Annie Murphy Paul, author of “Origins”, says that “without deliberate practice, even the most talented individuals will reach a plateau and stay there”. Ms. Paul adds, “It’s not how much you practice but whether you’re quick to fix your errors that leads to mastery”.
This is a subject well worth tackling because often we find ourselves just going through the motions with mindless practice time. That is a great way to reinforce bad habits because we are unable to focus solely on one particular issue and solve it. It could be a vocal/technique problem, a musical or word correction or even a discovery about the character you are working to create. You might try to delude yourself into thinking that you will actually improve as you go about this task of practicing unconsciously. How often do you find yourself doing this; you are somewhere off in your head not wanting to address the real work that needs to be accomplished. Yes you might have even achieved a level of competency that makes you feel good about yourself. But what you don’t do is intentionally look for ways that you are failing.
It’s important to know that the kind of time you need to put in can be boring and feel like a waste of time. None the less, even though it can be, dull, and tedious work, it also has to be mindful, conscious, committed and deliberate work that has your full attention and focus as you let go of all those unwanted thoughts that continue to distract you from accomplishing your goal.
How often do you spend your practice time enjoying and strengthening your “already in place” strong points rather than ferreting out your mistakes and weaknesses. Studies show that practice aimed at remedying mistakes and weaknesses the minute you find them is a better predictor of proficiency than the raw number of hours you spend making music for fun and repeating what you already know. Doing this mindless kind of practicing does not allow you to efficiently reach a new level of expertise and yields almost no improvement or positive affect.
So, how does one create a deliberate practice routine? It’s clear that simply making a dutiful daily commitment to practice is not enough. Long hours of practice are not enough. Deliberate practice requires effort and as I mentioned before, is not inherently enjoyable. As you practice and work your technique and pieces, notice and address your mistakes immediately. Stop and find the precise location and source of each error, then figure out with your current amount knowledge, what you need to adjust or change. Then practice just that part in a mindful manner again and again reinforcing the new habit.
You need to relentlessly focus on your weaknesses constantly hammering away at those flaws until they’re gone so you create a powerful new habit. You have to consistently invent and reinvent new ways to root them out. You have to then carefully monitor your results and if necessary ask for the help of someone whose ears and advice you trust, take notes and get ready for the next round of ruthless self-evaluation and mindful practice. Know that after almost two decades of research on this subject, they now recognize that practicing in this manner is exactly what distinguishes the merely good from the great. So go out there and put this information in play and notice who else notices your improvement.
Avanti and ciao until next time. Carol
Deliberate Practice
