Remember that moment right before hitting “Start Recording” for your first lecture? That flutter in your stomach, the sudden awareness of every “um” and “uh,” the nagging thought that you should have worn something different?  Congratulations! You’ve just experienced what musicians call performance anxiety. And you’re not alone.

Teaching is Performance (Whether We Like It or Not) 

Every time we step into a classroom, physical or virtual, we’re engaging in an act of vulnerability. We’re putting ourselves “out there,” exposed to judgment, questions we might not anticipate, and the ever-present possibility of technical difficulties that turn us into frozen screens or muted mysteries.  

Yet unlike performers who spend years learning to manage stage fright, most faculty receive little to no training in handling the emotional and psychological demands of being “on.” We’re expected to be subject matter experts, sure, but nobody warned us about the emotional labor of performing our expertise day after day, especially when our audience might be checking email behind their turned-off cameras.  

As both a trained vocalist and educator, I’ve battled performance anxiety in concert halls and lecture halls alike. The strategies that got me through high-pressure recitals? Turns out they work just as well for teaching organic chemistry or leading a graduate seminar. 

What Musicians Know That You Should Too

Here’s what decades of performance psychology research has taught us: performance anxiety isn’t a character flaw, it’s a physiological response that can be managed, channeled, and even leveraged for better performance (Kenny, 2011; Papageorgi et al., 2013). Musicians don’t just practice scales, they also practice being on stage. They develop pre-performance rituals, use visualization techniques, and treat mental preparation as seriously as technical mastery. They know that excellence isn’t about eliminating nervousness, it’s about performing well despite it.  

Research in music education shows that performers who develop systematic coping strategies experience less debilitating anxiety and more “optimal anxiety,” the kind that actually enhances performance (Osborne & Franklin, 2002). These aren’t mystical practices; they’re evidence-based techniques that translate directly to teaching.  

Recognizing Faculty Stage Fright

Let’s be honest about what this looks like in academic settings: 

The Zoom Freeze. That moment of panic before unmuting yourself in a faculty meeting, suddenly hyperaware of your home office background and whether your cat will choose this moment to knock over your coffee. 

The Recording Trap. Spending three hours recording a 20-minute lecture because you keep starting over every time you stumble over a word. (Spoiler: your students don’t expect perfection – they expect authenticity.) 

The Imposter Soundtrack. The voice in your head questioning whether you really know enough to teach this course, especially when a student asks a question that catches you off-guard. 

The Always-On Exhaustion. The unique burnout that comes from feeling like you’re performing all day without any intermission, especially in online environments where every interaction feels heightened. 

Sound familiar? These aren’t just inconveniences; they are real psychological challenges that impact our well-being and effectiveness. 

Borrowing from the Performer’s Toolkit

Here’s where my dual life as performer and professor pays dividends. The techniques that help musicians deliver under pressure can transform your teaching experience: 

Create Your Pre-Class Ritual

Musicians don’t just walk on stage cold. They have warmups, and so should you. Before teaching, try: 

• Three deep breaths with longer exhales than inhales (this activates your parasympathetic nervous system) 
• A 30-second body scan to release physical tension 
• A simple affirmation: “I know this material. I’m here to share, not to impress.” 

Use Mental Rehearsal

Visualization isn’t just for athletes. Spend two minutes before class imagining yourself teaching smoothly, see yourself handling tough questions with grace, technology working perfectly, students engaged and responsive. Your brain doesn’t fully distinguish between imagined and real experiences, so this mental practice actually prepares you for success (Driskell et al., 1994). 

Reframe Your Audience

Musicians perform with their audience, not for them. Your students aren’t judges waiting to catch your mistakes—they’re collaborators in the learning process. When you frame teaching as a conversation rather than a performance, the pressure shifts. 

Build in Recovery

Performers know they can’t sustain peak energy indefinitely. Schedule buffer time between classes. Take a real lunch break. Give yourself permission to have “B+ days” when your A-game feels out of reach. 

Designing Courses with Psychological Safety (Yours and Theirs)

When we acknowledge our own performance anxiety, we can design courses that reduce unnecessary pressure for everyone: 

Structure Creates Freedom: Predictable course rhythms reduce anxiety. When you know what’s coming, you can prepare mentally and emotionally. 

Record Videos in Chunks: Instead of marathon recording sessions, create shorter chapters with a Table of Contents. It’s easier to maintain energy and authenticity in 7-minute segments than 50-minute lectures. 

Build in Flexibility: Give yourself (and students) grace. Have a backup plan for technical difficulties. It’s not unprofessional – it’s realistic. 

Practice Self-Compassion Checkpoints: After each class or recording session, ask “What went well?” before jumping to critique. This isn’t toxic positivity – it’s strategic emotional regulation. 

The Bottom Line: You’re Already a Performer

Here’s what I want you to remember: acknowledging performance anxiety doesn’t make you weak – it makes you human. The most accomplished musicians in the world still get nervous before concerts. The difference? They’ve learned to work with their anxiety rather than against it, understanding that some arousal actually enhances performance, what researchers call the Yerkes-Dodson law, where moderate stress creates an optimal zone for peak performance (Yerkes & Dodson, 1908; Teigen, 1994). 

Teaching, especially in our hybrid and online contexts, is absolutely a performance art. But unlike solo performers, we have the advantage of performing with a purpose beyond ourselves, facilitating learning, inspiring curiosity, creating transformation. So, before your next class, take that deep breath. Do your warmup. Remember that the goal isn’t perfection, the main point is connection. You don’t need to be flawless; you need to be prepared, present, and authentic – just what we would expect from students. 

As the ancient Greek poet Archilochus wrote, “We don’t rise to the level of our expectations; we fall to the level of our training.” Consider this your invitation to train not just your mind, but your whole self for the performance of teaching. 

What’s your pre-teaching ritual? How do you manage the performance aspect of education? I’d love to hear your strategies—drop them in the comments or connect with me to continue the conversation. 

Quick Try: A 2-Minute Pre-Teaching Warm-Up 

1. Ground yourself (30 seconds): Feel your feet on the floor, name three things you can see 
2. Breathe with intention (30 seconds): Inhale for 4, hold for 4, exhale for 4 (6, 8, 12, 18, etc.). 
3. Set your intention (30 seconds): Complete this sentence: “Today I want my students to…” 
4. Power pose (30 seconds): Stand tall, hands-on hips or arms raised – research shows this actually boosts confidence (Carney et al., 2010) 

References

Carney, D. R., Cuddy, A. J., & Yap, A. J. (2010). Power posing: Brief nonverbal displays affect neuroendocrine levels and risk tolerance. Psychological Science, 21(10), 1363-1368.

Driskell, J. E., Copper, C., & Moran, A. (1994). Does mental practice enhance performance? Journal of Applied Psychology, 79(4), 481-492.

Kenny, D. (2011). The psychology of music performance anxiety. Oxford University Press.

Osborne, M. S., & Franklin, J. (2002). Cognitive processes in music performance anxiety. Australian Journal of Psychology, 54(2), 86-93.

Papageorgi, I., Hallam, S., & Welch, G. F. (2013). A conceptual framework for understanding musical performance anxiety. Research Studies in Music Education, 28(1), 83-107.

Teigen, K. H. (1994). Yerkes-Dodson: A law for all seasons. Theory & Psychology, 4(4), 525-547.

Yerkes, R. M., & Dodson, J. D. (1908). The relation of strength of stimulus to rapidity of habit-formation. Journal of Comparative Neurology and Psychology, 18(5), 459-482.