Erase Speaking Mistakes Like You're Tom Brady

Mistakes happen. Tom Brady, who has more Super Bowl rings than any quarterback in NFL history, has also thrown more than 170 interceptions. Do you think he let those mistakes hold him back? Nope. All elite athletes know what to do with their mistakes. They use a three-step system to recover. It works for speakers, presenters and athletes. Anyone can use it. You should too!

I haven’t talked to Tom, but I’ll bet he uses the “IFF Recovery System” to quickly rebound from throwing errors. Here’s how it works. When you screw up (forget a line, mispronounce a word, or your delivery sucks) as a speaker; take these steps after your presentation is over:

• IDENTIFY: Identify the cause of the mistake. Did you prepare poorly? Did you get too nervous? Find out why you made the mistake.

• FIX: Fix it. Take steps to make sure you don’t make the same mistake again. Put in more practice hours, get feedback on your performance, or learn a better way to handle the situation if it comes up again.

• FORGET: After you fix your problem, forget about it and focus on what you do right. Replaying mistakes in your mind will erode your confidence. You can’t move forward if you’re always dragging your past into your future. Erase your speaking mistakes like you’re Tom Brady. (FYI, Tom has thrown more than 500 career touchdowns vs. 171 interceptions!)

For more ways to recover from speaking mistakes, like my Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/BetterSpeakingSkills)