Description
One of my takeaways from reading the Pianist and the Lobster, is how human the pianist Sviatislav Richter was, and how strange the life of a performing artist must be. On the other hand, if we think of performing music of that difficulty as a type of extreme sport behavior, it's no wonder he had such an unusual ritual. My question today is what's your lobster? We all have rituals before we enter into activity that requires some performance component - sports, arts, gaming, taking exams, public speaking, etc. Describe one of your own rituals surrounding "performance". What do you do?, when do you do it?, why do you do it?, how did it emerge as a practice? If you are uncomfortable speaking about yourself, go ahead and describe the ritual of someone you know well, but please respect their privacy. Be specific. Saying that you pray, for example, is too general – what prayer is it?, why that prayer?, etc.
Explanation & Answer
Attached.
Discussion
Public speaking is a scary undertaking. I am always scared that I will mess up and people will
laugh at me. To ensure that I have a successful presentation, I have mastered a way to familiarize
myself with my message without sounding like I memorized the material. Despite conducting all
the necessary research, I always feel like I am not prepared enough. With increasing number of
presentations I have to make in school and after, I need a way to minimize the jitters.
I have a ritual that I do. I memorize the ending and conclusion to seem like I know wh...