Show time is a strange journey when you have a singing performance ahead and fear is creeping in. Your pulse is racing and you're breathing heavily. Your throat is dry and tight. You feel sweaty yet your hands are cold. Your voice trembles and slowly starts to shut down. The spell of stage fright is upon you... Does it feel like Halloween every time you step on stage?
There is something haunting in the idea of sharing your singing with an audience, a very intimate part of yourself comprised of your voice and feelings. That's because people are quick to judge and criticize singers and even make fun when they make mistakes. Some, especially those who DON'T sing, even think that singing is EASY.
Actually, they are ABSOLUTELY correct. But only with the RIGHT approach.
Until then, bad notes are unforgiven. You make yourself vulnerable and trolls jump at the opportunity to devour you. The farce is on you. You feel embarrassed, pale as a ghost. Afraid of your past and potentially future mistakes. Afraid of your own shadow. A shadow built from those scary scarring events.
There may be lots of witches and monsters out there to get you but you can do something about it. Know that performance anxiety is a common ailment among singers and musicians who rely on luck and wishful thinking to succeed.
But don't kid yourself. It's inevitable. Without adequate vocal understanding, you will experience high degrees of concern. Be afraid, very AFRAID!
Not only do you want to do well but you also want to have fun. And you want to enjoy yourself without having to worry about the high notes, killing your throat when you belt, and singing wearing your heart on your sleeve.
Overcoming stage fright is more than stepping on your ego and accepting mistakes. Change your mindset they say. Imagine people in the crowd naked they say. Take a shot of vodka or smoke a joint to relax they say. SERIOUSLY???
There's got to be a better solution to this. Here's what I propose:
Educate yourself about singing. Know your stuff. Prepare well, EXTREMELY well to build the confidence you need to perform AT YOUR BEST. Sing to PERFECTION on COMMAND.
In the spirit of Halloween, you have two choices:
Believe nothing you hear and only one half that you see (Edgar Allan Poe) and keep making a fool of yourself or settling for less.
Or...
Use horrors to help you cope with the real ones (Stephen King).
That's it! Use mistakes as LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES. Don’t be a scaredy cat. Let the skeletons out of your closet and reach out for help.
Address your fears and your skills swill expand exponentially. Your singer power will explode. You will gain accolades from your peers and our audience will crave for more! Sweeeet! What is there not to like?
I am a singing teacher with 20 years of full moons and experience. I can tell you that singing in front of a crowd is the best part of being a singer. Although I have little time these days to perform anymore, I remember those moments fondly.
Turn terror into a treat. Take off your costume and find the vocal freedom within.
The creative expression.
The sense of belonging and contributing.
The exhilaration.
The acknowledgement.
After years of coaching, I still get excited and find magic in the night when I witness my clients' INCREDIBLE TRANSFORMATIONS during singing lessons.
The truth is, stage fright is all just a bunch of hocus pocus when you fully understand your voice.
Whether you dream of singing at karaoke night or in front of an arena crowd. Whether you are a singer-songwriter or post covers on social media. Whether you just want to sing because it makes you feel happy. You don't need tons of reasons to follow your DREAMS and invest in yourself.
Find out the 5 steps my clients take to sing better fast in my FREE online singing lesson masterclass below:
Done with the spooky,
Val