Audition Nerves

Last Updated On: 20 September 2025

Which mask are you wearing for your audition? Going for auditions and remaining authentic can seem like polar opposites, especially when you want a part so very badly.

Have you ever wondered how it always comes to pass that the more you care, the more on edge you get, the tougher it becomes.

Whereas having a laissez-faire, come-as-you-are manner yields far better results?

And isn’t it that once you’re in character you’re fine.

But relaxing before you’re required to get into character is where the wonky nervousness creeps in?

How do those prior interactions roll, during the small talk, especially when you’re feeling vulnerable nay ill and just want to be left alone.

Why does it keep happening?

It really comes down to prior experience… How did you learn to step up for an audition or take up public speaking, where there’s that element however brief of having to play YOU, rather than assuming a character?

But feeling nervous as hell, and the next thing you hear is “ACTION”… and ta-da you’re ON (phew got through another one)!

However, the niggling voice in the back of your head is worrying about the never getting a second chance to make a first impression scenario. And overall it can give a strangely skewed picture of who you are and what you bring to the party can’t it?

Repeating patterns

The more we repeat the pattern the more ingrained it becomes, it’s a Catch 22, but which do you want first the good news or the bad news… well it goes something like this…

The good news is that there is only you that can change it, and the bad news is that there is only you that can change it!

But you already knew that, right? What may be news to you is just how easy it is to do once you know what to go after to change things up. And this is what I chased for decades for myself, so I understand the frustrations of trying yet another fad or gadget without seeing much of a result.

Below you can see how nervous Ruth was about making videos for her fabulously creative Playcation business at Body Synergy, and after working together she made this video to show the difference it made in her.

She says some kind things here about the experience, but more importantly this shows you through an impartial voice what can be achieved within a relatively short space of time.

It’s just that there hurdle that stops everything from falling into a natural flow where your genuine authenticity is bursting to make an appearance.

How to make it stop

You can alter this so that it’s an entirely different and easy experience, where you glide through your auditions so that you can make braver choices and stretch your performance range.

You’ll even forget how it used to feel. But let’s look at how you could play with the idea of changing it right now.

Have you ever been in the hot seat? Of course you have! But how do you handle yours?

• Is it a piece of cake?
• Are you a mixture of nerves and excitement?
• Or are you shaken out of yourself into behaving in an awkward manner from who you are in your day to day life?

If it’s the latter, there are tactics you can use, like taking deep breathes, sipping water, taking a quiet moment, using an affirmation or three.

Standing out

All of these and more besides work for people to varying degrees. But those are in themselves strategies for coping rather than sorting the issue.

Because if it’s been running along on a hamster-wheel for a while, i.e. years, then the chances are that you need more.

And there’s nothing wrong with that, in fact it corrects the wiring so to speak, rewires the synapses so that they fire correctly, where you can get an Adrenalin rush without falling apart.

But when none of that works it’s time to dig a little deeper. It can be a tough gig, at least until you decide that you’re going to change it once and for all.

Jane

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Step up to the mark

PS – Directing your own destiny begins by arranging a quick 15-min chat which kick-starts having more energy to develop what you really, really want.

Lights! Camera! Action!