How To Eliminate Stage Fright (Helpful Guide)

How To Eliminate Stage Fright by Nsisong Udi

The comperè announced, “Let’s welcome Nsisong Udi for his presentation.”

I marched forward and stood in front of the large audience that had gathered for the event, and couldn’t utter a word.

Everything I rehearsed just… *poof!* Vanished.

Just like that.

I stood there looking at the audience, knees wobbly, palms sweaty, and throat dry.

My dread increased by the second and soon my eyes were blinded by tears.

Then I felt it-warm liquid flowing from my midsection to my thighs and down to my feet.

I had urinated on myself…

Many laughed, some jeered, and others felt pity for me.

I felt like dying from the shame.

I had to be helped off the stage by a sympathizer.

This happened many years ago, but the memory is still very fresh.

After that incident and others which I can’t mention, I decided to deal with stage fright and every other form of timidity.

Below are the tools that helped me.

I believe they will help you too.

DEVELOP CONFIDENCE VIA REPETITION

Practice gives room for repetition.

Repetition ensures mastery.

Mastery breeds confidence.

Practice so much that you can do your performance without having to think about it.

Sing it to yourself, sing it in front of your roommate, gather some friends and sing it in front of them.

READ ALSO: How to Write a Love Song

By the time you appear before your audience you would have become so used to the piece thereby reducing your anxiety to the barest minimum.

GET IN FRONT OF PEOPLE OFTEN

Volunteer to do things that will put you in front of people even if it is not directly related to music.

Doing this will help you get used to being in front of an audience.

Do it-even if you are afraid.

DO NOT TRY TO IMPRESS

Trying to impress someone/people will put you under undue stress which will only increase your anxiety.

It will make you attempt to play or sing what you have not mastered, leading to a sloppy performance riddled with mistakes.

Learn to stick to the plan.

Be yourself and never try to impress anyone.

Never!

DEVELOP SKILL

The more skilled you are in your craft, the easier tasks will be to you.

And if something is very simple for you to do, you will not be nervous about doing it.

VISUALIZE YOUR PERFORMANCE

Learn to visualize your performance beforehand.

Sit alone in a quiet place and close your eyes.

READ ALSO: Ultimate Guide to Making It in the Music Industry

Picture yourself giving a great performance.

Visualize the audience enjoying your performance and giving you a standing ovation.

It will put you in the right frame of mind for the performance.

You are what you think about.

Hope you enjoyed How To Eliminate Stage Fright by Nsisong Udi?