The Mind Over Finger Podcast - 209 Performance Superpower: Gratitude

Starting point is 00:00:00 Have you ever walked on stage or into the practice room already feeling defeated or weighed down by what's not going well? If so, this episode is for you. What if I told you there's one simple mindset shift that can turn frustration into possibility and self-criticism into progress? Well, there's your new superpower. Today, I'm talking about one of the best antidotes to performance anxiety and its gratitude. You're listening to the Mind Over Finger podcast, episode number 209. Welcome to the Mind Over Finger podcast, where we dive into the world of mindful music making, peak performance, and crafting a purpose-driven life and career.

Starting point is 00:00:52 I'm your host, violinist, certified performance and life coach for musicians, and your guide to unlocking your full potential, Dr. René-Paul Gaultier. If you've ever walked into the practice room feeling overwhelmed, or if you've ever walked on stage feeling apprehensive or frustrated, well, this episode is for you because I want to talk about a mindset that can be a game changer for you. And that mindset is gratitude. It's a superpower that you can utilize on stage and in the practice room to great results. And the core idea is that gratitude is not just a neat concept or it's not just about feeling good. It's not just fluff. It really is a game changer on how you can approach practicing and performing. And gratitude

Starting point is 00:01:51 is a mindset, a philosophy that can help you be more positive, have a more constructive approach, a more centered approach, more objective approach, and in the practice room, of course, but also on stage and have a mindset that will support you through your work in the practice room. So today we're going to talk about why it works and how it works. So why gratitude helps. And I have two quotes about gratitude that I really love and I have them here. The first one is from Melody Beattie, the author, and she says, gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow. And I really like that because it centers us in the now with an appreciation for the past and a piece about creating a vision for the future.

Starting point is 00:02:53 It really is an open eye approach to being in the present moment and seeing the future. Another quote I like is from Eckhart Tolle, and he says, it is through gratitude for the present moment that the spiritual dimension of life opens up. And it really is the best way to be connected to the present moment. That philosophy of loving what is from Byron Katie. And that mindset that you have in the practice room will shape the results you have. Whatever mindset, whatever thought you bring in the practice room will impact your result. And the same is true with the mindset you bring with you every time you step on stage.

Starting point is 00:03:41 So let's be mindful about this. Gratitude is going to help you feel that the work itself is more fulfilling and it's going to be motivating for you. The whole process, the approach of music making, whether it's in the work or the performance, will feel a lot more fulfilling for you. gratitude shifts the focus from beating yourself up to appreciating what's possible so we go from feeling pressure and the self-criticism that we often have towards ourselves to seeing possibilities but it's not about ignoring what's hard it's not ignoring what's not working it's not closing our

Starting point is 00:04:30 eyes or putting our head in the sand. It's much more to have a clear idea of what's going on because we're seeing everything. We appreciate what is working. We take the time to notice what is working and then we can more clearly approach what is not, things that we would like to change. So I'm sure you can see how that can impact not only the work you do in the practice room, but how you show up on stage as a performer with colleagues, with the audience, right? So gratitude will make this entire process feel more meaningful for you. It's going to feel lighter. You're going to feel more productive and you're going to enjoy the whole thing together. Let's look at some real life example of how it works and how gratitude shows up for us in the practice

Starting point is 00:05:27 room and on stage. It stops the overwhelm, the unnecessary anxiety that we create with ourselves. It reminds us how far we've come. So for example, if you're capable of noticing how far you've come in a specific aspect of your playing, you're able to identify what is working and what is not working. So if you're telling yourself, I'm so grateful, I can really appreciate how more fluid my scales are compared to last month. From that place of appreciation, from that place of celebrating the fact that the scales are more fluid, you're able to identify what you've done that has worked. And from that, you can decide how to continue on that journey of improving your scale, your fluidity, whatever it is that you're working on. But it starts with noticing

Starting point is 00:06:28 what is working from appreciating it and for having gratitude towards yourself as the person who showed up and worked on that skill over and over. So that is really going to help you limit the amount of overwhelm that you feel both as you approach working and as you step on stage. Also, if you're a perfectionist, gratitude is going to help you kick that to the curb. You can celebrate the small victories. Here's an example. You can celebrate that you've nailed that one tricky spot in your piece. And maybe if you've only hit it once, but when you can celebrate the fact that you've

Starting point is 00:07:09 hit it once and you know that you can do it again, then you are more equipped with a positive attitude to make it happen again and again. Gratitude is also going to fuel your motivation because it's going to turn the I have to practice or I have to perform or I have to show up for this rehearsal to I get to. An example, you get to work on a piece that you've wanted to play for a long time. That is a privilege. Oftentimes, it's easy to take all of this for granted and only look at all of the challenges ahead of us. But when we finally get to tackle this one piece that we've been thinking about for a long time, celebrating that fact alone will make us more equipped to learn it and then perform it. Same with, I get to play with this orchestra. I get to play with this

Starting point is 00:08:06 chamber and ensemble I get to perform for this series. No matter what it is that you do, there is going to be some obligations. You're going to have to do certain things. No matter what it is that you want, there are things you're going to have to do. When you realize that you have to do these things because this gets you where you want to be, you realize that you actually get to do these things and when you are in a situation where you have the ability to do these things when you realize that you get to do these things and you can appreciate that you can be grateful for these opportunities then you can really start to create some magic with this so as you step in the practice room with this attitude though I get

