You're learning how to play drums, but you're not learning as quickly as you would like to. Or maybe you're finding it hard to make your practice time a productive as you would like. Here are some tips that should help you make the most of your practice time and make learning how to play drums more fun.
- Set up a scheduled practice time
- Preplan your practice
- Get away from distractions
Setting up a scheduled practice time: Setting up a scheduled practice time will ensure that you're not only practicing regularly, but will get your mind more prepared for your practice sessions. Sit down and come up with a schedule. Whether you are practicing every day at 3:00 for an hour each day or practicing once per week on every Thursday at 1:00 for an hour, set your practice times up and stick to them.
Preplan your practice: Preplanning your practice time will make your much more productive. Decide which techniques, rudiments, etc that you are going to practice and how long you are going to spend on each area, So, you might decide to practice a certain beat you're learning for 20 minutes, then practice a certain rudiment for 20 minutes, and then spend 20 minutes practicing a new fill you just learned.
Get away from distractions: I can't stress this one enough and it can be the hardest tip to follow. Lock yourself in your room. Turn off your cell phone. Do whatever you need to do, but try your best to make sure you can complete your practice session with no interruptions. Interruptions can change your mindset and cause you to lose focus.
Now, it is inevitable that you're going to have emergency situations and unexpected events that cause you to miss a practice or have to end a practice early or start it late. If these things happen, don't fret. Just make sure you don't let them cause you to become frustrated. You can always alter future practice plans to compensate. Add an extra practice, make a future practice session longer, or just consider it a bad day and move on. When you first start learning how to play drums I want you to write down your practice schedule. Then check each practice off as you complete them. Take notes. Did you practice everything that you intended to practice? If not, what were the obstacles that prevented you from doing so? Review your notes and make changes when needed. Maybe there's a certain day that just isn't working as well for practicing as you'd like. Whatever the case--taking notes and reviewing them regularly will help you identify stumbling blocks that are preventing you from getting the most out of your practice time. After you've identified these stumbling blocks you can take action to remove them.
Well, good luck on your path to learning how to play drums. I wish you success and happy drumming.
