Article by: Alessandro Lani
VQS Advice Blog | _{^{Mindset Tools for Musicians}}

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Learning an instrument is a crucial part of becoming a musician.

Today, we will focus on 5 essential tips to help you while learning the language of music through your instrument. Let’s go!

Table of Contents
1. Be Passionate
2. Be Persistent
3. Crush Your Goals
4. Take Your Time
5. Find the Right Mentor

1. Be Passionate

Passion will lead to two other necessary components: patience and desire.

You have to love what you do to allow yourself to be motivated and inspired throughout your journey. If you are passionate, you will crave more and more knowledge as time goes by. This will allow you to not rush to reach your goals and to study everything as thoroughly as you can. This brings us to the next tip…

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2. Be Persistent

If you remain persistent, playing your instrument will soon come naturally!

I play guitar and since it is an instrument played with the hands, our hands get their expertise through everyday practice. This concept can be easily applied when you are trying to master your instrument.

Spend some more time on things you may not be easily grasping until you perfect them! Also try to dedicate at least ten minutes to practice every day.

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3. Crush Your Goals!

Creating, tackling, and eventually crushing your goals builds self-esteem and enthusiasm. We will face every obstacle we find along the road with courage and motivation knowing we have the power to overcome it. Setting deadlines is crucial in keeping motivated.

Your deadlines for goals can be…

1. Short term (weeks)
2. Medium term (months)
3. Or long term (years)

By setting and reaching your goals, you will stay motivated on your journey! This ties in to our next tip…

4. Take Your Time

Think of learning as a life-long experience.

Of course, we would all like to see results as quickly as possible, but in reality, greatness takes time to perfect. It took me 7-8 years of learning with a great teacher before even enrolling in music school and after that time, I was confident in my ability to graduate and gain my degree.

Never stop studying and never stop learning. A life-time would not be enough to learn all about a subject like music or any of the arts, so just enjoy the ride!

5. Find the Right Mentor

As I mentioned in tip #4, I immediately found the right mentor for me and consider myself lucky. I studied with him for almost 8 years, but I always remember him telling me how he struggled throughout his life to find a great teacher for more than 10 years. He traveled half of the country to find someone who could convey music concepts to him effectively.

When finding a teacher, ask yourself these questions:

1. Do they seem passionate about what they are doing?
2. Have they previously experimented or studied the curriculum they are teaching?
3. Do you improve every time you have lessons with this person?
4. Does this person play songs and exercises along with you during lessons?
5. Do they listen and help you when you ask them questions?

Make sure that the teacher is benefiting you and your music career, so that you get the most out of your time with them!

Summary:

1. Be Passionate
2. Be Persistent
3. Crush Your Goals
4. Take Your Time
5. Find the Right Mentor

I hope that my teacher’s story will inspire you to never give up. He started to learn guitar the right way after more than ten years and now, I would only recommend him to someone who wants to learn this instrument. Just know, that your desire to do something can make you overcome even the biggest challenges.

How will you use these tools to take on perfecting your instrument? We’d love to hear from you!

Article by: Alessandro Lani
^{VQS ADVICE BLOG | MINDSET TOOLS FOR CREATORS}