Being steeped in the process of learning and exploring keeps me from becoming too nervous. Partly it’s about not getting bored.

Fleming frames curiosity and continual study as a practical antidote to performance anxiety. By immersing herself in “the process of learning and exploring,” she shifts attention away from self-consciousness and toward craft—researching a role, refining technique, and discovering new repertoire. The remark also suggests that boredom is a hidden threat to artistic excellence: stagnation can breed restlessness, doubt, and nerves, while purposeful exploration sustains motivation and steadies the mind. In this view, mastery is not a fixed state but an ongoing practice; staying intellectually and artistically engaged becomes both emotional regulation and a source of longevity for a performer.