If you always do what you've always done...

The definition of insanity according to Albert Einstein is “Doing the same thing, over and over again, but expecting different results.” Yet despite us all kinda knowing this already, we still do it in our practice rooms on a daily basis. But why!?

Afraid of trying something new? Stuck in a rut? Can’t be bothered trying a different angle? We’re comfortable with our inadequacies? Gives us something to complain about to our friends or colleagues – “I’ve tried this section over and over a million times and still can’t get it right. This piece sucks!”

Whatever reasons you might have (and I’ve had all of those excuses and loads more!), you have the power to change this habit by being more present and conscious whilst practicing, rather than just going through the motions and clocking up the hours.

Think about how switched on you are in the practice room each day, say for a half hour session. Now think about how you would practice if you had to achieve the same progress, but in 20 minutes. Any difference? My guess is that you could do it, but you would be far more focused and deliberate in what you would work on and how you would approach it.

This flows over to performance too, as we tend to become more aware of everything when the bright lights on stage are glaring in our eyes. If we can build our “focus muscle” in the practice room by being far more alert, this will naturally lessen the gap between practice and performance, making the leap much more manageable.

So next time you’re practising, try putting on your timer for 75% of your usual session length, and see what changes. Comment below and share your results, this might be interesting!

Next week I’ll give you another practice technique that will double your practice efficiency, stay tuned!