(This is a post dealing with skill development, whether you
are a musician, sports participant, business owner or budding artist. The logo implies music, and these ideas are
transferable to all endeavors. Thanks
for reading.)
The connections between skill and habit are critical pieces
in improving and perfecting a
skill.
If
you are one of the unfortunate millions who have picked up a bad habit in
performing a certain task, and you learn of an improved way of acting, the
change process could be painful and slow.
Habits have a tendency to become ingrained and resist change. Yet change can come in time.
In the book The Power
of Habits, Charles Duhigg tells us this:
“More than 40% of the actions
people perform each day
are not decisions but habits.”
That is a remarkable comment. Just yesterday my friend Travis and I tried
our hand at putting golf balls into a cup lying on the floor. He showed me a new grip for the putter which
is supposed to improve control and guidance.
It is a simple rearrangement by placing the left hand lower than the
right, which is a reverse of the way I was originally taught. At best, it was awkward, but I do know that
in time I could make this reposition of my hands as natural as every other
habit in my life.
In your skill, what habits do you automatically fall
into? As a musician, are there fingerings
that have become your default patterns and you have never given them a second
thought?
As a sports performer, what are your habit traps? If there is a change to be made, remember to
allow yourself patience in reordering your brain and muscle memory.
From The Habit: “Habits
can be changed if we know how they work.”
I am a drummer who happens to be
dominantly left-handed. When I was first
learning I had to adapt to a drum set positioned as my right-handed drummer
friends used and I never gave it a second thought. The idea of rearranging my drum set to compliment
my natural biological imprint was not even in my thinking, yet today, had I made
that change, I feel I would be a much better drummer.
If I were a serious drummer these days,
it would be beneficial, but since drums take a 3rd or 4th
place in my life, time prevents me from making this change.
You see, I formed the habit of playing drums
as a right handed drummer, even though I start almost every drum lick with my
left hand. It’s habit.
The brain stops working so hard once
habits form, thus engraining the habit even more.
If you have a habit to change in your
skill set, get ready for a fight, which can be won with persistence.
Michael Biggs
Steps and
Skips
Tips for
the Developing Student
