Haveo · Social anxiety at work
Speaking up in meetings
Say something in the first five minutes, however small. The longer you go without speaking, the higher the bar gets in your own head — by minute thirty it has to be brilliant. A question or an agreement early keeps the bar where it started.
Why the bar rises
Speak at minute two and it is just talking. Speak at minute forty, having been silent, and it feels like an announcement that needs to justify the wait.
Nobody else is tracking your silence. You are the only person in the room keeping that score, and it is the score that makes it harder.
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The cheap first contribution
"Can I check I have understood — do you mean X?" Asking a clarifying question is contributing, and it is the lowest-risk thing to say in any meeting.
Agreeing out loud also counts: "That matches what we saw last month." You do not have to introduce anything new.
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Write it down first
Write the sentence in your notes before saying it. It stops the mid-sentence collapse and it means the point survives if the moment passes.
It also means you can send it afterwards if you never got in.
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When someone says your point
Say so, out loud. "That is what I was going to say, and the bit I would add is..." You keep the credit and it is a completely normal thing to say.
Staying silent because it has been said is how people end up feeling invisible in meetings they contributed to.
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Ask for the agenda
The single highest-value request: knowing what is coming lets you prepare one sentence. Ask the organizer once and it usually becomes standard.
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Rehearse it before you walk in.
Haveo builds your intro, lets you practice out loud with an AI coach, and keeps your notes one tap away in the room. Free on iPhone and iPad.
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