Performance Anxiety for Singers

Last week we talked about what performance anxiety actually is — the neuroscience, the evolutionary wiring, and why nothing has gone wrong if you’re nervous. This week we get practical. If you’ve ever stood backstage running worst-case scenarios, lost access to your breath right when you needed it most, or heard that inner voice tell you you’re not ready— this episode is for you. We go tool by tool through eight specific things that actually help, why they work at the physiological level, and how to build a pre-performance plan that your nervous system can actually use when the nerves hit. These are not generic relaxation tips. They’re real tools drawn from years of performing, coaching, and learning and they’re offered here as a starting point for building a toolkit that is genuinely personal to you. In this episode, you’ll learn: * Why stopping fighting your anxiety is the foundation every other tool rests on * How to recognize the three inner voices of performance anxiety * Why “name it to tame it” is more than a catchy phrase * How to talk directly to the feeling — and why calling the voices by name changes your relationship with them * How box breathing works, why it can backfire when your heart rate is already elevated, and how to adapt it to meet your nervous system where it actually is * The physical breath technique — what it is, why it works, and why it has a specific bonus for singers * Why your pre-performance plan needs to be built before the anxiety arrives — and what to actually put in it * How acting tools and character work can help you with your performance anxiety ✨ Coming next: Season 2 of the YPP Podcast will start summer 2026 📣 Resources & Mentions * Episode 15: Performance Anxiety for Singers, Part 1: Nothing Has Gone Wrong * Episode 3: The Dreaded “F” Word (Feelings) — the backpack concept * Arneson, Christopher. “Performance Anxiety: A Twenty-First Century Perspective.” Journal of Singing 66, no. 5 (May/June 2010): 537–546. * Ruiz, Don Miguel. The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom. San Rafael, CA: Amber-Allen Publishing, 1997. * Siegel, Daniel J. Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation. New York: Bantam Books, 2010. * Michelle Grosser — High Capacity Podcast (formerly Calm Mom) — highcapacitypodcast.com (http://highcapacitypodcast.com) 🔔 Subscribe & Review If this episode gave you something concrete to bring into your next performance, please share it with a singer who needs it. And if you’re enjoying the podcast, leaving a rating and review helps more singers find this work. 📲 Connect with Sarah * Instagram: @Your_Passaggi_Professor * Newsletter: sarah-neely.kit.com/d7d3234f95 (http://sarah-neely.kit.com/d7d3234f95) 🎵 Music Credit “Carpe Diem” by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com (http://incompetech.com) ) Licensed under Creative Commons: Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit yourpassaggiprofessor.substack.com (https://yourpassaggiprofessor.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1)