PerformZen is designed to be taken prior to work or a high-stress/high-anxiety performance of any kind. In this help article we describe how you should take 2 capsules of PerformZen 2-3 hours prior to work or a high-stress/high-anxiety performance of any kind.
We have been asked by a few customers to be more specific on how to use PerformZen to really help you overcome performance anxiety and stage fright, so here are a few of our tried and tested method we use to get the most out of PerformZen.
Don’t feel like you need to follow all of the points below, but if PerformZen doesn’t quite give you the desired effects immediately, try adding in more and more of these steps to see how you do.
Step 1: Prepare Yourself Mentally & Physically
Have you ever heard of the phrase “in the zone”? It’s usually used when someone is describing a moment when they were performing at a high level.
But what exactly is “the zone”? The zone generally refers to this sweet spot where you’re not thinking about every minute detail of your performance. You’re in this physical and mental state where your best performance is effortlessly flowing out of you. Maybe you’ve experienced this before. A situation where it feels like your mind and body are in perfect sync and you just can’t make a mistake.
The good news is that you don’t have to leave it to chance. You can perform physical and mental exercises to consistently enter the zone when it matters most. Like before a performance or a high-anxiety event.
How the zone works
Entering the zone is about your mental and physical state shortly before a performance. Maybe within the hour or so before you get on stage, or walk in for the interview.
Hopefully, you’ve already learned what you need to, practiced thoroughly, or prepared your talking points. The zone isn’t really about ‘prepping harder’. The zone is more about ready-ing your mind to overcome fear and self-doubt, and reaching a calm, confident state where your performance becomes effortless. You want to step up to the performance with your body and mind in an optimal state.
Physical Activity
So, how do you do it? You start with physical exercises. If you regularly exercise, then you already know the mental and emotional benefits of a sweat-session at the gym. Your body and mind are not separate. Your body is the vessel where you (and your mind) live.
First, pick one or two physical activities to get the blood pumping. Examples of physical exercises to prime your body:
- Jumping jacks
- Air squats
- Pushups
- Dancing
- Jog around the block
- Yoga
By bringing your body to an elevated state, your mind is automatically more ready for positive input, which is the next step.
Mental Exercises
Once you’re physically warmed up, then it’s time for mental exercises to focus your mind. Here are examples of mental exercises:
- Take deep breaths in and out while visualizing positive outcomes of the performance.
- Simply meditate. Close your eyes, breathe normally, and focus on your breath going in and out.
- Take your mind off the performance by watching comedy, listening to music, or anything else relaxing.
By elevating both physical and mental states, you’ll no longer focus on the fear. Instead, you’ll be pumped up and ready to charge forward and wow your audience like they’ve never seen before.
Step 2: Stay Calm Using Relaxation Techniques
Relaxation isn’t something you can force. When you start feeling anxious before a performance or high-anxiety event, if you try to force yourself to relax, you’ll most likely fail. It’s a bit of a cycle: the fact that you cant relax will end up adding to your stress, making your anxiety worse.
Instead, relaxation is about letting go and allowing a desired physiological state to happen. Meditation and belly-breathing are two relaxation techniques you may find beneficial to remain relaxed during a high-anxiety event.
Relaxation Technique #1: Meditation
Meditation is a practice where you focus your mind on a specific thought or activity (like breathing) to increase awareness of yourself and your environment. Meditation induces activity levels in the brain that are associated with calmness and relaxation. It creates a state of wakeful alertness, which has a calming effect on your entire mind and body.
Meditating before a performance will put you in a relaxed state overall, and you may find that you are more accepting of the audiences reaction to your performance, whether it’s positive or negative. You may find that when you let go, it will free you up in a way that elevates your performance. Your newfound confidence could have a positive effect on future performances, and it could become a positive cycle that eventually helps you overcome stage fright completely.
Follow our simple guide here for meditation tips or use our recommended guided meditation app Headspace.
Relaxation Technique #2: Tactical Breathing
Tactical breathing is a technique popular with navy seals when they need to remain calm under pressure. There probably isn’t a more high-pressure job than that of a navy seal. So, if it works for them, chances are that tactical breathing will also help you calm the nerves before a performance or high-anxiety event.
If you’re feeling the jitters before a performance, tactical breathing can switch your nervous system back to a relaxed mode. You will feel your heart rate slow down back to normal, and the jitteriness will disappear.
Here’s our simple tactical breathing instructions for you to give this technique a try, and the best part is it’s a very short and simple exercise:
- Step 1 – Take a deep breath into your stomach to a count of four.
- Step 2 – Hold your breath and count to four.
- Step 3 – Exhale slowly to a count of four.
- Step 4 – Repeat the process till you feel calmer and in control.
Step 3: Take PerformZen
Once you’re ready mentally & physically, and feel in a relaxed headspace, simply take 1 serving of PerformZen (2 capsules) 2-3 hours before you need to perform, work or participate in a high-stress/high-anxiety event.
[Optional] Step 4: Take PerformZen DURING the high-anxiety event
In most of our testing, the above 3 steps are enough to successfully reduce performance anxiety symptoms. With more severe cases of performance anxiety, and to maintain calm, focus & creativity over a long performance we have found that taking an additional capsule 1-2 hours in addition to the initial serving.
The above tips have all been successful in helping those with more severe performance anxiety. So while you might not need to follow all of the steps outlined above, if you suffer from severe performance anxiety, social anxiety or stage fright, we recommend following the full protocol.