By Angela Peterson Winter
Do you like to practice?
Practicing is a discipline that some days will bring me sheer joy and others complete frustration. As a voice teacher and musician, I have heard or created almost every excuse against practicing there could be:
“I didn’t have time.”
“I had too much homework.”
“I couldn’t find time to be alone.”
“I wasn’t sure how the piece went.”
“My house needed cleaned.”
“I was too tired.”
“My dog needed walked.”
“I practiced last week.”
“My favorite TV show is on.”
I’m sure you’ve made up some others, too! My personal favorite is when I catch myself preferring to vacuum or, yes, even scrub toilets rather than practice. Is this because we’re lazy? That we don’t understand that practice is necessary for improvement in any area? No. Could these excuses also be the truth? Yes.
Life happens. Some days you ARE tired, or sick. Other days it can seem as though the universe is conspiring against you, and all your best-laid plans to make it to the practice room are turning to mush.
But other days, we get stuck in our stories, the excuse-loop that runs through our mind. Other days, we forget our dreams, and that it takes action to see them realized. We get caught in the procrastination world of “I’ll get to it right after…”. And still other days, we let the negative self-talk of “This is too hard. I’ll never get it. I’ll never be good enough. etc.” cloud our vision of what we might be capable of, if only we try.
What’s important to understand is that we are more than our thoughts. We are more than the stories we tell ourselves about not having enough: time, energy, knowledge, inspiration. We are also more than disciplined practicing robots who must get to the practice room every day for 3 hours, or else…
The truth is, we all have 24hrs in a day. Time is what we make of it and our priorities each day will guide how it is used. We are complex beings whose deepest desire is to know love, from ourselves and those closest to us, and we will naturally gravitate toward activities that create those feelings as well.
And so I ask you: why do you practice? What is the motivating factor?
Why do you practice your lip trills or tongue trills? Your runs? Work on recitative and your repertoire?
Is it because you love to sing? Because you love the feeling of sound and breath uniting? Or telling a story? Or because you love feeling the characters come to life?
Or do you do these things because you feel you’re supposed to? Because that’s what your teacher told you to do? Because you want to improve, and so you “have” to?
Or, likely, some combination of both?
The art of practicing is not just about discipline – about practicing every day without fail, whether you want to or not. This might lead to improvement, yes, but it may also lead to burnout, resentment, or just constant excuses. The art of practicing is about harnessing your ‘why’ and finding your love. This desire and joy will feed you in the thrilling times when you master a new technique and sustain you in the times when you just can’t seem to get it. And if you don’t love whatever it is you need to practice? Find something you DO love. Life is too short!
Let me know! What is YOUR motivating factor? How can you bring more love into your practicing routine and into what you choose to perform?
Angela Peterson Winter, M.M. is a holistic voice instructor & certified life coach who helps people reconnect with their souls and unleash their authentic voice. She believes that learning to sing is a metaphor for learning to live and that by pinpointing and releasing the stuck places in body, mind, spirit, and voice, authentic & confident expression will propel you toward your dreams. She holds music degrees from Butler University, Westminster Choir College of Rider University, and certifications in life coaching and Contemporary Commercial Music teaching methodologies. She was also a 2011 participant in the competitive National Association of Teachers of Singing Intern Program. She lives outside Washington, DC with her husband and young daughter. Learn more at www.angelapetersonwinter.com.
