Here's how you can make the most of your practice time as a musician.

Can’t agree more! Entering practice with clear goals for the session and clear strategies to make the most effective use of that practice to get as close as possible to the goals will help gain more out of your practice sessions. Preparing to practice is also important, so that your practice time is used for practice! For example if you need a score or lead sheet, have that ready in advance. If you practice with a backing track, ensure it’s setup and ready for easy playback when you sit for your practice. And avoid distractions, put that phone to DND!

Think of setting goals like giving yourself a treasure map. Without it, you’re just wandering aimlessly in the musical wilderness, hoping to stumble upon the holy grail of perfect pitch. Mastering a scale or nailing a challenging passage? That’s your ‘X marks the spot.’ And improving your timing? That’s so your drummer stops giving you the side-eye. By making your goals SMART, you ensure that each practice session is more than just a musical daydream. Plus, if your dog does eat your Post-it notes, at least you'll know you had a plan...sort of.

Setting short-term goals is very important. Long-term goals are easy to identify (e.g. concert, audition, etc.) but you need to outline short-term goals, like checkpoints along the way to a final destination. When I practice, some of my goals for a particular practice session can range from improving a technical element through specific exercises to addressing a section of music that's giving me trouble. I like the idea of facing my playing weaknesses head-on and early in the process, so I can then work on musical interpretation without the added weight of technical insecurities.

Warming up for musicians is like preheating an oven before baking a cake. Skip this step, and you'll end up with a half-baked performance and probably some musical indigestion. Think of those technical exercises and scales as your musical stretches—no one wants to pull a finger muscle, after all. And mentally, it’s your chance to switch from “Netflix-and-chill” mode to “Bach-and-crush-it” mode. So, take those few minutes to limber up; your future, non-injured, perfectly in-tune self will thank you. Plus, if you start with a warm-up, your instrument might just forgive you for last night’s impromptu jam session that went a bit too wild.

I spent a lot of time in sports when I was younger and learned the importance of warming up and cooling down, mainly for physical reasons but (less talked about) for mental reasons as well. So I transferred that information to my musical training. For both violin and piano, I start off with a few minutes of simple exercises to get mentally engaged, then I transition to the basics (like scales, arpeggios, etc.), then more more demanding études/studies. My warm-up essentially leads into my technique-building. It's a good way to slowly transition into 'focus mode' and prevent injuries. Most musicians are not aware of how easily it is for repetitive strain injuries to take a toll on the body, so warming up muscles/joints is crucial.

Isolating issues in your music is like finding the squeaky floorboard in an old house. Instead of tearing the whole place apart, you focus on that one annoying spot. Playing the entire piece over and over hoping the tricky part magically fixes itself is like expecting a cake to bake better if you just keep opening and closing the oven. Spoiler alert: it won’t. So, take that pesky measure, slow it down to snail speed, and give it the attention it craves. Once you've tamed it, you'll wonder why you ever let it boss you around. Plus, this method saves you from the frustration of feeling like a broken record—unless you’re into retro vibes, in which case, carry on.

Using tools in your practice is like having a personal trainer who doesn't judge you for eating that extra donut. Metronomes are your no-nonsense timekeepers, making sure you don’t turn your piece into a freeform jazz experiment (unless that’s your thing). Recording devices? They’re like your brutally honest friend who tells you that your new haircut might not be the best. And those apps and software? Think of them as musical superheroes, swooping in to save you from the perils of bad sight-reading and pitchy ear training. So, embrace the tech! It’s the 21st century—if we can have smart refrigerators, we can definitely have smart music practice.

Reflecting daily on your practice is like giving yourself a personal performance review, but without the awkward small talk and the fear of your boss. It’s your chance to bask in the glory of nailing that tricky passage and to gently remind yourself that playing the kazoo part in your violin concerto might need rethinking. Keeping a practice journal sounds fancy, but it’s basically your musical diary where you can write, "Dear Diary, today I discovered I have the rhythm of a malfunctioning robot. Must work on that." This little habit ensures that every session isn't just a blur of notes. Plus, when you look back and see your progress, you’ll have proof that all those hours weren’t just an elaborate plot to annoy your neighbors.

Consistency is key to improving in any aspect of life. Music is no different. In fact, it is more apparent in music than anything else because if one doesn't keep practicing mindfully, the mind tend to diminish the ability that a person is trying to master. That's why it's important to learn music as a child because it makes them more aware at a young age the importance of being consistent and sticking to something.

Figure out what you’re going for and play with intention! You’ll be surprised what can happen when you’re concentrated on something special vs jamming / doodling.