Motivation for Practising Music

Practising is hard work. It takes discipline and dedication. Unfortunately, there is no way around practising. Music students won't progress very far if they don't practice. As the saying goes: “Practice Makes Progress”.

Motivation is arguably the biggest challenge when it comes to practising. There is often an ebb and flow when it comes to practising. Motivation comes and goes. Many students experience periods of high enthusiasm as well as periods of low enthusiasm. Sometimes practising can feel like an absolute chore. In this blog post we are going to provide students and parents with strategies to help motivate them to practice.

Make Music Practising Part of Your Daily Routine

Making music practice part of your daily routine is a must. Creating a weekly music practice schedule for the same day and time whenever possible helps keep the daily routine going. It will also make remembering to practice easier.

Take One or Two Days Off Weekly

Everyone needs a break. Having a day off is one way to help motivate music students to practice and something they can look forward to. Taking rest periods is good for the mind and body. For many students, a successful practice schedule includes a five-day period where students try to practice at the same day and time and then having two days of rest. For some, practising Monday to Friday is ideal. This gives them the weekend to rest and to do other things. For others who have incredibly busy schedules crammed with multiple activities during the week, the weekends tend to be more free with time. In this case practising on the weekends and then adding three days during the week is ideal.

Set Goals and Use Incentives

Rewarding students for a job well done is highly motivational. Having a plan or goal with a reward in site is a really good way to help set students up for success by keeping them motivated. Rewards such as extra screen time on a device or gift cards are great motivators to practice. Simply choose a reward that a student really loves.

Celebrate Achievements

No matter how big or small the achievements it is is imperative to celebrate them. This not only provides encouragement but is also motivational. Reaching a goal can feel incredibly rewarding in it's own right. Memorizing a song, study, scale, or arpeggio from start to finish or attaining a certain speed on the metronome when practising just feels good!

Mix It Up

Variety is the spice of life. Keeping things fresh is a great way to avoid boredom. Focusing on different elements each practice session is a good strategy for practising. Try practising different scales and arpeggios each day. Learning different new songs is another way to keep things interesting. If you work on just one new song at a time chances are things are going to get boring. Reviewing old repertoire once or twice a week can really help mix things up. So much time is spent practising new material when learning an instrument that is is easy to forget about the old repertoire. Reviewing previously learned repertoire will not only break up the practice sessions creating variety, it will also ensure that the student will have an abundance of songs to perform.

Find What Works Best For You

Ultimately, you must find strategies that work best for you. Everyone is different and unique. Strategies that work for some might not work for others. Experimenting with different strategies is a great way to learn what works best for your life style and practice routine. Don't be afraid to try new things and make changes when things start to get boring. Remember, music can be a wonderful life-long journey, one that should be rewarding and fun!