Not the messages that ping into your phone, nor the ones people leave on your voicemail, but….
…the messages you send to yourself.
You’re about to perform at the Showcase. Or you’ve turned up at a particular venue to take your music exam. Or you’ve got guests in your house, and they’re all urging you to “Play something! Go on, we’d love to hear you play!”
Stressful, right?
And, immediately, your brain responds to the stress. Your nervous system is alerted, and it begins sending you messages. Sometimes these messages are called self-talk. There are two kinds of self-talk:
- Negative self-talk, known as the Inner Critic. Examples of Inner Critic messages: “I’m going to mess up”; “I can’t do this”; “It’ll go wrong, I know it will”; “I’m too nervous to play well”; “This situation feels so threatening”.
- Positive self-talk, known as Affirmations. Examples of Affirmations: “You’ve got this”; “You can do it”; “It doesn’t matter what happens, it’ll be ok”; “You are good at music and you have prepared well for this”; “This situation is an opportunity for you”.
Here’s how self-talk influences performance:
Cognitive Priming: Things you say internally tune your focus and emotional tone. If you say “I’m confident,” your brain prepares you accordingly; if you say “I’m a mess,” it primes stress circuits .
Brain-level changes: Positive self-talk strengthens connections in motivation and focus networks, while negativity engages worry regions.
Short-term negative self-talk can sometimes boost attention – like a quick “don’t mess up” – but over time it damages morale and increases anxiety.
So how can you change the message from the Inner Critic to an Affirmation?
First of all, did you notice a major difference between the examples of each type of self-talk? The Inner Critic is all about “me”. It said “I can’t do this”. It said “I’m going to mess up”. But the Affirmations were all about “you”. They said “You’ve got this”, and “You have prepared well.” You can also use your name: “Ludwig is a great musician and he really knows his stuff.” Assuming your name is Ludwig, of course! It may seem a trivial point, but it makes a huge difference. When you use “you”, it’s as if someone else is giving you the confidence you need. When you use your name, it’s as if you’re overhearing people talking about you, and guess what? They think you’re great! These ideas are a genuine boost to our self-esteem, our confidence and our performance, reducing anxiety and setting us up for success.
A second idea is to give your Inner Critic a name, even if it’s just “Critic”. Or “Saboteur”. Or “Stupid Perfectionist.” Then, when it starts whispering in your ear, you can slap it down and say “Go away, Critic. I’m not interested in you.” Or with more punchy language, if you prefer!
Thirdly, turn negative statements on their head:
- “I’m nervous” becomes “I’m excited”.
- “I’m worried I’ll fail” becomes “I’m looking forward to success”.
- “I know I’ll make mistakes” becomes “I know I can cover up any mistakes and keep my performance going”.
- “This situation is threatening and making me scared” becomes “This is a tremendous opportunity!”
Finally, recognise that self-talk is a powerful tool for managing performance anxiety. You are not trying to silence it, but to shape it and change the negative Inner Critic into positive Affirmations.
Our Showcases are in October, still four months away. Some of you will have other performances between now and then: exams, school concerts, shows, or just playing to family and friends. All of these are opportunities to practise positive self-talk. Yes, it needs practice! It’s like a muscle: if you train it and work it hard, it will grow and become strong. If you never challenge it, don’t be surprised if it becomes weak and feeble. So it is with self-talk. Practise it, even just before your next lesson or your next practice session. Find out what works for you by trying different ideas. Performance nerves can be conquered.
Some people say you should just “believe in yourself”. I don’t think this is helpful. The advice I’m giving you works because you’re not, suddenly, believing something you didn’t believe before – instead, you are making a statement of fact.
The difference between belief and fact is vast. Let’s exploit it, and get rid of performance anxiety!
Humoresque = a whimsical or fanciful piece of music. Be whimsical, be fanciful, but play in time!
(Humoresque Number 10)