Improve Musicianship Without Lifting a Finger

It's strange how your mindset can change so much about what kind of musician you are-- It can motivate you, or it can destroy you. A simple change in the way you think can help you break free from the "plateau" you've been on, and push you forward. But in this case, for me, brought took me down...hard.

The Problem:
I realized recently that over the course of the past few months, I developed an unnecessary and destructive habit, that I believe every musician should watch out for: becoming too critical. Musicians all have their insecurities (I'd like to think we're perfect too...but let's face it), and mine got the best of me. When I would listen to my peers, I started ignoring all the good things about their playing/singing, and I would pick apart the negatives instead-- "he's flat on his high notes", "she's rushing", etc. Keep in mind, this was all mental, I never actually said anything, nor did I realize I was even having these thoughts.

Background info:
My musicianship skills have improved quite a bit since I made the transfer to the music department at University of North Texas. My voice is better than ever, my songwriting is better, and I have learned so much new information about music. Despite all of this, however, I have found myself shying away from opportunities to stand out in the crowd that I would usually jump at. I have actually felt worse about my musicianship than I did when I first began, to the point where at times I don't even want to sing in front of people! (I haven't felt that in years). I have felt helpless in my practice sessions, like I am accomplishing nothing, and because of that my practice time has drastically deteriorated from 3+ hours a day (on top of rehearsal), to the bare minimum to keep up with my classes.

What Happened?

All that energy I had spent criticizing other people, all the negative thoughts I had about them as musicians, I reflected back on myself. Where I would have seen opportunities for improvement before, I saw only flaws and defects. I had become way too hard on myself, and in my subconscious desire to bring other people down, I really only brought myself down. Way, way down.

Honestly, I didn't even really realize I was developing such negative thoughts at the time, but regardless, those vibrations just bounced around my subconscious mind. I didn't feel like I deserved to get any better, so I didn't. All I could think about myself was "You're not doing this right."

Luckily, I was able to catch this problem after only a few weeks, but those were some of the most discouraging weeks of my entire music career (which made it feet like months).

How I fixed it:

It was a simple solution, really, but at the same time it was surprisingly hard to execute. I started trying to find the good in everyone's voice/instrument. But I mean everyone. From the most out of tune members of my ensembles, to reject American Idol auditioners, to my least favorite bands. I made it my goal to start seeing the potential in everyone, rather than the flaws-- and don't get me wrong, it was no walk in the park. I had to force myself to change my mindset, and by constantly applying my new mindset, I began to see potential in myself as well. Within days, I started to feel more positive. I felt more productive because I started believing I could accomplish something in my practice time. I felt ready to take on new risks, new challenges, and allowed myself to grow again.

I challenge you: try and see the potential in everyone too. You will start to realize the vast amount of growth that is possible in your fellow musicians as well as in yourself. So start looking for the possibilities, because there's no point dwelling on problems.

Feedback? Questions? Don't Hesitate to email me! Nehal@musicians-make-it.om