If you've ever stood in the wings before a performance and wondered how you got there — not in a good way — this episode is for you. Marie-Michel Beauparlant is an accomplished cellist, a mom of twins, and one of the most honest guests we've had on the show. She talks about the years she spent hiding behind section playing because solo performing felt impossible, the guilt of chasing an audition with six-month-old twins at home, and what it actually took to go from dreading the spotlight to being, as she puts it herself, a little addicted to it. This is a real conversation about the inner life of a working musician — and it will stay with you.

In this episode you will discover:

• Why perfectionism and stage fright so often go hand in hand and what Marie-Michel did to start untangling them
• How she went from barely advancing in auditions to winning two orchestra positions and making finals consistently
• The mindset shift that led her to remove the word failure from her vocabulary entirely
• How finding a community of musicians facing similar challenges made her feel less alone and normalized the struggles she had been carrying quietly for years
• The simple question she asks herself before every practice session that keeps her grounded and motivated
• What winning really looks like when you stop making it only about the outcome

Want to experience this kind of transformation in your own musical life? The doors to the Music Mastery Experience open June 1st. Visit mindoverfinger.com/mme to learn more and book your free call today. Spots are limited.

Book your FREE Music Mastery Experience Clarity Call with Renée HERE

Download the transcript from this episode HERE

Mind Over Finger

Click www.mindoverfinger.com/coaching to book your free consultation with me.

Visit MindOverFinger.com for my online courses as well as free resources on peak performance.

Grab my free workshops and PDF downloads by going to www.mindoverfinger.com/resources.

Connect:

https://www.youtube.com/@MindOverFinger

https://www.facebook.com/mindoverfinger/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindoverfinger

https://www.instagram.com/mindoverfinger/

THANK YOU:

Most sincere thank you to composer Jim Stephenson who graciously provided the show's musical theme: Concerto #1 for Trumpet and Chamber Orchestra – Movement 2: Allegro con Brio, performed by Jeffrey Work, trumpet, and the Lake Forest Symphony, conducted by Jim Stephenson.

You know that feeling when you nail a passage in rehearsal, and then the harder you try to repeat it, the faster it falls apart? In this solo episode, Dr. Renée-Paule reveals why the desire to play well is often the very thing getting in your way. This one hits close to home for any musician who has ever spiraled mid-performance wondering why their preparation suddenly feels like it vanished.

· The reason a passage that felt effortless on the first attempt can completely unravel by the third, and why it has nothing to do with your technique.

· How monitoring your own performance in real time activates the wrong part of your brain and turns you into a spectator of your own playing.

· Why high expectations belong in the practice room and become an obstacle the moment you walk on stage.

· A simple 60-second ritual to do right before you perform that shifts your entire relationship with the moment.

Are you ready to take your playing and career to the next level and create a life that feels purposeful and joyful? If you're ready to step on stage with confidence, perform at your best, and finally feel secure in your playing, join the Musician's Edge Challenge.

Join the Musician's Edge Challenge HERE

If you're ready to step on stage with confidence, perform at your best, and finally feel secure in your playing, let's talk! Book a free discovery call and let's create a plan to get you there.

Are you ready to take your playing and career to the next level and create a life that feels purposeful and joyful? Let's connect and explore how personalized coaching can support your journey. Click here to schedule your free consultation, and let's start turning your goals into reality.

Book your FREE Music Mastery Experience Discovery call with Renée HERE

Book your free consultation with Renée HERE

Download the transcript from this episode HERE

Mind Over Finger

Click www.mindoverfinger.com/coaching to book your free consultation with me.

Visit MindOverFinger.com for my online courses as well as free resources on peak performance.

Grab my free workshops and PDF downloads by going to www.mindoverfinger.com/resources.

Connect:

https://www.youtube.com/@MindOverFinger

https://www.facebook.com/mindoverfinger/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindoverfinger

https://www.instagram.com/mindoverfinger/

THANK YOU:

Most sincere thank you to composer Jim Stephenson who graciously provided the show's musical theme: Concerto #1 for Trumpet and Chamber Orchestra – Movement 2: Allegro con Brio, performed by Jeffrey Work, trumpet, and the Lake Forest Symphony, conducted by Jim Stephenson.

