When I first started playing drums with other people early in high school, one thing terrified me most and caused a great deal of anxiety every time I had to do it.

The count off.

Whether this was a “pshhh pshhh pshhh pshhh” on the hihats or a “ting ting ting ting” on the ride, nailing the count off for a song was an important necessity. (After all, you screw this up and the whole band’s gonna fall apart, right?)

I first started playing drums with the high school worship band at my church when I had just begun my junior year. This was the first time I’d ever really played drums with people, and this was especially the first time I’d played in front of a crowd. I’d been playing piano recitals and concerts as a kid since 3rd grade, but playing drums was an entirely different beast. It was way out of my comfort zone when I first started.

One Sunday morning, probably just a month or two into my drumming-in-public debut, I had to count...