History Main / ImagineTheAudienceNaked

* Apparently the oldest daughter in BobsBurgers is so awkward and nervous when talking in public because she's always picturing everyone naked, at all times. They then advise her to try imagining people wearing clothes while she speaks, and it instantly boosts her confidence.

* This is definitely NOT TruthInTelevision; if this isn't a DiscreditedTrope yet, it should be. The notion that such a visualization can ease the nerves that come with public speaking is nonsense, as explained [[http://www.examiner.com/presentation-and-communications-skills-in-los-angeles/visualize-your-audience-underwear in this editorial.]] In fact, assuming a speaker is actually ''capable'' of vividly calling forth this image under the stressful circumstances of speech delivery, [[http://blog.jvf.com/2009/01/24/public-speaking-myths-imagining-your-audience-in-their-underwear-makes-you-less-nervous/ this blog post]] does a good job of explaining why [[AdviceBackfire it might backfire]], especially if you happen to be a [[IfYouKnowWhatIMean young male student with attractive women in the audience]]. Most textbooks on the subject give advice that revolves around keeping the speaker focused on the actual content of the speech and successful delivery, not something that would be pointlessly distracting.

->'''Mordecai:''' Why don't you just picture everyone ''naked?''\\
'''Pops:''' ''Naked''?\\
'''Mordecai:''' Yeah!\\
'''Pops:''' Okay... [camera zooms in on [[HalfDressedCartoonAnimal Mordecai and Rigby]]'s crotches] ''[[GettingCrapPastTheRadar I don't like doing this!]]''\\
-- ''RegularShow''

->''Don't be intimidated, Squidward! Try to imagine him in his underwear!...Oh no, '''[[StupidSexyFlanders HE'S HOT!!]]'''''
->--'''Squidward''', ''SpongebobSquarepants''

->'''Mordecai''': Why don't you just picture everyone ''naked?''
->'''Pops''': ''Naked''?
->'''Mordecai''': Yeah!
->'''Pops''': Okay... [camera zooms in on [[HalfDressedCartoonAnimal Mordecai and Rigby]]'s crotches] ''[[GettingCrapPastTheRadar I don't like doing this!]]''
->-- ''RegularShow''

--> '''Tommy:''' All you got to do is picture yourself...naked.
-->'''Lori:''' Tommy, you're supposed to picture the audience naked.

--->'''Jeff:''' I can't turn off the naked people!

-->'''Tim:''' The first time I did ''Tool Time'', I was petrified, so I tried to picture the audience as just one person.
-->'''Jill:''' The first time you did ''Tool Time'', there ''was'' just one person.
-->'''Tim:''' That's not the point. So I tried to visualize that person in his underwear.
-->'''Jill:''' He ''was'' in his underwear.
-->'''Tim:''' He was not!

-->'''[=McBurney=]:''' Some advice? Try an old standard. Picture all those uniforms naked.
-->'''Abby:''' Including you?

-->'''Cordelia''': I, I can't go out there. All those people staring at me and judging me like I'm some kind of... Buffy! What if I mess up?
-->'''Giles''': Cordelia, there, uh, there-there's, uh, uh, an adage, uh, that, uh, if you're feeling nervous then, uh, you should imagine the entire audience are in their underwear.
-->'''Cordelia''': Eww! Even Mrs. Franklin? Uhhh!
-->'''Giles''': Perhaps not.
-->'''Cordelia''': Yeah.

-->'''Dogbert''': Whoa! Cancel that. I just pictured four hundred naked engineers.
-->'''Dilbert''': Too late.

--->'''Squidward:''' [[HoYay Oh no, he's hot!]]

-->'''Ray''':If you start to get nervous, imagine them naked. You start to get really nervous, ''make'' them get naked. Still nervous? ''You'' get naked; you can do whatever you want, you're killing these people!

----

->'''Pops''': Okay... [camera zooms in on [[HalfDressedCartoonAnimal Mordecai and Rigby]]'s crotches.] ''[[GettingCrapPastTheRadar I don't like doing this!]]''

->'''Pops''': Okay... [camera zooms in on [[HalfDressedCartoonAnimal Mordecai and Rigby]]'s crotches.] ''[[GettingCrapPastTheRadar I don't'' '''''like''''' ''doing this!]]''

->'''Mordecai''': Why don't you just imagine the audience naked?

