Prep To Play

As many readers and listeners will know, I have a diagnosis for social anxiety. On the surface, it might seem a little odd that a person with anxieties around social interaction would record a podcast and run games for groups of people both online and face-to-face. Why would a socially anxious person become a teacher?

Well, let’s begin with this: when I am in the moment of teaching, gaming, or recording there is no anxiety.

The action, of beginning and working through the process, is how I have learned to manage the anxieties that I experience. That the cure for the fear is to focus on the process and action rather than the outcomes or people’s opinions.

Today, I am playing in a game. Over the past few months, I have evolved a process for preparing myself to play and then actually turning up to do the playing. Maybe it’ll…