The Role of Determination in Learning Music
Learning a new skill can be a fun and exciting endeavor. If we are learning in a group setting many of us may use others as a benchmark and source of comparison to measure our level, rate of learning, and overall quality of skill. There is nothing wrong with a little healthy competition in a learning environment as it can help you push yourself further than you might have gone alone. Regardless of whether you are learning music in a group, one on one with yourself and an instructor, or independently determination plays a key role in your learning.
Often times the best students are not the ones that seem to immediately grasp the material or the ones who have the most talent. They are the ones who refuse to give up. Quitting is easy, we can come up with any number of self- serving excuses. What makes a person stand out is when they are willing to push past their obstacles and rise to the challenge. There are times life will throw obstacles in your path, sometimes you genuinely might not have the time, energy, or resources, to pursue your passion, however, you can always return to it later if it is something you still want to pursue.
Don’t lose heart when pursuing your passions and try not to get too wrapped up in how others are doing that you forget your own success. We each learn and operate at our own unique pace and there is nothing wrong with that. Simply do your best and keep trying, that’s all anyone can really ask of you. Vince Lombardi put it best when he said “The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand. “