This reinforces the “generous performance” idea I’ve been pushing lately. Article is aimed at “shy” people, but I think “self conscious” works as well and applies to even seemingly confident performers.
“Someone I respect a great deal once told me that ‘shyness is pride.’ What he meant was that shy people spend too much time worrying about themselves and how they look in the eyes of other people, when they should be focusing on what’s outside, trying to do a good job, trying to add value to the situation. This is brilliant advice – start thinking about others and less about yourself. In fact, everyone else is actually thinking about themselves, too. Nobody really cares about you. So stop being so self absorbed.”