Ever feel like your job is a constant audition? Work can feel like a pressure cooker, especially when you’re someone who sets the bar impossibly high for yourself. The anxiety kicks in before a big presentation, during a meeting when all eyes are on you, or even when you’re about to hit “send” on an important email. Suddenly, your heart is racing, your mind is second-guessing everything, and you’re convinced everyone is about to see right through you. Sound like you? That’s performance anxiety in action.
Performance anxiety isn’t just about stage fright. It’s an overwhelming fear of failing, of not meeting expectations—whether they’re from your boss, your team, or (let’s be honest) the ones you put on yourself. For high-achieving millennials, this kind of anxiety can feel like a constant background hum, making work feel less like a career and more like a never-ending test you have to ace.
What Performance Anxiety Looks Like at Work
Performance anxiety doesn’t always show up as a full-blown panic attack. Sometimes, it’s more subtle but just as disruptive. Here are some common ways it manifests in the workplace:
- Over-preparing: You spend hours obsessing over every detail, trying to make things “perfect” before you share them.
- Avoidance: You put off tasks that make you anxious, like speaking up in meetings or taking on leadership roles.
- Physical symptoms: Your heart pounds, your stomach churns, and you might even get headaches or feel dizzy when under pressure.
- Negative self-talk: You convince yourself you’re not good enough, that you’re going to mess up, or that you don’t deserve your position.
- Seeking excessive reassurance: You constantly ask colleagues or your boss for feedback, needing external validation to feel okay.
If any of this sounds familiar, know this: You’re not alone, and this is more common than you realize. Performance anxiety is something you can learn to manage, so it stops running the show.
Strategies to Manage Performance Anxiety at Work
1. Shift Your Perspective on Pressure
The anxiety you feel before a big task? That’s your body’s way of gearing up to perform. Instead of seeing it as a threat, try reframing it as energy—your brain is just trying to help you focus. Remind yourself that some nerves are normal and even beneficial.
2. Challenge the “What Ifs”
Performance anxiety loves to feed on worst-case scenarios. “What if I bomb this presentation?” “What if my boss thinks I’m incompetent?” The next time your mind starts spiraling, challenge those thoughts. Ask yourself: “What’s the worst that could happen?” and “How likely is that, really?” More often than not, the reality is much less catastrophic than your anxiety makes it out to be.
3. Adopt a “Good Enough” Mindset
Perfectionism fuels performance anxiety. Instead of aiming for flawless, aim for effective. What would “good enough” look like in this situation? Not subpar, but realistically solid? Letting go of impossible standards can ease a lot of unnecessary stress.
4. Use Visualization Techniques
Before high-pressure moments, take a few minutes to visualize yourself succeeding. Imagine yourself walking into that meeting with confidence, delivering your points clearly, and feeling proud of your performance. This mental rehearsal can help override anxious thoughts and build a sense of control.
5. Control What You Can (and Let Go of What You Can’t)
Some things are within your power—preparing your notes, practicing your delivery, managing your time. Others, like how your boss reacts or what questions you’ll get asked, aren’t. Focus on what’s in your control and practice letting the rest go.
6. Breathe Through the Anxiety
Anxiety activates your body’s fight-or-flight response. One of the quickest methods to counteract this is deep, intentional breathing. Try the 4-7-8 method: Inhale for four seconds, hold for seven, exhale for eight. This signals your nervous system to calm down, bringing both your mind and body back to a steadier state.
7. Build Self-Trust Through Small Wins
A great way to combat performance anxiety is to prove to yourself that you can handle pressure. Start collecting small wins—completing a project, speaking up in a meeting, handling feedback gracefully. Each success reinforces your capability and confidence.
8. Reduce Overthinking by Setting Time Limits
If you tend to obsess over work, set time boundaries. Give yourself 30 minutes to prepare for a meeting instead of three hours. Set a timer when responding to emails. Creating these constraints can prevent you from spiraling into analysis paralysis.
9. Separate Your Worth from Your Work
Your value as a person is not tied to your job performance. Read that again. You are more than your title, your productivity, or the praise you receive. When you start defining yourself outside of work, the pressure to perform perfectly starts to loosen its grip.
10. Normalize Talking About It
Performance anxiety thrives in silence. But guess what? You’re not the only one who feels this way. If you have a mentor, colleague, or therapist you trust, talk about it. Sometimes, just voicing your fears out loud can take away some of their power.
When to Seek Additional Support
If performance anxiety is making work unbearable—keeping you up at night, causing chronic stress, or interfering with your ability to do your job—it might be time to seek professional support. Therapy can help you unpack the deeper roots of your anxiety, develop coping strategies, and shift unhelpful thought patterns.
Moving Forward with Confidence
Performance anxiety doesn’t mean you’re not capable or that you don’t belong. It means you care. And while it may never fully disappear, you can learn to manage it so it no longer controls you. Next time the pressure builds, take a breath, trust yourself, and remember: You’re far more competent than your anxiety wants you to believe.
Still need more support? Schedule a free 15-min phone consult to see if we’d be a good fit to help you explore deeper roots of your performance anxiety (applicable for South Carolina residents).
by Samm Brenner Gautier, LPC, LPCS-C
