#127: How to Set a Practice Schedule that Will Stick

Do you feel like you’re failing yourself in your practice?

Maybe you feel your practice isn’t as consistent or as focused as it should be. Perhaps even when you have enough time to practice, you’re finding it difficult to get started. You might find yourself sitting down to practice and using all your time deciding what you should be doing. You end up feeling confused, frustrated and tired instead of energized and excited about playing the harp.

And then you skip a day of practice. Then another day. Then you really mean to get back to it, but something urgent crops up that absolutely requires your attention. Then you start to dread getting back to practice because you know it’s going to sound terrible. Even worse, you feel guilty for having it let slip.

Does this sound like you? Don’t think I have some magical power to get inside your head. I could tell your story so well because it’s been my own experience too. I don’t feel good about my harp playing or about myself when I skip my practice. Those days of missed practice play havoc with my state of mind as well as with my music. 

It’s not that I don’t want to practice; I do. I even like practicing. And at this point, I do practice nearly every day, maybe not as much as I’d like, but enough. But it’s been a struggle to develop the systems and habits that allow me to practice even when my schedule is full to bursting.

You may be one of those people who are good about maintaining the boundaries in their life, and you are in control of your schedule. If that’s you, let me say that I would love to be like you. But I’m not that disciplined. I set my schedule for the day and then I watch it change as the day goes on. 

To be honest, you know that all you have to do is to set a practice schedule and then stick to it, but it just isn’t that easy, at least not for me. But I still manage to practice. And if you’re trying to set a practice schedule that you can stick to, or you’re just looking for some ways to make your practice habit stronger, then I can help.

On today’ episode, we will talk about how to:

• Create a sustainable and flexible practice habit that works for you.
• Find your focus from the first minute of your practice session so you can use every practice minute well.
• Make the practice habit stick. It’s one thing to design a habit. It’s another thing to actually live it.

Links to things I think you might be interested in that were mentioned in the podcast episode: 

• Register now for the new Theory Essentials Intensive: The Harpist's No-Nonsense Guide to Practical Music Theory
• Related resource Three Times When Not Practicing is NOT an Option blog post
• Harpmastery.com

Get involved in the show! Send your questions and suggestions for future podcast episodes to me at [email protected]