Practice Until You Can’t Get it Wrong
When I was a Junior at Canton High school in Massachusetts, I was cast in the lead role of Belle Poitrine in a musical called Bells Are Ringing. Like the rest of the kids in the show, I was a bonafide theatre greek, living and breathing for rehearsals and performances. So when I discovered a had to perform a tap dance duet to a zippy song called “I’ve Got Your Number” with my scene partner, Tom, I was thrilled. I’d never tap danced in my life, but that didn’t stop me from giving it everything I had. Tom, who’d had some experience tap dancing, was very patient with me, going over and over the steps. We rehearsed the number at every opportunity—not only during our scheduled rehearsals, but in the empty hallways near the theatre during lunch and whenever we had a spare moment.
One day Tom called and told me he was getting a group of kids together to go hear a musical group called the Jack D’Johns who were playing at a local dance hall. “We’ll be the youngest people there” Tom explained. “It’s a club for old people who like to dance the cha cha and marenge. C’mon! It’ll be fun, and we can practice our number!” I put on my best swirly dress and dance shoes, and piled into Tom’s old station wagon with the rest of the Drama Geek gang.
At the club, we stormed the dance floor, doing our best to keep up with the boisterous old-timers who were waltzing, tangoing and fox-trotting to the music of their youth. Finally, at our request, the band struck up the opening chords of You’ve Got Your Number, which was, we discovered, a popular standard. Tom and I leaped out onto the dance floor and threw ourselves into our number as if our lives depended on it. When we were done, we got a round of applause from the—no doubt surprised– seniors present.
With this impromptu performance under our belts, not to mention the hours of rehearsal—both formal and informal—in which Tom and I willingly participated, we were at the top of our game when the play opened and we danced for a packed house. I was incredibly proud of myself: In two months, I’d gone from a non-tapper to a masterful tap dancer… and all because I Practiced ‘til I Couldn’t Get it Wrong!
As a speech coach, this is a mind-set I try to impart to my clients—whether they are working to improve their presentation skills or trying to break old habits and learn new ones so they can move forward in their lives—have the tendency to avoid the practice and rehearsal that will help them achieve mastery they say they are trying to achieve. They do this because the very notion of practicing reminds them of the thing they are trying to change or achieve, and it fills them with anxiety. To which I always say “Fear can’t hit a moving target! Just jump it! Immerse yourself in rehearsal! And don’t just practice until you get it right. Think like an actor and practice until you can’t get it wrong!
When it comes to preparing your speeches and presentations, do you tend to avoid the work of actually practicing them? If you do, allow yourself to think like an actor, realizing that there can be great fun in the rehearsal process. If your job involves pitching a product or service, practice your pitch at every opportunity. Pitch out loud while you’re driving, vacuuming, washing the dishes. Pitch to your cat, your dog, your colleagues. Don’t just practice until you get it right: Think like an expert, and practice until you can’t get it wrong! Develop the habit of embracing practice and rehearsal, and watch your confidence soar—whether you’re giving a presentation or changing a habit that’s keeping you from reaching your true potential!