The ''10,000-Hour Rule'' - Is it true? - checking my personal ''practice record'' .
Hello Steemit!
Well , hope first of all I hope everyone who is going to SF3 is having a blast , unfortunately I was not able to attend this year for various reasons .. but oh well... there's always a next time ! But , i'm not slowing down around here or at @helpie HQ , the early wake ups and strong coffees will continue ! we are on our last stretch of the year.. or at least it feels like it for me :P
Yesterday after a small talk with my students I went over this subject right here and even though most of you might have heard it , I though about sharing some insights just for fun.
The ''10,000-Hour Rule''
Every time a student throws the default phrase ''this is too hard , I can't do it'' I always answer the same thing .. ''how many hours have you put into it?'' to usually get the answer ''Oh , I did not have time to practice''. They end up answering themselves and I just continue with my class.
It's funny how the younger ones always seem to use the ''I don't have time'' excuse over and over , this usually leads me to asking them about what they did in the day and I normally just get ''went to school , did homework... watched TV'' , then I compare their regular day to my day and end up with how many hours I could put into this week into my practicing.. ''If I can make some time .. then you can''
By the way, I'm not a believer in 10-hour daily practice routines and ''all you have to do is play, don't have a life , no friends , just sit and struggle'' ... what an awful way to look at music! ... yes.. I did not like Whiplash as a reference for this : The abusive teacher , the struggle , the frustration carved into students, the bleeding over the drums because of overpractice... aaaah.. it's all you shouldn't do! They were elements used to making it a commercial best-seller , I get it.. J.K Simmons acting was superb but.. no.. on a musical standpoint and by me being a music teacher myself.. I disagree with most of it! Covers for tomato throwing...
I believe in smart and enjoyable practicing , you should have fun with it and enjoy the little achievements on a step by step basis .. while something like learning all the arpeggio families in all positions and inversions in every possible key might sound overwhelming .. learning a simple A minor arpeggio and playing around with it for about 10 minutes doesn't sound too bad right? break it down in parts , you'll eventually learn them all... it just takes time.
Consistency is key! don't have more than 30 minutes? no problem.. set yourself a practice routine and try to cover some points in that time frame .. I think I will do a full post on this .. we need to learn ''how to practice'' too!
Having said all of this.. let's do a little test .. just for fun.. let's see if I meet this 10,000 hour rule that is what you are supposed to do in order to achieve mastery in any subject you might be interested in doing.
So... let's see:
I started playing guitar at age 11 but not taking it seriously until a year later , luckily/unluckily my bigger brother Jose was constantly making me sit on my guitar to practice... every single day hahaha.. sooo... I had some early discipline.
Age 11 to 12 : 1 - hour per day approx : 365 hours.
Age 12 to 18 were my heavy practicing days but quite inconsistent.. I could tackle 8 hours one day.. then .. not practice the next two days and such , but I kinda had a guitar with me all the time ..so.. let's play a medium number.
3- hours per day for 7 years (we are counting for each completed year.. so i think that's the math) : 365 x 3 x 7 = 7655 hours.
Age 18 -20: Were the TV days.. I cut my practice a lot .. so maybe I went back to 1-hour per day
1- hour per day for 2 years: 365 x 1 x 2 = 730
Age 20 to 21 was my first retirement... so .. I pretty much played 20-30 minutes whenever i felt like it .. so...
Semi-retirement year .. : 100 hours maybe?
21 to 24 Were my music college days so.. picked up the pace quite a bit.. i think a 3 hour per day is a safe number again .. sooo: 3 hours per day for 4 years : 4380 hours
24 to 30 .. to actual date.. same thing.. I think there are periods i practice more than others but to say I have a guitar with me around 2 hours per day is a safe number so :
2-hour practice for 6 years ( I just turned 30 so last year doesn't count ): 365 x 2 x 6 : 4380 hours
Let's add them up!
Mmmm... that number is quite unrealistic since that would mean me playing every single day.. and.. at least I take sundays off :D .. so.. we should probably cut a couple thousand hours from the top hahaha!
Anyways .. it seems that I did reach the 10,000 hour rule at this point if that means anything , if you ask me I still feel like I need to learn so much.. and I should get to practicing now.
Source:
My only excuse could be reduced down to "not wanting to take the time to practice". I mostly play for fun, and sometimes I'm just not motivated to do it.
hehehehe .. well , practicing should not be too much of an ''obligatory'' thing if your connection to music is more relaxed , if you play for fun , keep it fun I guess. I try to keep it fun though music being my line of work it stresses the hell out of me sometimes .. so the love/hate relationship is there sometimes haha.
Great post, I am a music teacher too and kids say that they don't have time to practice hah. I can tell you I don't know many people that can play the guitar like you. So those 17000 hours don't go unnoticed. I believed even the 10000 number could be really making a difference. Maybe we could say the number works with some restrictions: let's say you can master anything if you practice 10000 hours every 15 years. Anyways, time is just a reference, I love the emphasis you make in the quality of that time, the fun element that should hook us into practice. And no: no one should use that movie for vocational counseling towards music!
hahaha thank you ! yes , i think in a way it's just a number but it's fun to do the math just to see what would I get .. 17000 is inaccurate .. im sure it's quite a lot less hahah but at least I think it's safe to say i'm over the 10,000 mark :P .. I still feel like a beginner and when I talk to experienced players they also say ''i'm still figuring this out''.. so in a way it's a neverending journey :) ! Glad to meet another music teacher! Cheers!
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