Posted under Practice
It’s odd, but it’s possible to really love doing something (like writing and playing music), yet simultaneously avoid it. To want to do it, yet keep putting it off. This is a creative block! I encounter them from time to time, and regardless of why it happens, it has a negative effect on technical performance, which inevitably declines with lack of practice. Yet forcing oneself to keep doing something when the love for it is (temporarily) absent, is also counterproductive IMO.
A way to deal with these ‘blocked’ periods is to reduce expectations, but still ‘do the minimum’. If I don’t feel like doing any original composition, or extended practice, I don’t. But I agree with myself that I will play each of my instruments every day. Even if I only play through one piece (or a couple of scales, exercises, etc) on each, or just do 10 minutes, and then leave it, I’ll do that little bit, with absolute consistency. This works, without fail - within a few days, my enthusiasm is back, and I’m playing for my usual much longer periods, motivated by enjoyment, not willpower! It’s also much easier to get back into it, than it is after not doing any music at all for a few days or weeks.
It’s ok to have ‘off’ periods, and to take a break if the passion isn’t there. But I’ve found that ‘keeping my hand in’ (with no pressure to produce or improve). even if just for a few minutes each day, works better than a complete break, both psychologically, and in terms of avoiding technical decline.
