Positive Thinking for Practising an Instrument

The most important aspect of music-making is enjoyment, and it's too often that teachers, students or employers forget this. Learning an instrument should never become a chore, or a strain on your time - it should be a pleasurable experience that you look forward to. Positive teaching and practising techniques are needed to make sure that music-making is always enjoyable. Here are some simple points to remember when practising and performing:

1. Praise. As musicians, we are highly critical of ourselves - we have to be or we wouldn't have the same drive to improve. However, always take time to praise every success, even small ones. Our brains are much more receptive to praise, meaning that if you congratulate yourself on - say, for example - a successful shift, you are much more likely to remember the feeling and reproduce it time and time again. However silly it may seem, saying a little "good" to yourself for these small achievements can make a big difference.
2. Slow it down. The more frustrated we get, the faster our hearts beat and the more we rush through things, often meaning a difficult passage will get worse and worse. The most important thing to remember when practising a challenging passage is to breathe. If we take the time to breathe, we relax and give ourselves the space to actually play the notes, rather than hopelessly hacking away! This doesn't necessarily mean to play at a slower tempo, just to calm down our body movements and really think about relaxing. 
3. Quality not quantity. Practising x hours a day, every day will not automatically make you a good player. It's important to listen to your body and take regular breaks, otherwise you are much more likely to practise in mistakes (or give yourself an injury). If you play something wrong enough times, due to being tired, you will end up remembering the mistake instead of the correct notes - so it's always best to be in a good mental state when you practise. Half an hour's concentrated practice is better than wearily going through the motions for hours on end. Similarly, there's no shame in having a day off! If you are tired, sad, drained or even just want to have a relaxing day instead, practising probably won't be very productive. If you try to learn a new piece while you're feeling sad, chances are you will forever associate that piece with feeling that way, so it's better to just have a guilt-free day off.
4. Enjoy it. Remember: whether in an audition, a concert, a lesson or an exam, everyone just wants to enjoy the music so try not to spend all your energy worrying about inaccuracies and suchlike. Obviously it is frustrating when nerves get the better of us, but it's important to remember that you're there to make music, not pass an exam (it's even useful to think this in exams!) If you dwell on small slip-ups, you're more likely to slip up again and you won't enjoy the experience. Chances are your audience won't have noticed, and even if they have they won't be dwelling on it unless you make it obvious that you're dwelling on it yourself. 

Happy practising!