How to Create a Piano Practice Habit + FREEBIE!

I am a firm believer in small daily habits. When we do something small each and every day, it will become something big. I have a favorite verse of scripture that reiterates this same concept. It says “By small and simple things are great things brought to pass.” In his popular book Atomic Habits, James Clear says,

“All big things come from small beginnings. The seed of every habit is a single, tiny decision, but as that decision is repeated, a habit sprouts and grows stronger. Roots entrench themselves and branches grow… The task of building a good habit is like cultivating a delicate flower one day at a time.”

James Clear, Atomic Habits

Piano is one of those things that needs to be worked on daily and consistently in order to see big progress. When I was a teenager, my piano teacher had a sign hanging on her door that said “You only have to practice on the days that you eat.” (Then in her handwriting underneath she added “or the days that end in “y.”)

She would always emphatically quote pianist Arthur Rubinstein, who talked about what happens when you miss a day of practice:

“If I miss one day….I know it. If I miss TWO days, the critics know it. If I miss THREE days, the WHOLE WORLD knows it!”

Arthur Rubinstein

(Anyone else who studied with Bonnie Winterton surely can hear her voice in their mind saying that quote with emphasis as they read it!)

I have seen this principle in my own piano practicing – practice time is scarce in this season of my life, with five young kids at home and much to do. But when I take a few minutes each day to practice I still see good results!

I have seen this principle work in my own children. We have put a greater emphasis on daily piano practice in our house lately and we are seeing such improvements in their playing!

I have seen this work in my piano students! We have been doing a Practice Streak Contest in my studio and as they have tried harder to not miss a day of practice I have seen great progress in their playing.

As piano teachers, we NEED to emphasize the importance of DAILY PRACTICE to our piano students and to their parents. Parents are so important in this equation – if they can help ensure that their child is practicing at home consistently – not just 2 or 3 times per week, but EVERY DAY, even if just for a little while, their child will make BIG progress.

In Atomic Habits, the author James Clear talks about Four Laws of Behavior Change. In order to create a habit (such as daily piano practice), you must make the behavior obvious, attractive, easy and satisfying. As I read this book there were SO many applications for piano practice! I want to share what I learned from the book about these Four Laws of Behavior Change and how they can apply to piano practice.

1. Make it obvious: Habits are initiated by cues, especially cues of location and time. Is the piano in a room or an area of the house that is frequently seen and visible? Are the student’s books nearby and visible? Does the student have a set time to practice the piano each day? These are things that make practicing obvious and will help to create a daily practice habit.
2. Make it attractive: Behaviors that get us approval, respect and praise are “attractive” to us. It is easier to create a habit that is a normal behavior of the people around us, or if it is something that the people around you value. What is the musical culture of the student’s family? Do the parents value music? Parents and families can influence your student’s desire to become good at piano. Similarly, a positive studio culture and healthy studio camaraderie can help influence your students to practice more.
3. Make it easy: When you reduce the friction associated with a behavior, you are more likely to do it. As humans we follow the Law of Least Effort – whatever takes the least effort to do, we will do. It is important to create a piano practice environment that will make practice easy.
4. Make it satisfying: To get a habit to stick, you need to feel immediately successful after doing that behavior; one of the most satisfying feelings is the feeling of making progress. A great way to achieve this is a simple habit tracker. Marking an X or filling in a box helps to measure your progress and helps you to feel successful. Don’t break the chain….if you do miss a day, don’t miss twice, just start over and try and keep your habit streak alive.

This book was SO good! I would highly recommend it to any piano teacher (or anyone for that matter!). It will give you some great ideas on ways to improve the practicing in your piano studio.

Today I’d like to share a freebie with you that can help your students develop a daily practice habit. This Practice Streak Tracker gives your students a system for tracking their daily practice. It provides a visual record of their progress and will help them to get a great practice streak going! When used in conjunction with a studio-wide Practice Streak Challenge, it will work even better!

The Practice Streak Tracker is a great thing for students to keep in their piano binder, on the wall near their piano or somewhere where they will see it every single day. Each day that they practice they mark the square for that day on their chart. They can either mark it with an X, color in the square or they can even write numbers in the squares to keep track of how many days in a row they have practiced. This is a great visual reminder of their success, and motivation to keep going! Your whole studio could participate in a Practice Streak Challenge where you see who can practice the most days in a row without missing a day.

Get your FREE Practice Streak Tracker here!