by Jeff Nelsen and Katy Webb
Has anybody told you today that you are AMAZING? And we mean absolutely amazing. We don’t care if things are messy, challenging, frustrating, or not working as planned…well, we do care, but what we REALLY care about is that you remind yourself that, no matter the messiness, you woke up today and said, “I’m going back at it!”
Even when things don’t go as planned, you’re still going. You believe in yourself, your music, and your students enough to say, “Here I am! Let’s do this! Let’s keep moving forward!” Not everyone will do that. So, here’s your little reminder that, yes, you are amazing.
We’d love to help you show up to your daily practice a little readier amidst the messiness, so here’s a quick-start guide to create a renewing, fail-proof practice ritual. Greg McKeon says, “A ritual is a habit with a soul.” This 10-to-25-minute ritual is designed to give you space to renew your musical soul so that you can walk into the new year feeling accomplished, fulfilled, and eager for future opportunities.
Pull out your calendar…yes, right now!
Mark which days you want to practice and which days you want to take off.
Make it a date!
Find a 10-to-25-minute block of time you can commit to on most practice days. Then, complete one of these sentences: “I will start my practice ritual at [TIME] in [LOCATION]” or “After I [CURRENT HABIT], I will start my practice ritual.”
Fill your ritual with things you love.
This is YOUR time, so use it to explore your sound in a way that is renewing for you. We’ve used our time to play quality tones along with a favorite show, to meditate on simple, beautiful melodies, and to improvise along with favorite tracks on our play lists. (And don’t forget a nice candle, an inspiring poster, and a yummy drink for after, too!)
Social proof it.
Build your accountability pod. Get a text chain going so you can check in, swap your creative practice ideas, or pick a challenge to do together. We’re on a "prevail the scale" kick! We’ve been loving Nathan Cole’s Scales: The Road to Repertoire and have been exploring books of scales written for different instruments. If you don’t have an accountability pod, join ours! DM or tag us on Instagram with your scale wins and discoveries.
Effective practice is anything that helps you gain knowledge about yourself, your instrument, or your music. Can you imagine how it would feel to have spent most days this month exploring music from a place of enjoyment? You CAN make little adjustments to approach this holiday season from a sustainable place of well-being as you keep your skills in top-notch shape!
If you’d like even more ideas, we’re hosting a free, live training session for players of all levels next week called How to (Consistently) Prepare for Your Performance: 5 refreshingly motivating techniques to drop the distress and perform your best amid final exams, final rounds, and final countdowns to the holidays. Register here!
Cheering you on!
