.” There you go. Science.

#6 Just Say ‘Fuck It’ And Get It Over And Done With

You know how the tutor always asks if someone wants to go first? You should volunteer! Half of your nervousness is overthinking how nervous you are. Once it’s over and done with you can breathe a sigh of relief and never think about that g-damn assignment ever again.

In fact, rip up your speech into tiny pieces for good measure. You did it.

(Lead image: Never Been Kissed/20th Century Fox)