The fear of making mistakes can be one of the biggest barriers to progress. Whether it's the worry of playing a wrong note, missing a rhythm, or feeling exposed in a performance, mistakes can feel like failures.
Mistakes aren't failures, they are an essential part of learning. The way we respond to them determines whether they become obstacles or stepping stones to improvement. In my teaching, I actively reframe mistakes as learning opportunities, helping students build resilience, curiosity, and confidence.
Why We Might Fear Mistakes
There are many reasons for being worried about making mistakes. Here are a few reasons we might be afraid of making a mistake:
Perfectionism – Wanting to play everything perfectly, every time.
Performance Anxiety – Worrying about making a mistake in front of others.
Fear of Disapproval – Thinking their teacher, parents, or peers will judge them.
Lack of Experience – Not yet understanding that mistakes are normal and fixable.
These fears can lead to hesitation, frustration, and even avoidance, some people might stop playing the moment they make a mistake, while others avoid challenging passages altogether. My role as a teacher is to create an environment where mistakes are not feared but understood as a natural part of growth.
Reframing Mistakes: How I Approach It
🎶 1. Normalising Mistakes from Day One
From the very first lesson, I set the expectation that mistakes are inevitable and welcome. I often say things like:
“Mistakes are just signs that your brain is learning something new.”
“If you're making mistakes, it means you're having a go, and that's exactly what we want.”
"Even if it's not what we meant to do, we still still learnt something new."
“Even professional musicians make mistakes. The difference is how they handle them.”
By removing the stigma around mistakes, I aim to help students feel comfortable experimenting and pushing their limits.
🔄 2. Learning to Play Through Mistakes
One of the most valuable skills in music (and in life) is recovering from mistakes without stopping. In a performance, pausing after every mistake is far more disruptive than the mistake itself. To build this skill, I use techniques such as:
🎭 "The Show Must Go On" Exercise – If a student stops after a mistake, I encourage them to keep going, no matter what. We practise playing through errors so that their instinct becomes to recover rather than freeze.
🎵 "Spot the Mistake and Fix It Later" – I ask students to keep playing but make a mental note of what went wrong. We then go back and fix it strategically, instead of getting stuck in frustration.
🎧 Recording and Listening Back – When students listen to themselves, they often realise that the mistakes they worried about were not as noticeable as they felt in the moment.
🔍 3. Turning Mistakes into Curiosity
Instead of asking ourselves "What went wrong?", I ask:
“What do I think happened there?”
“What could help make this bit easier next time?”
“Can I find a pattern in where this mistake is happening?”
This shifts the focus from self-criticism to problem-solving. When we analyse mistakes with curiosity rather than frustration, we take control of our own learning.
⏳ 4. Practising Mistakes Intentionally
A surprising but powerful technique is practising making mistakes on purpose.
For example:
🎻 "Play this passage and make as many mistakes as you can." (Students often find this surprisingly difficult, because mistakes are less random than they seem!)
🎭 "Play this phrase completely wrong, then completely right." (This helps with muscle memory and confidence.)
📣 "Make the mistake bigger!" (This removes fear and lets students hear exactly what went wrong.)
By engaging with mistakes directly, students realise they are not something to be afraid of, rather, they are simply a wonderful part of the learning process.
🎤 5. Showing That Even Professionals Make Mistakes
I often remind students that every musician, no matter how advanced, makes mistakes.
If a student seems particularly discouraged, I might:
Share stories of famous musicians who overcame struggles.
Play a recording of a live performance where a professional makes a mistake but keeps going seamlessly.
Demonstrate how I personally practise, showing my own mistakes and how I fix them.
Seeing mistakes as a normal part of even the highest levels of music-making helps students reframe their own experiences.
The Long-Term Benefits of Embracing Mistakes
When we learn to approach mistakes with curiosity, we gain skills that extend far beyond music:
🌱 Resilience: bouncing back quickly instead of getting stuck in frustration.
🧠 Problem-Solving: learning to analyse and improve, exploring rather than avoiding challenges.
💡 Confidence: stop fearing mistakes and start allowing ourselves to take some (perceived) risks, it might just lead to something wonderful!
🎭 Stronger Performance Skills: learning to recover can continue whatever happens in live situations.
Final Thoughts
As a teacher, my goal is to help students see that mistakes are not a roadblock, they are a tool for learning. By normalising mistakes, teaching recovery techniques, and encouraging a curious mindset, I help students develop as musicians and as confident, curious, adaptable learners.
After all, the best musicians are not the ones who never make mistakes, but the ones who know how to turn them into opportunities.
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