1. Know Your Strengths

Picking the best game show for your skills goes a long way toward getting you onstage, says Steve Beverly, founder of specialty news site TVGameShows.net. If you can't solve word puzzles, for example, your chances of landing on 'Wheel of Fortune' are slim. "But if you gulp when prices go up, then maybe 'The Price is Right' is right for you," he says. "Producers try to keep contestants from embarrassing themselves, and make the show entertaining."

Be sure to consider every angle. Even trivia buffs won't find game shows one-size-fits-all. "It would be absolutely disastrous for someone without immediate recall of facts to go on 'Jeopardy!,' where speed is the premium," Beverly says. "'Millionaire' would probably be a better choice because there you have unlimited time." (In 2000, contestant Katie Knudsen famously took 53 minutes debating whether Tonga or Palau was the most recent country to join the United Nations, a $500,000 question. Unfortunately, she was wrong.)

If your skills don't match up with a specific show, look for one that's more about risk-taking and luck, such as 'Deal or No Deal' or 'National Bingo Night.' "You don't have to know a thing -- except when to quit," says Beverly.