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100 Days of Practice

100 Days of Practice

Ahoy!

It should come as no surprise that in order to be a proficient performer, you need to practice. I've written before on different ways to structure your practice routine and today I'd like to share an extra challenge to help motivate you.

The challenge is called 100 Days of Practice. This is absolutely not my idea and you may have heard about this from any number of artists. I discovered this via the amazing violinist Hilary Hahn. If you're unfamiliar with her playing definitely check it out, link below. Anyway, the challenge is simple, practice EVERYDAY for 100 straight days, and post a portion on social media. Hilary posts a one minute clip on Instagram that most represents her session that day. What you post is entirely up to you so be creative. The point is simply to practice everyday.

A few things to help guide you: First, set a goal. This can be a large goal for all 100 days (like learning a challenging piece) or small daily goals like drilling scales. Whatever you're going to do, have a plan for at least the first month, especially if you don't normally practice every single day. Additionally, allow that goal to change. If you're no longer excited about your piece after month, change it! If scales are boring you to death, change it! Again, the point is to practice and be mindful about your playing.

Secondly, make your practice time manageable. There's nothing that says you have to practice 8 hours a day. If all you can afford is 20 minutes that's fine. Again, the point is simply to play every day, making small progress as you go.

Lastly, your practice doesn't have to be musical. Some days you really might be too busy to play, or you're traveling, or life in general happens. Find something you can do that still accommodates your goal of 100 days in a row. It could be as simple as a mindful stretching session while you're parked in traffic. Maybe it's taking that 20 minutes to search for a new piece that will excite you or listening to new music you otherwise wouldn't have time to get to. Mindfulness is key here. Don't let a day aimlessly slip away.

If you're not a musician, find your own 100 day challenge. Draw something specific for 100 days and see how it progresses and how much more fluid you become. Make the same craft, take a picture of the same thing, anything in your field. Mindfulness and repetition is all you're after. You will get better just by simply doing the task everyday.

I'll be starting my own 100 day challenge on Monday. Haven't decided yet what I'll do but that's ok. I'll figure it out. And so will you. Good luck!

Until next time,
Heard

PS- Make sure to follow Hilary Hahn (@violincase) on Instagram if you don't already. Check her past 100 day challenges and get a peek inside the life of a traveling violinist. Here's a video to inspire you:

Hilary Hahn: The Lark Ascending

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