Comments on: How to prevent and recover from mind blanks

By: Sarah Gershman

Sarah Gershman — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 02:42:15 +0000

Olivia – This is a terrific post. I just linked to it and blogged about it…

http://sarahgershman.blogspot.com/2009/10/prepare-for-your-fallibility-mind-blank.html

thank you!

Sarah

By: How to persuade other people to ditch the bullets : Speaking about Presenting

How to persuade other people to ditch the bullets : Speaking about Presenting — Thu, 14 May 2009 01:58:19 +0000

[...] slides are a security blanket for many presenters. They give them reassurance that if they have a mind-blank, they can just read off the slides and survive get through the presentation. People also imagine [...]

By: Olivia Mitchell

Olivia Mitchell — Sat, 09 May 2009 23:43:34 +0000

Hi Chris

I think what you’ve found to work ie: getting people moving, is exactly what the research demonstrates. Freezing is another manifestation of the flight or fight syndrome. Get the body moving and the mind will move better too. Olivia

By: Best Public Speaking Tips and Techniques [2009-05-09]

Best Public Speaking Tips and Techniques [2009-05-09] — Sat, 09 May 2009 22:55:14 +0000

[...] Mitchell suggests how to prevent and recover from mind blanks. Are you concerned that you might suffer a mind blank [...]

By: Chris Witt

Chris Witt — Thu, 07 May 2009 14:38:17 +0000

Olivia,

Wow, what a wealth of great advice. I second everything you’ve said.

I didn’t know about the study of gestures and how they helped people recall what they wanted to say. (As someone who gestures a lot naturally, I like that.) I’ve approached the question of gesturing and remembering in a different way. Whenever someone’s mind locks up, I usually find that their body also locks up. They stand stock still. Just gettting them to move — to walk to the podium and look at their notes or to take a sip of water — gets them out of that frozen state and often gets their minds moving again.

Chris