Performance anxiety, (which is also known as stage fright), is something that affects most new musicians. And the reason why is obvious. If they mess up on their songs, they put their career in jeopardy and that would not help with improving conversion rates on their record sales. They may also get ridiculed by the press for their bad performance.

However, most musicians fail to realize that they got where they were because of their talent. So, it’s unlikely that lack of skills would result in a negative performance. Ultimately, if they do have a less than stellar performance it’s because they didn’t learn how to manage their stage fright.

With that being said, what’s the magic formula for learning how to control stage fright? First, you need to do the obvious– practice your music in front of family and friends. The larger your audience is, the better off things will be. You may even want to encourage your guests to invite other people you may not know. This will help simulate your real performance, where most of your audience will be strangers.

Next, you need to visit your doctor to see if you need a beta blocker to address uncontrollable physiological symptoms. What is a beta blocker? They are a special type of prescription drug that prevents palpitations, tremors and other symptoms that occur during a panic attack. And for some musicians, beta-blockers are a must-have, no matter how often they practice.

Try not to worry about your appearance. The way you look is fine, don’t worry about it. Going on an extreem diet, or having plastic surgery done or anything like may be ab over reastion to something that isn’t there. Remember people are there to listen to you, not look at you.

Finally, you need to get in touch with your spiritual side. If you believe in prayer, talk to God every night before your performance. You can also try to initiate a lucid dream, (if this is allowed in your religion). To do this, spend most of your time daydreaming about your performance– even as you are going to bed. Eventually, this daydreaming will seep into your subconscious, which will initiate a lucid dream. During your lucid dream, you will become fully conscious, even though your physical body is still sleeping. Take advantage of this awareness and tell your mind you want to perform on stage RIGHT NOW. Your subconscious mind will form an imaginary stage in just seconds. From there, you can play just as you would in real life. Do this enough times and any conscious fears you have will be eliminated, since you already lived the experience in your dreams.