You've prepared the excerpts. You've done the mock auditions. You've done everything right — and something still slips when it matters most. In this episode, Dr. Renée-Paule Gauthier gets to the heart of what's actually separating the players who walk off feeling like themselves from the ones who walk off wondering what just happened. The answer isn't what you think — and it's more within your reach than you realize.

In this episode:

· Why the problem is almost never the excerpts

· The difference between preparing your excerpts and preparing yourself

· What attentional narrowing does to your musicality under pressure

· The one question that begins to change everything

Are you ready to take your playing and career to the next level and create a life that feels purposeful and joyful? If you're ready to step on stage with confidence, perform at your best, and finally feel secure in your playing, join the Musician's Edge Challenge.

Join the Musician's Edge Challenge HERE

If you're ready to step on stage with confidence, perform at your best, and finally feel secure in your playing, let's talk! Book a free discovery call and let's create a plan to get you there.

Are you ready to take your playing and career to the next level and create a life that feels purposeful and joyful? Let's connect and explore how personalized coaching can support your journey. Click here to schedule your free consultation, and let's start turning your goals into reality.

Book your FREE Music Mastery Experience Discovery call with Renée HERE

Book your free consultation with Renée HERE

Download the transcript from this episode HERE

Mind Over Finger

Click www.mindoverfinger.com/coaching to book your free consultation with me.

Visit MindOverFinger.com for my online courses as well as free resources on peak performance.

Grab my free workshops and PDF downloads by going to www.mindoverfinger.com/resources.

Connect:

https://www.youtube.com/@MindOverFinger

https://www.facebook.com/mindoverfinger/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindoverfinger

https://www.instagram.com/mindoverfinger/

THANK YOU:

Most sincere thank you to composer Jim Stephenson who graciously provided the show's musical theme: Concerto #1 for Trumpet and Chamber Orchestra – Movement 2: Allegro con Brio, performed by Jeffrey Work, trumpet, and the Lake Forest Symphony, conducted by Jim Stephenson.

What if the thing holding back your performance had nothing to do with how many hours you practice? Gunnery Sergeant Shannon Kiewitt, clarinetist with "The President's Own" United States Marine Band and fitness coach for musicians, has spent years performing at the highest level without a single performance-related injury. In this conversation, she shares exactly how fitness transforms not just your body, but your sound, your confidence, and your career.

In this episode:

· Why posture and physical imbalances affect the way you sound

· The truth about weightlifting and musicians

· How fitness builds endurance, focus, and mental resilience on stage

· What a realistic fitness routine looks like for a musician's unpredictable schedule

· How competing in a bodybuilding show helped Shannon conquer performance anxiety

· One simple thing you can start doing today

Are you ready to take your playing and career to the next level and create a life that feels purposeful and joyful? If you're ready to step on stage with confidence, perform at your best, and finally feel secure in your playing, join the Musician's Edge Challenge.

Join the Musician's Edge Challenge HERE

Book your free consultation with Renée HERE

Download the transcript from this episode HERE

SHANNON KIEWITT

Bio: https://www.marineband.marines.mil/About/Members/Article/2605066/gunnery-sgt-shannon-kiewitt/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefitclarinetist/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@shannonfitwit

Work with Shannon: https://www.trainerize.me/profile/getfitwithshannonkiewitt/Shannon.Kiewitt?fbclid=IwAR0nBm45UVE4SSUWHRaaAJVgCYpp4rmNFNkxqqTrGmUe9sd37fOreyP1P5A&utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio

Mind Over Finger

Click www.mindoverfinger.com/coaching to book your free consultation with me.

Visit MindOverFinger.com for my online courses as well as free resources on peak performance.

Grab my free workshops and PDF downloads by going to www.mindoverfinger.com/resources.