->'''Pops''': Okay...[camera zooms in on [[HalfDressedCartoonAnimal Mordecai and Rigby]]'s crotches.] [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar I don't like this!]]

** Used again in ''TheSimpsons''. Homer is hired by Mr. Burns to help him write an important speech. Due to the fact that at the time he was hired, Homer had been using medical marijuana and found everything funny. Since he was clean now, and no longer found Burns funny, Marge suggests Homer [[ImagineTheAudienceNaked picture Mr. Burns naked]], resulting in him screaming. Trying to make the situation better, she then changes it to picturing him in a funny hat. This idea is worse, causing Homer to curl up in a ball shuddering.

* Every public speaking class and textbook in America invokes this.
** This is definitely NOT TruthInTelevision; if this isn't a DiscreditedTrope yet, it should be. The notion that such a visualization can ease the nerves that come with public speaking is nonsense, as explained [[http://www.examiner.com/presentation-and-communications-skills-in-los-angeles/visualize-your-audience-underwear in this editorial.]] In fact, assuming a speaker is actually ''capable'' of vividly calling forth this image under the stressful circumstances of speech delivery, [[http://blog.jvf.com/2009/01/24/public-speaking-myths-imagining-your-audience-in-their-underwear-makes-you-less-nervous/ this blog post]] does a good job of explaining why [[AdviceBackfire it might backfire]], especially if you happen to be a [[IfYouKnowWhatIMean young male student with attractive women in the audience]]. Most textbooks on the subject give advice that revolves around keeping the speaker focused on the actual content of the speech and successful delivery, not something that would be pointlessly distracting.

->'''Pops''': Okay...[camera zooms in on Mordecai and Rigby's crotches.] [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar I don't like this!]]

->--SpongebobSquarepants

* Kyle tells this to Synclaire in an episode of LivingSingle but since Synclaire will be naked in her performance he adds, "However, in this case, perhaps you should imagine yourself in your underwear" and dissolves into laughter.
* In the fourth season of ''The Shield,'' Glenn Close's character Captain Monica Rawling is nervous delivering a speech to the other police. Vic tells her that normally you're supposed to imagine the audience naked but "with this audience, I wouldn't recommend it."

** On the contrary, if this isn't a DiscreditedTrope yet, it should be. The notion that such a visualization can ease the nerves that come with public speaking is nonsense, as explained [[http://www.examiner.com/presentation-and-communications-skills-in-los-angeles/visualize-your-audience-underwear in this editorial.]] In fact, assuming a speaker is actually ''capable'' of vividly calling forth this image under the stressful circumstances of speech delivery, [[http://blog.jvf.com/2009/01/24/public-speaking-myths-imagining-your-audience-in-their-underwear-makes-you-less-nervous/ this blog post]] does a good job of explaining why [[AdviceBackfire it might backfire]], especially if you happen to be a [[IfYouKnowWhatIMean young male student with attractive women in the audience]]. If any currently-used textbook or public speaking course in the United States gives this advice (which is doubtful), it should be called into question.

** On the contrary, if this isn't a DiscreditedTrope yet, it should be. The notion that such a visualization can ease the nerves that come with public speaking is nonsense, as explained [[http://www.examiner.com/presentation-and-communications-skills-in-los-angeles/visualize-your-audience-underwear in this editorial.]] In fact, assuming a speaker is actually ''capable'' of vividly calling forth this image under the stressful circumstances of speech delivery, [[http://blog.jvf.com/2009/01/24/public-speaking-myths-imagining-your-audience-in-their-underwear-makes-you-less-nervous/ this blog post]] does a good job of explaining why [[AdviceBackfire it might backfire]], especially if you happen to be a [[UnfortunateImplications young male student with attractive women in the audience,]] IfYouKnowWhatIMean. If any currently-used textbook or public speaking course in the United States gives this advice (which is doubtful), it should be called into question.

* Every public speaking class and Textbook in America invokes this.

* In the spelling bee episode of ''NedsDeclassifiedSchoolSurvivalGuide'' Ned gives this advice to Cookie, and at the end of the episode, Ned and many of the other characters actually strip to their underwear to help Cookie win the bee.

->''Don't be intimidated, Squidward! Try to imagine him in his underwear!...Oh no, '''HE'S HOT!!'''''