January is a time when many of us take stock of our habits and choices and think about what changes we may want to make. And if you’re anything like me, your playing time drops during the holidays! It’s normal to fall out of the habit of playing ukulele when life gets busy, so today I’m sharing a simple tip to help you get back on track…
Ask Yourself, What is One Tiny Step I Can Take to Start Playing Again?
And I’m serious about “tiny.” We’re not trying to move mountains here, we’re trying to make one minor tweak to your daily routine to make playing ukulele easier. If you’re stumped, here are a few ideas to help you figure out what might work for you:
Move Your Ukulele Around the House
Make sure you don’t keep your uke in its case when you’re at home! Put it on a hook or stand in the room where you’re most likely to play. Or, if your uke has blended into the background and you’re no longer noticing it, move it somewhere new.
Pick up your uke every day
You don’t even have to play it. You’re just picking it up once a day to remind yourself that your uke is there for you. After a week or two of doing this, I expect you’ll find a minute to strum a few chords before you put it back down!
Put it on your schedule
If you have a hard time meeting goals without having outer accountability, think of how you can incorporate others into your practice to help you meet your goals. Schedule a lesson, plan a jam with a friend or two, or go to a local meet-up to strum with others.
Remind yourself why you play
What was it that drew you to the ukulele anyway? Was it to fulfill your creative side? Are you role modeling for your children? Is being a musician an important part of your identity? When we fall out of the habit of playing regularly, sometimes we can get motivated to begin again by reminding ourselves of why we started playing in the first place.
These suggestions may seem ridiculously small, but that’s the point. If you’re out of the habit of playing, you don’t need to beat yourself up about it. You just need to take that first step to ease your way into the practice of playing again. Check out my Habit Hacks series for more tips on maintaining a daily practice.
Shout out to The Lazy Genius episode #58 for inspiring this post. Her podcast is a valuable listen for anyone who enjoys thoughtful and practical life hacks and her website offers a variety of valuable, free content for listeners.
