How I beat stage fright
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0:01 - 0:02Joe Kowan: I have stage fright.
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0:02 - 0:04I've always had stage fright,
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0:04 - 0:05and not just a little bit,
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0:05 - 0:07it's a big bit.
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0:07 - 0:10And it didn't even matter until I was 27.
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0:10 - 0:13That's when I started writing songs, and even then
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0:13 - 0:14I only played them for myself.
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0:14 - 0:18Just knowing my roommates were in the
same house made me uncomfortable. -
0:18 - 0:21But after a couple of years,
just writing songs wasn't enough. -
0:21 - 0:24I had all these stories and ideas,
and I wanted to share them with people, -
0:24 - 0:27but physiologically, I couldn't do it.
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0:27 - 0:30I had this irrational fear.
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0:30 - 0:32But the more I wrote, and the more I practiced,
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0:32 - 0:33the more I wanted to perform.
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0:33 - 0:36So on the week of my 30th birthday,
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0:36 - 0:39I decided I was going to go to this local open mic,
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0:39 - 0:40and put this fear behind me.
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0:40 - 0:43Well, when I got there, it was packed.
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0:43 - 0:45There were like 20 people there.
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0:45 - 0:47(Laughter)
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0:47 - 0:50And they all looked angry.
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0:50 - 0:53But I took a deep breath, and I signed up to play,
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0:53 - 0:55and I felt pretty good.
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0:55 - 0:58Pretty good, until about 10 minutes before my turn,
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0:58 - 1:03when my whole body rebelled, and
this wave of anxiety just washed over me. -
1:03 - 1:07Now, when you experience fear,
your sympathetic nervous system kicks in. -
1:07 - 1:10So you have a rush of adrenaline,
your heart rate increases, -
1:10 - 1:11your breathing gets faster.
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1:11 - 1:17Next your non-essential systems start
to shut down, like digestion. (Laughter) -
1:17 - 1:21So your mouth gets dry, and blood is routed
away from your extremities, -
1:21 - 1:23so your fingers don't work anymore.
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1:23 - 1:26Your pupils dilate, your muscles contract,
your Spidey sense tingles, -
1:26 - 1:31basically your whole body is trigger-happy.
(Laughter) -
1:31 - 1:36That condition is not conducive
to performing folk music. -
1:36 - 1:38(Laughter)
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1:38 - 1:40I mean, your nervous system is an idiot.
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1:40 - 1:44Really? Two hundred thousand years of human evolution, and it still can't tell the difference
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1:44 - 1:47between a saber tooth tiger and 20 folksingers
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1:47 - 1:49on a Tuesday night open mic?
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1:49 - 1:50(Laughter)
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1:50 - 1:54I have never been more terrified -- until now.
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1:54 - 2:00(Laughter and cheers)
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2:03 - 2:06So then it was my turn,
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2:06 - 2:09and somehow, I get myself onto
the stage, I start my song, -
2:09 - 2:11I open my mouth to sing the first line,
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2:11 - 2:13and this completely horrible vibrato --
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2:13 - 2:16you know, when your voice wavers --
comes streaming out. -
2:16 - 2:19And this is not the good kind of vibrato,
like an opera singer has, -
2:19 - 2:21this is my whole body just convulsing with fear.
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2:21 - 2:23I mean, it's a nightmare.
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2:23 - 2:25I'm embarrassed, the audience
is clearly uncomfortable, -
2:25 - 2:28they're focused on my discomfort.
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2:28 - 2:31It was so bad.
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2:31 - 2:35But that was my first real experience
as a solo singer-songwriter. -
2:35 - 2:38And something good did happen --
I had the tiniest little glimpse -
2:38 - 2:41of that audience connection that I was hoping for.
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2:41 - 2:45And I wanted more. But I knew
I had to get past this nervousness. -
2:45 - 2:48That night I promised myself:
I would go back every week -
2:48 - 2:50until I wasn't nervous anymore.
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2:50 - 2:53And I did. I went back every single week,
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2:53 - 2:57and sure enough, week after week,
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2:57 - 3:01it didn't get any better. The same
thing happened every week. (Laughter) -
3:01 - 3:03I couldn't shake it.
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3:03 - 3:05And that's when I had an epiphany.
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3:05 - 3:11And I remember it really well, because I
don't have a lot of epiphanies. (Laughter) -
3:11 - 3:14All I had to do was write a song
that exploits my nervousness. -
3:14 - 3:16That only seems authentic when I have stage fright,
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3:16 - 3:18and the more nervous I was,
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3:18 - 3:20the better the song would be. Easy.
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3:20 - 3:25So I started writing a song about having stage fright.
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3:25 - 3:27First, fessing up to the problem,
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3:27 - 3:29the physical manifestations, how I would feel,
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3:29 - 3:30how the listener might feel.
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3:30 - 3:33And then accounting for things like my shaky voice,
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3:33 - 3:36and I knew I would be singing about a
half-octave higher than normal, -
3:36 - 3:38because I was nervous.