Starting point is 00:08:58 I get to practice this today. I get to refine this passage. I get to work with these colleagues. I get to step on that stage. I get to play for these people. Imagine the way that you're going to play, how different it's going to be than if you let any other type of inner dialogue go on in your mind. gratitude also builds patience because it grounds you in the present moment and it helps you appreciate the entire process everything that goes into refining your skill learning any piece of repertoire stepping on stage and performing it you see this as the part of a whole the part of journey. And when we can appreciate the entire process, we don't rush to the results. And you know how it is sometimes. It might take a little bit longer than we want to either fully develop

Starting point is 00:10:00 a skill or be able to play a specific piece. But when we approach it with gratitude, we can appreciate the time, that time that we get to dedicate to the fundamentals, to break down the basics, because that's what is going to make the artistry possible. So that's what gratitude does for you, is it grounds you in that present moment, makes you appreciate the entire process, makes you patient, and allows you to cover all of the bases and attend to all of the different aspects that are going to refine your craft and allow you to shine as you perform. Another thing that gratitude does for you is that it will strengthen your resilience because mistakes are going to feel like learning moments, not failures. And this is something I

Starting point is 00:10:57 hear so much from clients and students. So for example, let's say you struggle with a passage, either in practice or performance. You're going to get data from this. You're going to get clarity from what you executed. When you're able to pause and have an appreciation for the information, for this clarity that you're getting, knowing that you can tend to that tomorrow or later today, you can fix that, you can work on it. And this is what allows you to get from where you are today to tomorrow, to next month, to next year. From that place of being grounded in gratitude, you really build resilience in addition to building your skills. So it allows you to see mistakes, stumbling blocks as learning moments, not failures. And finally, through all of this,

Starting point is 00:11:52 gratitude builds your self-confidence as you become more grounded as you become more resilient as you become more patient more motivated more present all of the things that you do are going to start to show different results but also as a person you're going to feel grounded you're going to feel more aligned And this is where self-confidence comes from. It's that knowledge that we can tackle everything. Self-confidence comes from knowing that we can face stumbling blocks, that we can find solutions, that we can tackle anything and create magic out of it.

Starting point is 00:12:39 And all of this stems out of gratitude, of an appreciation for what is, an ability to notice what is working and also by celebrating all of the victories big and small because they are part of the entire process. So here's what I want you to try. This is my actionable tip for you. Before your next practice session or your next performance, here's what I want you to do. Three things. I want you to take one minute and I promise you it won't take you more than that. take one minute to write down three things you're grateful for. It could be anything. It could be your family. It could be coffee. It could be your loved ones. But you could also make it centered towards music. So it could be the gratitude you have towards the progress you've made,

Starting point is 00:13:34 the gratitude you have to play this beautiful instrument, to be with these colleagues, the gratitude to play that beautiful repertoire, whatever comes to your mind. So take one minute to write three things you're grateful for. Second, I want you to take one more minute to identify three things that improved over your last session, over the last week, over the last month. I want you to celebrate the successes of the things that you have accomplished, of the growth that you've experienced. So I want you to take one minute to identify three things that have improved, ways that

Starting point is 00:14:18 you've come along over a specific period of time of your choosing. And then finally, I want you to take those things in and let that positive energy inspire you for the performance or guide your next practice session. From this place of having noticed three things you're grateful for, three things that you're celebrating yourself for, notice the feelings that come from that, all of the proud elements, all of the pride that you can get out of it, and let that inspire your performance or guide your choices in that practice session. so remember gratitude roots you in the present moment it helps you be more objective it's going to give you an open disposition to the work ahead it's going to allow you to be in the present moment facing what you're facing with an open mind and ability to solve problems and the resilience to keep going it's going to give you more results better results it's going to make

Starting point is 00:15:32 you feel more confident and it's going to create a positive virtuous cycle for you. And that works in any areas of your life. So throughout all of this, I think you will also find that gratitude is going to make practice, performing, working with your colleagues, everything about your music making experience more enjoyable. So give it a try. Let me know how it works. And don't forget, this is your actionable tip. Take one minute to write down three things that you're grateful for. Take another minute and write down three things that have improved, three things you're celebrating about yourself and your playing, and then use that to inspire your performance or guide your actions in your next practice session. And if you feel like you want some support,

Starting point is 00:16:24 if you feel like you're looking to get better results and you want some answers and you want strategies to build that success mindset that you've been wanting to experience, well, go to mindoverfinger.com slash coaching, book a call, let's talk and let's see how we can make that happen for you. So use gratitude as a superpower this week on stage, in the practice room, in your life in general, and let me know how it goes. I hope you have a wonderful week. Until next time, I send you all the best and I say à bientôt. and there you have it thank you so much for joining me today if you enjoyed this episode please share it with friends and fellow musicians grab a screenshot share it on social media and

Starting point is 00:17:28 tag me i'm mind over finger on all platforms and i would love to hear what your favorite takeaways were. Don't forget to follow the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. And if you're enjoying and learning from the show, leaving a five-star review is a wonderful way to support us. You can also watch the Mind Over Finger podcast on YouTube. And if you have questions, comments about the podcast, or ideas for guests and topics, drop them in the comments section there on YouTube. I do read all of them. For more tools, tips, and inspiration, click the link in the show notes to subscribe to my newsletter and get everything delivered straight to your inbox. Finally, if you're looking for more resources or personal support to enhance your playing,

Starting point is 00:18:18 advance your career, or create a more fulfilling and purposeful life, head over to mindoverfinger.com. You're going to find a substantial library of free downloads, links to my online courses, and information on how to work with me, whether in a group setting inside my amazing Music Mastery Experience program, or through private one-on-one coaching. I'm here for you. Until next time, much love going your way, and à bientôt! Thank you.

The Mind Over Finger Podcast - 209 Performance Superpower: Gratitude

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