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One of the biggest challenges of teaching, whether it's children or adults, is getting your students to practice. When you're a kid
you have your mom and/or dad breathing down your neck to put in the hour or two so you don't waste their money at your lesson,
keep up with the other kids, use your full potential and talent, stick with it and/or continue to make progress so you don't get too
frustrated and quit. Since adults are self-motivated, they don't have someone to help encourage them to practice in their home. They
don't have the constant nagging. They don't have the encouragement when a parent says "that sounds better today, good job."
I try and be that parent but I'm not home with them on a daily basis. So how does one motivate adults? With knowledge, information and
constant challenges. I encourage my students to make their practice sessions quality, not quantity, but to try and consistently pracice
as many days in a row as they can, even if it's only for 20 minutes each session.
At the bottom of my links page there are several links to websites with practice tips and articles.
These tips not only apply to music, but practicing anything - public speaking, sports - something you want to improve on. I suggest
checking out practicespot.com for in-depth, inspiring help. Also, there are good suggestions
in the book Making Music For the Joy
of It by Stephanie Judy. It gives concrete tips on how to practice when you don't feel like it, what to do if you only have a few minutes
to practice, planning your practice sessions and more. This book is also great for all-around everything such as ensemble playing, how to
pick a teacher, preparing for a performance, etc.
Do yourself a favor - open up the case of your instrument. My students tell me that's the hardest thing. Once you begin playing you'll
think to yourself "now why didn't I want to do this, it's so satisfying and enjoyable and this is why I do it." And the more
you practice, the better you'll get at practicing and playing your instrument, the more quickly you'll improve, the more repertoire you'll
be able to enjoy. And that will make all those hours of practice worth it.
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