Are you a little overwhelmed by all of the different year-in-review and goal-setting methods you're getting in your inbox?

If you're confused by the variety and range of approaches out there and just want a bare-bones minimalist option to ensure that you actually do it, a 2006 study of four different goal-setting strategies provides some simple, clear guidelines.

Get all the nerdy details here:
4 Approaches to Goal Setting (And Which Works Best)

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

Have you ever wondered if there's an advantage to being an extrovert or introvert when it comes to performing?

Well, I'm afraid you're going to have to keep wondering, because I couldn't find a definitive answer one way or the other from the existing research.

But I did find an interesting study of figure skaters, which looked at the impact of *shyness* on performance. It's important to note that being introverted and being shy are NOT the same thing. But could being shy have some effect on how well we're able to perform?

Get all the nerdy details here:
Do Extroverts Make Better Performers Than Introverts?

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

“See one, do one, teach one” is a model for learning that’s been utilized in medicine for many generations.

It’s quite a helpful model, but if you’ve ever tried your hand at teaching, you know how incredibly challenging that can be. Often, teaching a skill can be even more difficult that doing the skill itself!

Like, how can we teach a student to be more expressive? How can we ensure each student has a positive emotional connection with the music at each lesson - even if just for a moment? How can we turn students into active/inquisitive learners rather than passive/compliant learners?

Laurie Scott (University of Texas at Austin) and Cornelia Watkins (Northwestern University) co-authored From the Stage to the Studio: How Fine Musicians Become Great Teachers, which is written for university studio faculty, music pedagogy teachers, college music majors, and performing musicians, who are looking to be more effective in their teaching.

In this month’s chat, we’ll learn more about the synergistic relationship between playing and teaching, the problems of dividing music students into “pedagogy” and “performance” majors, how we can teach musical expression very early on in a student’s development, how we can all become better teachers using a technique that won’t come as a surprise but most of us will probably try to avoid, how to help your students become better noticers, and much more.

Get all the nerdy details here:
Laurie Scott & Cornelia Watkins: On Going From the Stage to the Studio

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

Have you ever wondered how much the visual aspect of a performance matters to the listener?

Like, if you were going to enter two competitions, where one required submitting an audio recording and the other required a video recording, which one would you have a better chance of being accepted to? Or would it make any difference at all?

A 2013 study of international competition finalists went viral, when it seemed like the results suggested that how a musician looks on stage matters more than how they sound. But is that really what the study found?

Get all the nerdy details here:
Does How We Look On Stage Matter More Than How We Sound...?

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

Thanksgiving is just a few days away, so whether your holiday will be of the turkey, turducken, or Tofurky variety, the one thing we all have in common is that someone will suggest that we go around the table and share one thing that we're grateful for, just as we're about to eat. 🥹

There are an awful lot of quotes out there about how we ought to count our blessings. And it does sound like a good thing to do. But does this actually do anything?

Get all the nerdy details right here:
Does Counting Our Blessings Really Change Anything?

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

You've heard that mental practice and mental imagery can help enhance your learning - but what if your images are fuzzy and this is difficult for you? Is this something that you can get better at with practice?

Spoiler alert: yes - and a 2014 study provides some insights into a way to improve your mental imagery abilities that might be easier than practicing imagery the regular old-fashioned way. Through a technique called "action observation."

But is action observation as effective as the traditional way of practicing imagery?

Get all the nerdy details, references, and more right here:
An Easier Way to Get Better at Mental Imagery?

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

The use of mental practice or mental imagery to enhance learning and performance is extremely common amongst  athletes in sports. And it’s something that musicians like Horowitz, Rubinstein, Glenn Gould, and learners at all levels have been known to use in music as well.

But I’ve had students and professional musicians alike tell me that they sometimes have difficulty making the imagery feel real. Or that they have difficulty staying engaged with it. As in, one minute they’re visualizing some music, and the next, their mind has drifted off to food. Or they fall asleep. 🤣

Could there be a better way to do visualization?

Get all the nerdy details and study links here:
A Better Way to Do Mental Practice?

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

Do optimists have an advantage when it comes to performing better under pressure?

Not necessarily! The research suggests that there are multiple types of pessimism. And that the right kind of pessimism can work too!

Get all the nerdy details at: https://bulletproofmusician.com/not-an-optimist-how-to-make-pessimism-work-for-you/

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

Can the right sort of breathing really reduce anxiety? The short answer is yes - but why?

A 2017 study illustrates how breathing could help reduce stress/anxiety, another 2017 study explains why, and a 2023 study highlights an unusual breathing technique that's worth trying!

Get all the nerdy details at: https://bulletproofmusician.com/does-just-breathe-really-help-us-lower-anxiety-or-is-it-just-a-total-cliche/

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

Have you ever struggled to maintain a new habit? Like exercising, or recording yourself more often, or transcribing lesson recordings?

A 2013 study found that a strategy called "temptation bundling" could boost your likelihood of sticking with your new behavior.

Click below for all the nerdy details:
Go From Procrastination to Productivity With “Temptation Bundling”

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa

A 2008 study highlights the two ways we often respond to disappointments and setbacks. They both work ok in the short term, but one is more effective in the long term.

So what determines which one we choose? And how can we ensure we choose the approach that is more effective in the long term?

Get all the nerdy details, references, and other links right here:
A Better Way to Bounce Back From Disappointing Setbacks

* * *
Have you ever wondered why it is exactly that things often sound better at home than they do on stage?

If you’ve been confused (and frustrated) by the inconsistency of your performances, I put together a FREE 4-minute quiz called the Mental Skills Audit, which will help you pinpoint your mental strengths and weaknesses, and figure out what exactly to adjust and tweak in your preparation for more consistently optimal performances.

It’s 100% free, takes only 4 minutes, and you’ll get a downloadable PDF with a personalized breakdown of where you stand in six key mental skill areas. You'll also get the Pressure Proof Practice Challenge, a free 7-day email course where you'll learn specific practice strategies that will help you perform your best, even under pressure.

Take the quiz here: bulletproofmusician.com/msa