Connect:

https://www.youtube.com/@MindOverFinger

https://www.facebook.com/mindoverfinger/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindoverfinger

https://www.instagram.com/mindoverfinger/

THANK YOU:

Most sincere thank you to composer Jim Stephenson who graciously provided the show's musical theme: Concerto #1 for Trumpet and Chamber Orchestra – Movement 2: Allegro con Brio, performed by Jeffrey Work, trumpet, and the Lake Forest Symphony, conducted by Jim Stephenson.

You're putting in the hours. You're showing up. So why does it still feel like nothing is moving? This episode gets right to the heart of that frustration and offers a way out.

In this episode:

· Why repetition without intention reinforces the problem, not the solution

· The real difference between practicing notes and practicing performance

· How the inner critic silently derails your practice session

· The one thing to write down before you pick up your instrument

Are you ready to take your playing and career to the next level and create a life that feels purposeful and joyful? If you're ready to step on stage with confidence, perform at your best, and finally feel secure in your playing, join the Musician's Edge Challenge.

Join the Musician's Edge Challenge HERE

Book your free consultation with Renée HERE

Download the transcript from this episode HERE

Mind Over Finger

Click www.mindoverfinger.com/coaching to book your free consultation with me.

Visit MindOverFinger.com for my online courses as well as free resources on peak performance.

Grab my free workshops and PDF downloads by going to www.mindoverfinger.com/resources.

Connect:

https://www.youtube.com/@MindOverFinger

https://www.facebook.com/mindoverfinger/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindoverfinger

https://www.instagram.com/mindoverfinger/

THANK YOU:

Most sincere thank you to composer Jim Stephenson who graciously provided the show's musical theme: Concerto #1 for Trumpet and Chamber Orchestra – Movement 2: Allegro con Brio, performed by Jeffrey Work, trumpet, and the Lake Forest Symphony, conducted by Jim Stephenson.

You walk out of a rehearsal replaying every mistake. You sit down to practice and the voice in your head says, it should be better by now. You open Instagram and somehow everyone else seems more confident, more established, further along. This episode is for that moment. Renée shares a short, honest pep talk for musicians navigating doubt and the uncomfortable gap between where they are and where they wish they were.

What you'll take away:

· Why accepting where you are is not the same as giving up and how that distinction changes everything about how you move forward

· The arrival fallacy: why telling yourself "I'll feel better when I reach that level" is a trap that keeps postponing your peace indefinitely

· A simple gratitude practice for when doubt shows up mid-practice not as a feel-good exercise, but as a way to literally retrain your brain's attention

· How to receive difficult feelings without sinking into them, using the same returning-to-breath logic you already know from practice

· Why the doubts will come back even after a good day and why that means nothing is broken

· The one question worth asking yourself when your mind starts to spiral: what will I do with this next precious minute?

If you're ready to step on stage with confidence, perform at your best, and finally feel secure in your playing, let's talk! Book a free discovery call and let's create a plan to get you there.

Are you ready to take your playing and career to the next level and create a life that feels purposeful and joyful? Let's connect and explore how personalized coaching can support your journey. Click here to schedule your free consultation, and let's start turning your goals into reality.

Book your FREE Music Mastery Experience Discovery call with Renée HERE

Book your free consultation with Renée HERE

Download the transcript from this episode HERE

Mind Over Finger

Click www.mindoverfinger.com/coaching to book your free consultation with me.

Visit MindOverFinger.com for my online courses as well as free resources on peak performance.

Grab my free workshops and PDF downloads by going to www.mindoverfinger.com/resources.

Connect:

https://www.youtube.com/@MindOverFinger

https://www.facebook.com/mindoverfinger/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/mindoverfinger

https://www.instagram.com/mindoverfinger/

THANK YOU:

Most sincere thank you to composer Jim Stephenson who graciously provided the show's musical theme: Concerto #1 for Trumpet and Chamber Orchestra – Movement 2: Allegro con Brio, performed by Jeffrey Work, trumpet, and the Lake Forest Symphony, conducted by Jim Stephenson.