As the age-old phrase goes, “practice makes perfect”. When it comes to music, this can't be truer.  Regardless of which instrument you play, daily practice, though tedious, can make a world of a difference in terms of achieving the success that many desire. In fact, the Greek philosopher Aristotle once said, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act but a habit.”

​

Typically, we practice musical instruments because practicing consistently helps us become better at playing a specific song, or further familiarize ourselves the instrument we are attempting to master. Here’s an analogy: compare practicing music to revising topics learnt in school—the reinforcement of skills we so painstakingly picked up will remain fresh in our minds. Maintaining routine practice sessions helps with memory and retention of musical knowledge and skills as we have to try not to forget all that we’ve learned and use these skills correctly on a regular basis. In fact, we may even improve at these skills with time.

​

An important thing to note is that quality always trumps quantity. When we practice, the amount of time we spend on it has less of an impact on how effective the practice is as compared to how we practice. For instance, merely practicing a song from start to finish is not exactly the best way of getting better at it. A more useful strategy would be to gradually work on the song, moving through it slowly and repeating challenging sections deliberately, while knowing what needs fixing. 

​

This also applies to daily life. Whatever it is that we’re doing, from science to soccer to sewing, practicing with intention and deliberation is an ideal way to make slow but steady progress in your chosen hobby. It also builds confidence, patience, and diligence as well as talent. With determination and grit, practicing enables us to understand a little more about what we’re learning, step by step as each day passes, while increasing our self-esteem and ability to focus in the long run.
 
However, as hard as we try, the wretched feeling of wanting to “quit” or “give up” is indeed inevitable. Despite this, it is crucial to power through this and keep up good practice habits nonetheless. A good way to do this is to adopt a growth mindset. People who have a growth mindset think the skills and talents they have are abilities they can develop through hard work. Having a growth mindset allows one to be passionate about the things they’re learning and look on the bright side, focusing on what they’ve already done well and how they can use this to do even better when faced with adversity. This allows them to become resilient. After all, as professional gymnast Simone Biles puts it, “Practice creates confidence. Confidence empowers you.”
 
Practice is incredible, because whether done in musical pursuits or in everyday life, as it can enable us reach greater heights when we yield the fruits of our labour, and teach us to always aim for bigger, better, and brighter things.