Sometimes life demands that we take a break. And even if you are the most dedicated musician in the world you still need a break. And breaks can actually make us more productive in the long run. However, finding your practice routine after a break can be a challenging and the longer the break the larger the challenge. It doesn’t matter what age you are, what your skill level is or even what your goals are getting back into something can be a challenge for everyone.

Habit or Routine

Research suggests that it can take somewhere between 21 and 254 days to form a habit depending on the individual and the complexity of the task at hand.  Which means it could take some people the best part of a year to make practising a habit. And then every time its holidays you’d be back to square one. But what if instead of making practising a habit you made it a part of your school/work routine. By attaching it to a structured activity and building it into your almost daily routine and given enough repetition and time it can become a habit. Just like making your lunch and packing your bag for school/work becomes a habit.

I personally found this to be quite successful while I was at uni. Every morning I would wake up at 6:00 am get dressed and have coffee. At 6:30 I started flute practice and by 7:30 I was out the door (please note I did have other times during the day when I practised). And I did this every single uni day. Unfortunately, as soon as I graduated from uni my lovely practise routine/habit fell out the window.

• Breakfast
• Lunch
• Dinner 
• Cleaning your teeth
• As soon as you get home from work/school
• After watching the evening news
• After your after coffee/ tea
• At exactly 4:00 pm
• After you’ve watched one episode of Netflix
• Before you eat dessert
• Once you’ve put the children to bed
• After you’ve done your daily chores

There really is no limit to this list. Please add your suggestions in the comments below and let us know how you go setting up your practice routine.