INPUT ARTICLE: Article: It may be difficult due to anxiety you are feeling about speaking to the public, but if you feel on edge others will sense that and feel it too. There are not many people out there that enjoy public speaking, so take comfort in the fact that everyone in the audience understands it is an anxiety inducing situation. Address your stress and fear and its ability to hinder you in presenting yourself as a strong and confident person. If you need help relaxing, try some breathing or relaxation exercises.  Sit or stand somewhere with few distractions. Breath in through your nose for a count of four, hold your breath for a count of seven, and slowly release the breath out through your mouth for a count of eight.  Count your breaths as you exhale. Breathe slowly and count up to five breaths. Repeat a few times, while trying to draw your breath from the bottom of your lungs instead of your shoulders.  Change the shy or anxious thoughts and actively shift your focus onto others and off of yourself. Instead of thinking, “I am so nervous. How can I be less anxious?” try and think “How can I make everyone else more comfortable?” Strangely enough, pretending you are not shy is effective. You may end up convincing everyone else and maybe yourself, too! Many introverted individuals use this technique in order to be able to adapt to stressful work situations. Some ways you can accomplish this include:  If you work with or know someone with a charismatic friendly personality that you admire, pretend you are them. Take what you know about their attitude and style and act the part. Working next to others with outgoing personalities can be contagious just like smiling. Use this to your advantage. Walk into a room and say “Hi” to everyone with a lot of energy and smiling. They will get the impression that you are outgoing, friendly, and approachable. The more you act like an outgoing person, the easier it will be to become on in these work situations. You may be shy, introverted, or you may have anxiety about social situations or speaking to the public that are making it difficult for you to work. Identify if you have any particular fears about working with the public or public speaking. For example, maybe you are afraid you will make a mistake in an important presentation or conference. Know that you will make mistakes, because everyone does. Those mistakes, however, are all teachable moments and ways you can improve your work. Remember that it is often not mistakes that define us, but rather how we respond to them. Working or speaking with a larger group of individuals has the tendency to make the work more complicated and can increase your stress. You may have anxiety over public speaking or with just speaking in any public situation. A way to cope with this is to adjust the size of the group you are speaking with; reducing it down to a smaller group or just addressing an individual.  Break the larger group into a smaller, more manageable group. Separating into smaller groups allows you to focus more on fewer individuals and makes conversations easier. Address one person in the group. If a client or a member of the public asks you a question, focus your attention on them and no one else in the group. This will show that person you are putting extra attention into their question, as well as help you focus and reduce your anxiety. The tone of your voice and the way that you speak conveys a great deal to the individuals listening. One study determined that men with a lower tone to their voice were considered more dominant, and women who alternated the pitch of their voice were perceived to be more trustworthy. Additionally, if you speak clearly and calmly, studies show that you will be taken more seriously. Practice speaking at home or record yourself to see how you sound and adjust your speech accordingly. Very often, in interacting with the public, it helps to have a "script" that helps guide what your responses should be with people. It can help a lot to have a plan how to act, what to say, and so on.   This is very helpful in jobs like customer service--the customer typically wants friendly, prompt help, and usually it is the same thing over and over. You may even get training on how exactly to do this at your workplace. Usually people want to talk about themselves more than really about you. An introvert is often really good at listening, so that can be an asset when working with the public. It helps if you are shy, too, because it is not about you, it is about the other person. The problem many people face with social interactions in the workplace (or interactions with the public) is a lack of confidence. Remind yourself you were hired for this job for a reason, because you are good at it. Be yourself and bring your unique perspective and ideas to projects you are working on or individuals you are working with. Additionally, allowing your personality to come out a little in presentations or at conferences makes it more interesting and engaging for the audience. It will also help you connect with your audience. Perhaps they will see something they can identify with in what you say. If you are speaking publicly, chances are you are already an expert on the topic. Still, it may help your feelings of shyness or anxiety to make sure you are well prepared for your presentation. Make sure to research your topic, prepare your notes or your presentation and rehearse what you are going to say. It is also helpful to give your presentation in front of family and friends first. The more confident you feel, the more confidence you will show to others.

SUMMARY: Practice relaxation exercises to help you be calm and at ease. Pretend you are extroverted. Identify your fears. Work with smaller groups or individuals. Be aware of or change how you speak. Have a script for what you are doing. Be yourself. Prepare thoroughly for your tasks, events, or presentations.


INPUT ARTICLE: Article: Again, there are countless permutations that might inform the way your love box looks. How long have you two been together? How old are you? Where, when and how did you meet? There can be no step-by-step process for defining what makes your connection unique; take some time to figure out what you love most about your boyfriend, and find an artistic way of expressing that. Put your talents to best use. If you're a great writer, writing a poem or a fictionalized interpretation of how you met might be a great way to decorate the inside lid. If you're a great artist, a small painting might do just the trick. If you don't think your homemade items are enough, it might be extra sweet to go out and buy a gift. Keep it small but meaningful. Boyfriends are sometimes difficult to buy worthwhile presents for, but offering a gift in a new love box will make it feel that much more special. For instance, if your boyfriend's really excited for a show, pick up a pair of concert tickets and hide them at the bottom of the box. Write a poem. Paint a picture. Write a cute letter by hand. Draw a portrait of him. The possibilities are endless. Strut your stuff, show off your creative talents. Whatever you're best at, you should capitalize on when filling up your love box. Your boyfriend is sure to be impressed! A love box is meant as a way for both people in the relationship to reflect. One of the best way to do this is to enclose things that will spark memories. If you have any photos you took together early on in the relationship, add them into the box. If you have any souvenirs (like concert tickets) of things you've seen together, put those in too. A great love box isn't a one-off deal; you'll be able to add more things to it over time as you experience more things together. Make sure you have somewhere quiet and intimate you can present the gift to him. Depending on the amount of content you've packed into making it, it could take a while to digest it all, and you don't want any interruptions putting a damper on the experience. Sit next to him, and watch as he looks at the gift. Chances are he'll love it. If you want to go the extra mile, you can gift wrap the love box.

SUMMARY:
Figure out what defines your relationship. Buy a thoughtful gift. Do something creative and put it in the box. Enclose photos and souvenirs. Present the completed love box to your boyfriend.