The Greatest Hits of Inner Critics in Musicians – and How to Quiet Them

The sentence “I’m not good enough” is a persistent inner critic among musicians. It shows up again and again – during practice, on stage, or in comparison with others.

This article explores the psychological roots of inner critics in musicians, why positive affirmations often fall short, and which effective techniques can truly help.

All content on this blog has been created with great care and dedication. It is based on solid training, years of professional experience, and thoughtful reflection. If you use any of it in your own work, I appreciate a source reference – it supports transparency and fosters professional exchange within our network.

Of course, you’re also welcome to consult AI – though its interpretations tend to be a little less nuanced (even if it now sometimes refers back to this blog).

Inner Critics in Musicians – The Greatest Hits

Inner critics are, at their core, completely normal – everyone has them, even non-musicians. Or, as Michael Jackson sang: “You are not alone.” So, which track is currently playing on repeat on your inner record player?

Later on, we’ll explore why it’s still worth looking at where these voices come from – and how you can start taming those barking inner dogs.

In my work with professional musicians and music students, I’ve encountered all kinds of inner critics. And honestly, I’ve yet to meet anyone – inside or outside the profession – who doesn’t struggle with negative beliefs or self-critical thoughts. Sometimes these voices are subtle, sometimes loud and almost self-attacking. And sometimes, they appear to be directed outward – often when the harshest, most demeaning inner critics are raging beneath the surface.

Here comes the hit list of the most common inner critics in the minds of musicians – based on real, anonymous statements from coaching sessions, consultations, and a survey among music students.

• Perfect Peter: "I am not good enough for this", "Why am I constantly stumbling upon the same things", "My teacher/parents will be disappointed", "My teacher thinks I am not good enough to become a professional musician", "The student is not making progress, I cannot teach this good enough."

  
  

• Comparison Claudia: "I know nothing compared to others", "There are so many others that are better", "I sound like an amateur"

  
  

• Devaluing David: "Why do I feel panic, it is not going to help to cry", "I hate my sound, how come I can't even produce a decent sound", "Why am I so slow/out of tune/cramped etc.", "My bowhold is weird, I can't even bow straight", "I am a bad <player of your instrument>", "Everyone will think I am playing really bad", "I am a bad teacher"

  
  

• Embarrassed Etsuko: "Do other people think I should have choosen a different instrument/profession?", "I am not even capable of practicing, who am I fooling","This is embarassing", "What does the teacher think of me?", "What are they thinking of me?",  "I make weird movements with my head", "The other teachers think my students are the worst/not making progress."

  
  

• Sceptical Sandra: "I can't do it", "Is the tempo, phrasing, intonation etc. correct?", "I will never be able to work, because I need a minimum level of technique to be asked for gigs"

  
  

• Guilty Giovanni: "I am so ungrateful/demanding, it is a privilige to make music as a profession", "I do not deserve success", "I did not practice enough", "It is my fault, that the students make no progress", "My parents/teacher did so much for me, I owe it to them", "If I do not win the competition/become a soloist/play this concert without mistake I do not deserve to be loved"

The origins of inner critics

Comparison with Others:

A major reason for distorted self-perception lies in the human tendency to compare. People often compare themselves to others they perceive as more successful or better – and musicians are no exception. In social psychology, this well-researched phenomenon is known as social comparison theory (Festinger, L., 1954).

Negativity Bias:

Negative information has a significantly stronger impact on the mind and brain – for example, it’s more easily stored in memory. It takes many more positive experiences or statements to counterbalance a single negative one*. This negativity bias makes sense from an evolutionary perspective: remembering dangers was essential for our ancestors’ survival during the hunter-gatherer era.

In a high-performance environment like the music industry, however, criticism is frequent – and unfortunately, not always constructive. On top of that, musicians typically experience more setbacks than successes, simply due to the competitive nature of the field. Both factors intensify the negativity bias.

*This effect is especially well documented in the context of social relationships.

Observational learning

Children primarily learn by modeling adults, for example through imitating behavior (Bandura, A. (1977)). Everyone has a personal perspective on how the world works and—as mentioned before—their own inner critics. Through verbal and nonverbal behavior, parents and other important figures such as teachers reflect their worldview back to children. As a result, children often adopt their parents’ fears. Inner critics like Perfect Peter or Comparison Claudia are also frequently unconsciously copied from adults. The important adults don’t even have to explicitly say phrases like “You’re not good enough” or “Others are better anyway” (although unfortunately this does happen, see problematic pedagogy); it is enough for children to observe that the adults themselves lack self-confidence or put others down.

