Whether you’re looking to help your students tackle imposter syndrome or just want to work on your own confidence, here’s a guide to get you started.

The internet is awash with tips, tricks and systems to beat imposter syndrome and performance anxiety.

But, with so much information available, it can be difficult to know where to start.

So BAST spoke to Louise Callin, a former professional dancer who now works as a mindset coach and NLP practitioner (we’ll explain what this is in a moment).

Louise explained some of the most common techniques and terms you’ll come across when you explore the world of personal development.

But first, a little bit about Louise

After studying dance in the UK and working as a professional performer, Louise spent a few years on cruise ships.

She later built a successful performing arts school in New Zealand, before returning to Britain to become a mindset coach. She is also the co-founder of the Women’s Success Squad, which mentors and coaches women.

Below, Louise outlines three personal development modalities she uses in her work.

Mindset coaching

Mindset coaching involves helping an individual develop a more positive way of thinking so that they can achieve their personal or professional goals.

It’s different from traditional therapies in that while we delve into the past a bit, it’s more from a perspective of how we can change the way we look at things ingrained in us.

Mindset coaching is very forward-thinking. If you come to me and say: ‘I’m really struggling to get confidence in my singing and I’m scared to get on stage’, we’ll spend time looking at how to get you from A to B in stages.

I believe that everything starts with mindset. You could have the most talented performer in front of you, but if they have a negative mindset, they’ll always come up with hurdles and beliefs that hold them back.

Belief coding

Belief coding is an amazing modality founded by Jess Cunningham. It works with the subconscious mind to eliminate limiting beliefs.

If, for example, you’ve got somebody who’s not getting a job, belief coding will peel things right back to why that is.

You work in not quite a meditation state, but you take the client into a deeper state where we can go back and look at their past. We see what we can heal, then we put some positive beliefs on top of that. We basically smash the negative beliefs, put the positive ones on top and reprogramme the brain.

NLP

NLP stands for neural linguistic programming and is centred around trying to change a pattern of behaviour or mindset. Neuro refers to the nervous system, linguistics refers to the language we use, and programming refers to our ingrained habits. Think of it like the hardware you get on a computer – that’s the trickiest stuff to change, and that’s where the deeper work comes in.

There are similarities between NLP and belief coding, and there is quite a bit of crossover. NLP is a bit better for someone who’s not as confident about going down the belief coding route.

In my work I like to create bespoke programmes that interweave all of them together to get the best outcome.

Learn more

Listen to our full-length interview with Louise on the Singing Teachers Talk podcast, where she discusses her work tackling imposter syndrome and shares an easy NLP technique teachers can use in the studio.