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3:38 - 3:41By having a song that explained
what was happening to me, -
3:41 - 3:43while it was happening,
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3:43 - 3:44that gave the audience permission to think about it.
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3:44 - 3:47They didn't have to feel bad
for me because I was nervous, -
3:47 - 3:49they could experience that with me,
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3:49 - 3:54and we were all one big happy, nervous,
uncomfortable family. (Laughter) -
3:54 - 3:59By thinking about my audience,
by embracing and exploiting my problem, -
3:59 - 4:02I was able to take something
that was blocking my progress, -
4:02 - 4:06and turn it into something that
was essential for my success. -
4:06 - 4:09And having the stage fright song let
me get past that biggest issue -
4:09 - 4:11right in the beginning of a performance.
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4:11 - 4:12And then I could move on,
and play the rest of my songs -
4:12 - 4:15with just a little bit more ease.
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4:15 - 4:22And eventually, over time, I didn't
have to play the stage fright song at all. -
4:22 - 4:27Except for when I was really
nervous, like now. (Laughter) -
4:29 - 4:32Would it be okay if I played the
stage fright song for you? -
4:32 - 4:37(Applause)
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4:41 - 4:44Can I have a sip of water?
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4:44 - 4:48(Music)
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4:48 - 4:51Thank you.
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4:55 - 4:58♫ I'm not joking, you know, ♫
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4:58 - 5:04♫ this stage fright is real. ♫
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5:04 - 5:07♫ And if I'm up here trembling and singing, ♫
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5:07 - 5:12♫ well, you'll know how I feel. ♫
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5:12 - 5:15♫ And the mistake I'd be making, ♫
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5:15 - 5:19♫ the tremolo caused by my whole body shaking. ♫
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5:19 - 5:23♫ As you sit there feeling embarrassed for me, ♫
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5:23 - 5:26♫ well, you don't have to be. ♫
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5:26 - 5:28♫ Well, maybe just a little bit. ♫
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5:28 - 5:30(Laughter)
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5:30 - 5:38♫ And maybe I'll try to imagine
you all without clothes. ♫ -
5:38 - 5:46♫ But singing in front of all naked strangers
scares me more than anyone knows. ♫ -
5:46 - 5:50♫ Not to discuss this at length, ♫
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5:50 - 5:55♫ but my body image was never my strength. ♫
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5:55 - 5:58♫ So frankly, I wish that you all would get dressed, ♫
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5:58 - 6:03♫ I mean, you're not even really naked. ♫
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6:03 - 6:07♫ And I'm the one with the problem. ♫
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6:07 - 6:14♫ And you tell me, don't worry
so much, you'll be great. ♫ -
6:14 - 6:17♫ But I'm the one living with me ♫
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6:17 - 6:19♫ and I know how I get. ♫
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6:19 - 6:23♫ Your advice is gentle but late. ♫
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6:23 - 6:27♫ If not just a bit patronizing. ♫
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6:27 - 6:31♫ And that sarcastic tone doesn't
help me when I sing. ♫ -
6:31 - 6:35♫ But we shouldn't talk about
these things right now, ♫ -
6:35 - 6:42♫ really, I'm up on stage, and
you're in the crowd. Hi. ♫ -
6:42 - 6:51♫ And I'm not making fun of
unnurtured, irrrational fear, ♫ -
6:51 - 6:54♫ and if I wasn't ready to face this, ♫
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6:54 - 6:59♫ I sure as hell wouldn't be here. ♫
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6:59 - 7:04♫ But if I belt one note out clearly, ♫
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7:04 - 7:08♫ you'll know I'm recovering slowly but surely. ♫
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7:08 - 7:12♫ And maybe next week, I'll set my guitar ringin' ♫
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7:12 - 7:17♫ my voice clear as water, and everyone singin'. ♫
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7:17 - 7:20♫ But probably I'll just get up and start groovin', ♫
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7:20 - 7:24♫ my vocal cords movin', ♫
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7:24 - 7:32♫ at speeds slightly faster than sound. ♫
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7:36 - 7:42(Applause)
- Title:
- How I beat stage fright
- Speaker:
- Joe Kowan
- Description:
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Humanity's fine-tuned sense of fear served us well as a young species, giving us laser focus to avoid being eaten by competing beasts. But it's less wonderful when that same visceral, body-hijacking sense of fear kicks in in front of 20 folk-music fans at a Tuesday night open-mic. Palms sweat, hands shake, vision blurs, and the brain says RUN: it's stage fright. In this charming, tuneful little talk, Joe Kowan talks about how he conquered it.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDTalks
- Duration:
- 08:03
Morton Bast edited English subtitles for How I beat stage fright | ||
Morton Bast edited English subtitles for How I beat stage fright | ||
Morton Bast approved English subtitles for How I beat stage fright | ||
Morton Bast edited English subtitles for How I beat stage fright | ||
Morton Bast edited English subtitles for How I beat stage fright | ||
Madeleine Aronson accepted English subtitles for How I beat stage fright | ||
Madeleine Aronson edited English subtitles for How I beat stage fright | ||
tom carter edited English subtitles for How I beat stage fright |