Fear of public speaking is supposedly greater than the fear of death. Driving narrow mountain roads feels like death, according to some 
I hear talking (we have some doozies near us). I don’t find either terrifying, but have felt the butterflies that come with being on stage.
My first public speaking course talked about getting your butterflies “in formation” so you could have more confidence and power in your presentation. The sense I had was that butterflies indicated the level of fear you were feeling. Since that was the first time I’d heard about butterflies in your stomach and having them connected to fear, I simply ran with that notion for decades.
Getting your butterflies to fly in formation is a clever way to talk about getting your act together, pulling your resources together, and rising above your fear. I like the idea of mastering your fears and moving through them with action. I very much believe that action is the key component to overcoming fear.
Mastering fears and overcoming the lack of inertia associated with fear and resistance is a high-performance technique for mastering your life.
With years of thinking of butterflies in the pit of my stomach as fear, I was recently intrigued by the idea that butterflies might not be fear at all — but bridled enthusiasm!
A former runner was talking about his butterflies and how he used them to spur him on in his running — be it practice or a race. He loved his butterflies because it meant he was excited to be running. The more butterflies he had, the better his run. He unbridled those butterflies for top performance.
That notion gives your butterfly formation a whole new meaning and value! You don’t have to overcome anything with this attitude. You can harness those butterflies and use their energy to create more of the action you are undertaking.
Another use for those butterflies, if you treat them as friends, is to focus your mind. That’s useful, especially if you have ADD and tend toward an unfocused mind. With a focused mind you can think faster, plan better, and have more clarity.
What a great mindset change! With this new attitude, butterflies don’t indicate the enemy is here, they indicate you are alive and bursting to go! What a great barometer for your level of engagement and vibrancy. Think how much enthusiasm you can show for growth and change in your life when you think of the butterflies as friends. You do better together — as a team!
How do you get in touch with your inner butterfly collection? Pay attention to how you are feeling, especially in the pit of your stomach. Feeling a bit edgy, anxious, “a-flitter”? Good! The butterflies are waiting for direction. Acknowledge them, harness their energy, focus your mind and “team” on the project that brought them to you, and unleash them for success.
High performance living is a life of productivity, high energy, and satisfaction. Unleash those butterflies and use your enthusiasm to master your life and charge your high performance.