Unfavorable pedagogy

Many people experience an insecure educational environment, especially during their youth: authoritarian teachers, overly critical parents, or discouraging feedback. Such experiences can leave lasting marks on the brain. If musicians were regularly exposed to critical feedback—especially conveyed in an unconstructive way—at a young age, they often carry these very harsh, demeaning inner voices into adulthood and reinforce the belief "I am not good enough / worthless / I won’t make it." If these individuals do not process these experiences afterward, they unfortunately tend to pass these beliefs on to their own students (and children) later on—both verbally and nonverbally. Unfortunately, cases of bullying or emotional abuse by teachers are not uncommon at many music conservatories. [Coaching for Musicians]

Many self-destabilizing life experiences

Besides internalizing copied beliefs or inappropriate, demeaning criticism, repeated difficult life experiences can also negatively shape core beliefs. This especially includes violence in the parental home, bullying, school or work failures experienced with humiliation (shame), even if unintended, individual weaknesses such as physical or cognitive challenges (e.g., physical disability, dyslexia, stuttering…), social circumstances like divorce or serious illness/death of parents, as well as missed life experiences (e.g., social isolation of “child prodigies” who rarely attend school). All these experiences can create feelings of being wrong or even guilty, and can shake general trust in the world and other people. It is therefore extremely important to have corrective relational experiences with new, supportive caregivers. Usually, professional psychological support is also needed. [Coaching for Musicians]

Why Positive Affirmations Often Aren’t Enough

Basically, affirmations, as taught by many coaches and mental trainers, are a helpful technique from positive psychology. By defining helpful phrases to counter the critical inner voices (e.g., "You won’t succeed" → "I have worked enough and am well prepared. Now I give my best, and that is enough"), you guide the brain toward positive language. Repeating such statements often helps because they distract the mind, the unconscious mind listens in, and many phrases are also easily embodied—meaning they have a relaxing effect on muscles and the nervous system (embodiment).

But affirmations often do not suffice, because:

1. External criticism: The music industry is cutthroat when it comes to competition and concert reviews, and negative experiences and setbacks are often part of everyday life (Laverty, M. (2017)). These external factors can weaken the effect of positive affirmations by reinforcing the negativity bias.

   
   

2. Lasting neural imprints: Many negative experiences leave deeper neural traces in the brain, especially if they occurred during childhood and adolescence (see above: "Where they come from"). These imprints are hard to overcome because they are triggered automatically (Phelps, E. A. (2004)). Childhood experiences are particularly formative because the brain is especially plastic during sensitive phases—for example, when learning a native language or perfect pitch—which are also very difficult to suppress later.

   
   

3. Superficial changes: Superficial changes brought by positive affirmations often act like band-aids on deep wounds. They may help in the short term, but the deeply rooted feelings persist (Beck, A. T. (1967)). When the underlying stress or trigger is too strong, the ingrained thoughts and feelings run automatically. Additionally, many people need to first gather "evidence" that statements like "I am good enough" or "I don’t have to be perfect" are true; otherwise, these affirmations feel like inner lies because they learned as children that the world or themselves "are this way." Here, self-esteem-building measures, chair dialogues, and biographical work from schema therapy can be helpful.

Techniques That Can Help

The Three Sieves of Socrates

One of the oldest techniques goes back to an ancient anecdote attributed to Socrates, although it is not definitively proven. According to this, one should filter every gossip, as well as feedback or criticism from others, through "The Three Sieves of Socrates." This involves checking the statement three times:

1.) Is the statement true?

2.) Is it something good, or does the statement do me good?

3.) Is the statement useful?

If any of the three questions is answered with no, one should filter out the person’s statement, meaning not pay attention to it. This technique especially helps to distinguish useful from useless criticism or to recognize properly verbalized feedback.

Acceptance

The first step to overcoming the inner critics is acceptance. Acknowledge the existence of these voices instead of suppressing them. In practice, this can be done through targeted mindfulness exercises and reflective meditations.

Distance & Imaginative Techniques

Through mental techniques such as imagination exercises, musicians can learn to view their critical voices from a distance or mentally transform them. This dissociation helps reduce the influence of these thoughts and allows for a more objective perspective. This is the most popular exercise among the musicians I have worked with so far.  [Coaching for Musicians]

Time Limitation

An effective method is to give your inner critics and negative thought loops a set time during the day to consciously engage with them. This can help limit the number of critical thoughts and create space for positive thoughts and creativity. However, it’s important to stick to this “appointment” and individually determine how much time is needed.

Sustainable Building of Healthy Self-Confidence

A sustainable building of healthy self-confidence through consistent self-reflection and positive self-reinforcement is essential. In the long term, regularly working on one’s self-image through targeted feedback loops and self-comparison can strengthen inner resilience.

Self-Comparison

Setting your own goals and regularly reflecting on what went well and what still needs work is very helpful for getting used to comparing yourself with yourself rather than with others. This can be done through practice journals or agendas, both for tracking practice progress and for reflecting on concerts or auditions.

Read More:

Interview with the German Orchestra Association Unisono (german): https://uni-sono.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/2024-11-28-Huebsch-im-Interview-mit-HIldebrandt-und-Wenhardt-2024.pdf

Wenhart T. Mental Stark, psychisch gesund - Konzeption von Schema-Workshops für Musiker:innen und Musiklehrkräfte. 2024 DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.21773.51686

https://www.teresawenhart.com/_files/ugd/ef9191_0e637c90faf74a43a19de9fb64a90191.pdf

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Sources

• Festinger, L. (1954). A Theory of Social Comparison Processes. Human Relations.

• Bandura, A. (1977). Social Learning Theory. Prentice Hall.

• Laverty, M. (2017). The Realities of Rejection in the Music Industry. Journal of Music Business Research.

• Phelps, E. A. (2004). The Human Amygdala and the Emotional Brain. Current Directions in Psychological Science.

• Beck, A. T. (1967). Depression: Causes and treatment. University of Pennsylvania Press.