Allison Holker looks back at beating her fears

Allison Holker is a professional dancer and actor. Both fields required to be confident in front of the people.

However, the 37-year-old recalled she was so afraid of facing them that she would often cry after performing.

Appearing on the Between Us podcast, the actress said, “If I had to give a presentation or a class report in front of everyone, I would skip those days of school.”

She continued, “I got forced into [speaking up]. I did So You Think You Can Dance, and I was on TV. That was still, kind of, a situation where there were just cameras in front of us.”

Allison noted, “It didn’t feel like too much talking, but it would make me really, really nervous, and then I got forced to do a live tour.”

“We were the hosts of the tour, so I was performing [and] dancing in front of 10,000 people, but we also had to host the event. I would cry after the show.”

“[I would say,] ‘Oh, my gosh. I don’t know how to do this. I’m scared to hold the mic,’” the TV host remembered.

“I’d literally be shaking backstage, but I just got forced to do it over and over again. It’s, like, a forced skill set.”

But after continued practice, Allison said she was able to beat her fears.

“Then, as I got more comfortable with it, I started to learn it and learn that I actually enjoy talking with people.”

She continued, “[I liked it better] when I made it more about growing, learning and connecting with the people in front of me instead of just, like, ‘I have to speak in front of everyone.’”

“It changed everything. But, now I’ve learned that having more skills in different avenues really helps with your future because you can use all of it in any industry,” she concluded.