Practice Like The Pros!

When you are struggling with doing anything physical, whether it’s riding a bike, shooting a basketball through a hoop or trying to do something challenging on your musical instrument, there’s always this great source of pride and joy when you finally get over that hurdle and achieve that goal.  

A...

Of all the questions I’ve been asked from people wanting to start playing an instrument, the one I’ve heard the most is "How long does it take to learn music?”. I also hear “How long will I need to ‘get good’?” and “How long until I’m able to play a song?”

My answer to anything like this is always ...

For many budding musicians, the thought of playing live in front of an audience sends shivers of fear down their collective spines.  There’s that old adage that people fear public speaking more than they fear death itself.  If simply speaking in public is so terrifying for so many folks, then playin...

What’s the one thing people tell you to do if you want to achieve awesome musical skills?  I’ll give you a hint: It’s the way you get to Carnegie Hall.  Ding ding ding!!  That’s right!  Practice, Practice, PRACTICE!

But do they ever tell you HOW to practice?  How about music teachers?  They should ...

Let’s start this conversation out in a rather unique way: I hate the title of this blog!  Well, my parents taught me that I should never “hate” anything.  I could “strongly dislike” something, but you never want to get in the habit of hating.  We’ve all seen the terrible things hate does to people. ...

In all my years of teaching music, whether it was class instruction, clinics, lectures or private lessons, the number one challenge I’ve heard from people who want to practice and get better is finding time to do it consistently.  With work, school, family, and necessary errands, it seems that there...

People get into playing music for all kinds of reasons.  What I find interesting is that most people have a few superficial, albeit reasonable, reasons for starting to learn music.  They think it would be fun.  They want to jam with friends.  They want to play their favorite songs.  They think it’ll...

Oh boy!  There is a mountain and a half of research out there in Internet Land that can tell you how learning music helps with memory, cognition, motor skills, attention spans and all sorts for delicious brain food that will make us smarter human beings.  Music teachers use this as a persuasive mark...

I had a conversation with an adult student of mine recently who was very embarrassed and a bit ashamed that, after establishing and maintaining a regular and consistent daily practice ritual, he hadn't practiced for months.  "Man", he said "I was doing SO well.  I was playing everyday and I could re...

When it comes to practicing music, regardless of what instrument you play, there are a lot of ideas that people have that keep them from reaching their highest potential.   In our Practice Warriors Masterclass (at www.practicewarriors.com) we go over the many of these myths and either give them vali...