Performance preparation can be a difficult thing. A lot of it depends on who you are and how you deal with the stress of being on stage. Some people have no problems while others require long hours of preparation. Actors use different techniques to prepare themselves for their different roles.

Do you know what your "role" is? Do you know who or what you are supposed to be during your performance? If you don't know, you need to find out. How do you deal with your time before your performance? These are questions you need to know how to deal with to be a great performer. Practice will season you into a pro.

Some people like to be by themselves before they perform. I like to go off to the side and go throught my show to make sure I do not focus to much on getting nervous. I practice the harder things to make sure the harder things are working for me that day. I am the quiet type. I prefer calm before the storm. I need to keep my energy level so that when I get in front of an audience I don't freak out.

Then there's the happy type. The type that just LOVES to laugh and jump and play before they go on. Do you like to giggle, squirm, and talk when you are nervous before a performance? These type of people love to be around their friends before they go on. Having the comfort of their team-mates makes a difference. They strive to share their energy with others. Of course there are other types. You just need to figure out how you deal with things your own way. We are all different.

Now lets get into where the real performance preparation comes in. How much have you practiced to prepare for this show? Did you rehearse on your own or did you just do the required rehearsals? How much time did you practice just your basics to make sure that when you get in front of an audience, you can do them with ease? Do you take your equipment home to make sure that you can do what is required of you? Are you practicing ahead? Working on harder things so that you can "move up" in the ranks?

How great are your tosses? If you are a weapon, how many perfect triples can you do in a row? Three? Not good enough! Your muscle memory needs to work when you are when you are most nervous. Try working your way up to at least 50 perfect ones in a row. Test yourself. Play a game as you practice. You have to do 50 perfect triples IN A ROW before you can stop. If you make a mistake, you have to start again. Go easy on yourself the first day, but work your way up. Make sure you give yourself a little reward when you finally acheive your goal. It feels great when you do. Once you can do your triples, go for quads, the fives, sixes and even sevens. This concept also works for any type of toss on any equipment. It works for "tricks" also.