7 Ways to Handle Performance Anxiety According to Experts

Quick Summary

• Performance anxiety can show up before a race, a presentation, an interview or a test.
• A sport psychologist who works with top athletes shares simple tools for it in a book published in September.
• Learn, burn and return are three quick steps for moving past a mistake.
• A power phrase gives your brain evidence that you can succeed.
• Gold, silver and bronze goals take the pressure off one perfect result.
• Fact-checking a negative thought brings you back to the present moment.
• Acting confident often comes before feeling confident, and it is a skill you can build.

Performance anxiety tends to arrive at the worst possible time. You might be halfway through a big presentation, or you might have just fumbled in a game and cannot stop replaying it. The good news is that you can practice a few simple habits before those moments come. A psychologist with a PhD in sport and performance psychology shares them in a book published in September, and they work for a race, a work presentation or a job interview. 

1. Learn What the Mistake Taught You

Everyone slips up at some point. You might fumble the ball in a big game or blank on your lines in a school play, then replay it for hours. Experts say the key during a high-stakes moment is to move on quickly, using a three-step tool called learn, burn, return. You can use it in the middle of a performance or as a way to reflect afterward.

Start with learn. Ask yourself what you took from the mistake, then finish this sentence, next time I will.

2. Burn It With a Cue You Repeat

The second step is burn, which means choosing a motion or a cue that reminds you to let the mistake go. You could snap your fingers, say that fast, or even pretend to flush a toilet. A former professional football player used the flush after a fumble in a 2020 playoff game. He then caught a 43-yard pass over his head that helped his team win.

Using the same motion or phrase every time matters. Repeating it helps your brain strengthen new neural pathways for moving through performance anxiety.

3. Return to Yourself With Kinder Words

The last step is return, and this is where you build yourself back up. Remind yourself that you got this and that you are doing the best you can. Kind, steady words help keep your goals within reach after a rough moment.

Together, learn, burn and return give performance anxiety less room to grow after a slip.

4. Write a Power Phrase You Can Believe

How you talk to yourself matters. The largest psychology organization in the United States notes that self-affirmations, even in small doses, can have lasting effects on self-esteem.

To build your own power phrase, start with I will, I can or I am. Then ask yourself how you are at your best, what that looks like and what it feels like. She chose words that reminded her how much she loves running and that she had trained hundreds of miles for this race.

5. Set Gold, Silver and Bronze Goals

Rather than chasing one flawless outcome, set a range of goals. Picture yourself running the mile in track. Your bronze goal might be a time you are generally happy with, your silver goal might be a personal best, and your gold goal might be winning the race.

This range can ease performance anxiety and build confidence because it removes the pressure of a single ideal result. It also moves your attention to the present moment. After all, an outcome is something you cannot control.

6. Fact-Check Your Self-Doubt

Negative thoughts tend to crowd in right before a job interview or a big test, and they can fuel performance anxiety fast. When that happens, ask yourself three things:

• Is the thought true?
• Is it serving you? 
• What would be a more empowering statement?

This method is similar to frameworks like acceptance and commitment therapy and cognitive behavioral therapy. It can pause a spiral of negative thinking and bring you back to the present moment.

Say you walk into an interview thinking you will never get another job if you do not ace it. The exercise lets you challenge that idea and land on something steadier. A grounded alternative might be that even if this job does not work out, you are capable of success and there are better opportunities for you.

7. Act Confident Before You Feel It

Confidence is a choice you get to make. You decide in the moment whether you will act with confidence, and the action often comes before the feeling. It is also a skill, which means you can build it over time.

You can pair every tool above with a few steady habits that keep performance anxiety from building. Writing out your power phrase, choosing the cue you will use to burn a mistake, and setting your three goals ahead of time all prepare you before the moment arrives. CBD Tinctures and gummies can be a gentle part of that routine, alongside the other small practices that help you feel settled day to day.

Bottom line

Performance anxiety does not have to run the show. Learn, burn and return helps you recover from a slip, a power phrase gives you something solid to hold, and gold, silver and bronze goals ease the pull of perfection. Fact-checking your thoughts and acting confident then bring you back to the present.

Pick one tool and try it this week. If your anxiety feels heavy or constant, consider talking with a licensed professional, since these tools are meant to support you rather than replace care.

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