Every so often, it can be useful to step back and evaluate our big-picture trajectories before we zero in on the day-to-day routines that will help us get where we want to be. I came across some wisdom on this topic on The Mental Game of Musical Theatre podcast by Broadway veteran, professor, and CS contributor David Eggers. There is a lot of outstanding advice in this podcast in the form of interviews with Broadway professionals. I recently listened to an episode with actor, singer, and songwriter Gavin Creel and was struck by the way he describes the importance of seeking small, daily joys—what he calls “tiny victories.” (The two-part episode with Creel is available here and here.).
Essentially, Creel believes that storing up regular tiny victories gives us balance and perspective that allows us to better handle the aspects of life that do not work in our favor. For him, a tiny victory sometimes comes from trimming his hydrangea bushes, or engaging in conversations with the server at his local deli, or committing to regular meditation sessions. By amassing these sorts of small joys, he feels more grounded when challenges arise related to his work (“like walking into that audition room, or weathering that call, ‘I’m sorry, Gavin, it’s not going your way'”) or when faced with one of life’s inescapable, larger disappointments (“those breakups, those losses, those deaths”). As he says,
“Those big, big, big things that seem insurmountable are coming for you, for me, for all of us. If I don’t have a practice in place for me to be able to weather those things, you’ll get through it, but it makes it a lot harder.”
While this is powerful advice for big-picture life events, I think the same philosophy can be applied to small-scale events like vocal practice. When we are practicing difficult material, or working to develop complicated techniques, each practice session has the potential to accumulate “tiny losses” or even (to be a bit dramatic) “tiny tragedies.” Does the world stop spinning if you crack on a high note? Of course not, but it doesn’t feel good when it happens. Incorporating “desirable difficulties” (described here) that take focus and effort to overcome is an important part of meaningful practice. As one of my friends reminded me recently, “Making mistakes is a sign of effort,” and both mistakes and effort are necessary for progress. [Consider revisiting “Failure is the ONLY option“]
So, maybe what our practice sessions need are intentional tiny victories in order to offset the inevitable tiny tragedies that are part of effortful practice. Maybe every practice session needs to include time when you sing something you love just because you love it. Maybe in every session you should stop at some point to recognize, “Hey, that’s something I couldn’t do two years ago!” Maybe when you notice the bad feelings that come along with tiny tragedies, you can say, “I’m feeling frustrated by this because I’m a sensitive person, and being a sensitive person is a big part of what makes me a great artist.”
I would guess that, in some sessions, there may seem to be more tragedies than victories (tiny or otherwise). But, if we follow Creel’s advice and look for more tiny victories to recognize, the balance may swing in a more positive direction.
Author’s Note
