--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Skill in any performance whether it be in…" description: "\"Skill in any performance whether it be in sports in playing the piano in conversation or in selling merchandise consists not in painfully and conscious..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35a/maxwell-maltz-3463_action_skill-in-any-performance-whether-it-be-i_3086380.png" --- # Skill in any performance whether it be in sports in… ![“Skill in any performance whether it be in sports in playing the piano in conversation or in selling merchandise consists not in painfully and consciously thinking out each action as it is performed but in relaxing and letting the job do itself through you. Creative performance is spontaneous and…” quote by Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35a/maxwell-maltz-3463_action_skill-in-any-performance-whether-it-be-i_3086380.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35a/maxwell-maltz-3463_action_skill-in-any-performance-whether-it-be-i_3086380.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35a/maxwell-maltz-3463_action_skill-in-any-performance-whether-it-be-i_3086380.png) > “Skill in any performance whether it be in sports in playing the piano in conversation or in selling merchandise consists not in painfully and consciously thinking out each action as it is performed but in relaxing and letting the job do itself through you. Creative performance is spontaneous and ‘natural’ as opposed to self-conscious and studied.” [Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Skill emerges when actions become automatic, not over‑analyzed, allowing natural flow and creativity. **In simple terms:** Skill is natural, not over‑thinking. Key Takeaway Relax and let instinct guide performance. Themes skill creativity flow performance confidence Mood confident calm focused Type motivational philosophical When to use this quote - sports - music - conversation - sales - public speaking Key Concepts automaticity muscle memory mindset flow state Questions to Reflect On - How can you balance preparation with spontaneity? - When does instinct become a liability? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on instinct can lead to careless mistakes. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Action](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/action/) [Communication](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communication/) [Conscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conscious/) [Conversation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conversation/) [Creative](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative/) [Creative Performance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creative-performance-5286616/) [Creativity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/creativity/) [Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jobs/) [Natural](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/natural/) [Performance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performance/) [Performance Spontaneous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performance-spontaneous-2381905/) [Performances](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performances/) [Piano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/piano/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Self conscious](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self-conscious/) [Selling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/selling/) [Skill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skill/) [Skill Performance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skill-performance-5286617/) [Skills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/skills/) [Spontaneous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spontaneous/) [Sports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sports/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [Walking back and forth also helps by creating the illusion that you are thinking of the routines on the spot, giving your performance a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/franklyn-ajaye/walking-back-and-forth-also-helps-by-creating-the-illusion-that-you/) [Franklyn Ajaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/franklyn-ajaye/) > [The more you can make a performance seem spontaneous, the better an entertainer you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/soupy-sales/the-more-you-can-make-a-performance-seem-spontaneous-the-better-an/) [Soupy Sales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/soupy-sales/) > [I like to do the pictures before people get too self-conscious. 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You have to be free to jump…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alec-baldwin/great-acting-can-be-almost-a-psychotic-mix-of-self-consciousness-and/) [Alec Baldwin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alec-baldwin/) > [We never really know what might be beside us or ahead, but most days we walk as if we do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-catmull/we-never-really-know-what-might-be-beside-us-or-ahead-but-most-days/) [Katherine Catmull](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-catmull/) > [I feel self-conscious for even having met so many other band people and artists, I don't want to be that artist that is only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-jane-grace/i-feel-self-conscious-for-even-having-met-so-many-other-band-people/) [Laura Jane Grace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-jane-grace/) > [Salvador Dali has been called kitsch, but, although some of this work may be grotesque, its brazenly self-conscious bad taste saves it from being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-dutton/salvador-dali-has-been-called-kitsch-but-although-some-of-this-work/) [Denis Dutton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-dutton/) > [I ended up becoming so self-conscious that my songs stopped being about my life and started being about what people thought of my music.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-phair/i-ended-up-becoming-so-self-conscious-that-my-songs-stopped-being/) [Liz Phair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-phair/) > [I'm very self-conscious as an actor, with performances and things, and I don't like watching my own stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-lewis/i-m-very-self-conscious-as-an-actor-with-performances-and-things-and/) [Matthew Lewis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-lewis/) > [Being self conscious and insecure is a way of life, you can't expect to be confident 100% of the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-self-conscious-and-insecure-is-a-way-of-life-you-can-t-expect/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I was always looking at the ground because I was self-conscious about my height. I had big feet, big hands, and all that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-parish/i-was-always-looking-at-the-ground-because-i-was-self-conscious-about/) [Robert Parish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-parish/) > [I don't think my paintings are self-conscious but you feel the consciousness of them. Without them being self-conscious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-schnabel/i-don-t-think-my-paintings-are-self-conscious-but-you-feel-the/) [Julian Schnabel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-schnabel/) > [I used to be so self-conscious of having a unibrow. I would make my mum tweeze out the middle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacob-elordi/i-used-to-be-so-self-conscious-of-having-a-unibrow-i-would-make-my/) [Jacob Elordi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacob-elordi/) > [If you think about what you do, if you become self-conscious about it, you've got to be very careful. Because I really like to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-morgan/if-you-think-about-what-you-do-if-you-become-self-conscious-about-it/) [Peter Morgan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-morgan/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) ## More by Maxwell Maltz > [This Creative Mechanism within you is impersonal. It will work automatically and impersonally to achieve goals of success and happiness, or unhappiness and failure,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-maltz/this-creative-mechanism-within-you-is-impersonal-it-will-work/) [Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/) > [Your automatic guidance system cannot guide you when you're stalled, “standing still”.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-maltz/your-automatic-guidance-system-cannot-guide-you-when-you-re-stalled/) [Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/) > [You can do only one thing at a time. 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A bicycle maintains its poise and equilibrium only so long as it's moving forward towards something.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-maltz/functionally-a-man-is-somewhat-like-a-bicycle-a-bicycle-maintains-its/) [Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/) > [Faith, courage, optimism, looking forward, bring us new life and more life. Futility, frustration, living in the past are not only characteristic of 'old…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-maltz/faith-courage-optimism-looking-forward-bring-us-new-life-and-more/) [Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/) > [If you make friends with yourself you will never be alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-maltz/if-you-make-friends-with-yourself-you-will-never-be-alone/) [Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/) > [People who say that life is not worthwhile are really saying that they themselves have no personal goals which are worthwhile. Prescription: Get yourself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-maltz/people-who-say-that-life-is-not-worthwhile-are-really-saying-that/) [Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/) > [Take the trouble to stop and think of the other person's feelings, his viewpoints, his desires and needs. Think more of what the other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maxwell-maltz/take-the-trouble-to-stop-and-think-of-the-other-person-s-feelings-his/) [Maxwell Maltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maxwell-maltz/) > [Your present negative beliefs were formed by thought PLUS feelings. 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