Getting to Know David Juncos - The Vocal Advancement Podcast #012

David Juncos

Putting Anxiety in its Place with Acceptance and Commitment Coaching

When you’re preparing your students for a career in the performance arts, technical knowledge isn’t enough. Sometimes, even the most gifted students experience performance anxiety, preventing them from fully expressing themselves on stage or participating in lessons. Unfortunately, not every performer is willing or able to turn to a therapist, making it difficult for them to reach their goals.

This week’s guest Dr. David Juncos is looking to change that. A clinical psychologist and musician, David trains voice teachers in a non-clinical version of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), allowing them to address student anxiety issues. With David’s aid, teachers learn to help students be more mindful when they experience music performance anxiety (MPA) and put that anxiety in its place.

In our talk with David, we learn more about his background in music and psychology. We discover why certain students develop performance anxiety. And we learn how overcoming performance anxiety doesn’t mean getting rid of anxiety but rather working with anxiety when we need to perform.   

In this episode, you’ll learn:

1. What motivated David to work with musicians and performers 9:14
2. How David’s early studies in MPA helped singers and musicians with performance anxiety 14:17
3. Why David believes voice teachers don’t need to outsource music performance anxiety problems to psychotherapists 17:27
4. How David trains teachers in ACT coaching 18:01
5. The type of students most likely to have performance anxiety 22:32
6. The two major patterns David sees in people with performance anxiety 24:13
7. How diffusion techniques help performers distance themselves from anxious thoughts 26:51
8. Why mindfulness training and journaling help you sustain attention and choose which thoughts to focus on 28:49
9. How David’s book “ACT for Musicians” provides resources for understanding MPA and incorporating ACT into music lessons 32:40  

The book David co-authored, “ACT for Musicians: A Guide for Using Acceptance and Commitment Training to Enhance Performance, Overcome Performance Anxiety, and Improve Well-Being” by David G. Juncos and Elvire de Paiva e Pona is available on both Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

David’s IVA webinar course, “Treating Music Performance Anxiety with Acceptance and Commitment Training (ACT)” shows how singing teachers can use ACT to treat MPA issues in their students. 

Connect with David on LinkedIn where you can find links to many of his publications on ACT.

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