Freezing on Stage: How to Recover From a Public Leadership Failure
Hard Truths, Common Myths, and Leadership Troubleshooting
Everyone who speaks in public eventually goes blank. The question is not whether it will happen but what you do in the next ten seconds and the next ten days. FFA’s published advice, from a former state officer who still gets nervous to a national officer team sharing confidence tips, treats freezing as a normal event with practical responses. This article collects those responses, organizes them into a recovery plan and notes honestly what advice cannot do.
- Key takeaway: the sources recommend breathing, pausing, assuming the audience is on your side and treating a stumble as information.
- Caution: this is advice from speakers and writers, not clinical guidance.
Normalizing the Freeze
Mark Jewell, a former Minnesota FFA vice president and CEO of a mindset development company, told FFA in 2023 that he still gets nervous before stepping on stage and that nervousness can be a gift because it shows how much you care. His top tips include starting small, making your speech personal and practicing out loud (source). FFA’s 2023 improv article opens with anecdotes about famous speakers who feared audiences, and it says the same fear can be eased by building improvisation skills (source).
In the Moment
| If this happens | Try this |
|---|---|
| You go blank | Breathe and pause, since Jewell says pauses before key points help clarity |
| You fumble a line | Continue calmly; he says most audiences are rooting for you |
| A question surprises you | Treat it with a “yes, and” mindset rather than as a critique, as the improv article suggests |
| You lose your place | Look at your notes, restate your last point and move on |
The last row is this site’s suggestion; the others come from the cited pieces.
After the Stumble
FFA’s 2018 national officer team shared confidence tips. One said preparation is the source of calm and that slowing down and taking a few deep breaths helps. Another used the phrase “never perfect, strive for excellence.” National President Breanna Holbert said gradual goals, such as meeting three people and reciting their names back to her advisor, built her confidence (source). Gary Swan, national president in 1966–67, recalled finishing almost last in his first speaking contest and later placing second at a regional exposition after setting goals (source). Trey Myers, national president in 2025–26, described being rattled and unplaced in his first contest, then becoming state runner-up (source).
A Ten-Day Recovery Plan
- Same day: write down exactly what happened and how it felt.
- Day two: ask one trusted person what they noticed.
- Day three: identify one preparation change.
- Week one: speak again in a low-stakes setting.
- Day ten: compare notes and decide what to keep.
Beyond Speeches
A public leadership failure might be a missed deadline or a poorly run event rather than a speech. The same pattern applies: own it, tell the people affected, fix what you can and write down the lesson. The National Association of Colleges and Employers lists accountability among professionalism and teamwork behaviors (source).
Honest Limits
Advice about nerves works for some people and not others. If anxiety about speaking is severe or interfering with daily life, a counselor or health professional is the right person to ask. The stories above are from people who went on to succeed, which is why they were told.
On this site, Gary Swan, Trey Myers and Breanna Holbert have bios that record these accounts as their own words.
Sources
- National FFA Organization: 5 Tips for Better Public Speaking (2023)
- National FFA Organization: Improve Your Public Speaking With Improv (2023)
- National FFA Organization: National FFA Officer Tips for Developing Confidence (2018)
- National FFA Organization: Past National FFA President Commits to Lifetime of Ag Advocacy (2026)
- National FFA Organization: Oklahoma Roots, National Reach (2025)