Performing Under Pressure

Narrator Michael Butler Murray's professorial distance fits this well-researched material, but he still sounds friendly. He conveys the warmth and charm necessary to draw listeners in and keep them focused on the big ideas in this book. With his appealing flinty voice, his phrasing is clear and in tune with the audiobook's entertaining tone shifts. The writers say it's a myth that people perform better under pressure. Pressure is most debilitating, they say, when the task is really important, the outcome uncertain, and the performer feels responsible to others or fears judgment from them. After a fascinating section on the science of pressure, the authors provide some quick fixes to crippling pressure, and some long-term solutions for improving confidence, optimism, tenacity, and endurance. T.W. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine