We all have big dreams, desires and goals. However, Let’s face it, starting to learn almost anything new can often not be very fun. Whether you are learning a new instrument a new hobby or anything else, it can take a while to get the hang of it. And its usually not till we get the hang of it that we begin to enjoy it. So how do we get through that first part? And how do we even learn to enjoy the beginning?
In school, there were a few different techniques that our teachers and parents used to help us get up this learning curve. Some of the parents and teachers punished you if you got bad grades or maybe took away some privileges. And because you wanted your privileges back, you forced yourself to get down to business, study and get good grades.
However, the really good teachers went with a different approach, which I think is the best one of all…
They made it FUN!!! Whoever said learning had to boring and dull? Think back to kindergarten, 1st and maybe even 2nd grade and 3rd grade… didn’t your teachers try to make learning fun?
I remember my teacher in 3rd grade Mrs. Hoffman, we were learning our multiplication tables and each student had a paper ice cream cone on the wall with their names on it and for each set of multiplication tables we passed off we received a paper scoop of ice cream. I have always been very competitive, and because I wanted my scoop to be higher than every one else’s the fastest, I learned my multiplication tables. It was only because she made it fun.
We can use this same technique now! We must learn to enjoy the process of learning and just dive in. Let’s take learning guitar as an example. I have been learning to play guitar off and on, mostly off, for many years. However, in the past few years, I’ve decided I really want to master the guitar. If you are interested in following me on this journey, follow me on Facebook where I post most of my guitar videos.
For the first year of getting back into it, I forced myself 5-6 days a week to practice minimum 15 minutes a day, and I hated a lot of that time but I hardly missed a day. Sometimes I would do that 15 minutes at 1 am. And as a result I got significantly better in that first year. Better yet, I began to enjoy the process more, I now try and learn a song a month.
However, sometimes it can be hard to sit and practice the same part of a song repeatedly for hours. I am currently learning a song called “You and Me” By Life house that I have to use bar chords for and I have practiced a 30 second section of the song for hours now.
I don’t know about you, but things that are monotonous can feel boring, just like learning the bar chords in this 30 second section bridge. So I do the same thing to myself that the best teachers have been doing for years!
I MAKE IT FUN!!
Now, how can you make learning the same 30 seconds of a song fun for hours?
For me, I love sports and I spend a few too many hours watching them. So while I’m watching them, I pull out my guitar and practice the hard parts of the song. I can still watch my sports, I stop playing if the game gets really exciting but for the most part I just sit there in my chair and practice the same 3 chords over… and over… and over… and guess what? I get better and learn them.
What about you? What is something that you are currently trying to learn and do better? How can you make it even more fun? I’d love to hear your suggestions.
Also as you are learning remember to be easy on yourself, often times we feel we should master things over the course of a few hours, but true mastery takes a life time, work hard but enjoy the journey.
If you are currently really struggling with figuring out to make that thing you are learning fun or you would just like to have a deep coaching experience with me via video chat, then contact me and I’d be happy to do so.