Learning an instrument takes hours and hours of dedication, patience and practice. This might be opposite to the fantasy one might have imagined as a newbie, where playing an instrument might have seemed like a cakewalk.

As a pianist and guitarist, I have seen days where I enjoyed learning an instrument as well as days where I just did not feel like touching the instrument at all.

But after some self-reflection into my learning habits and research on the web, I found out about this way that enables a musician to flexibly learn the instrument in an enjoyable and efficient manner.

Using your motivation to drive you

There is no better way to start learning an instrument than finding out what your initial motivation was. Maybe you were impressed by watching youtube videos or visiting a musical and watching someone play publicly. It is important to not underestimate the impact your motivation has on you, especially when it comes to instrument learning.

Your goal should not be learning an instrument for the sake of it, rather it should rely on the motivation and output you want as a musician. (I was personally motivated to learn the piano and guitar because I found piano covers of famous hip hop songs to be pretty cool….Yes! It is totally fine to have that as your goal/motivation as long as you are expressing what you want to.)

As time passes by, you will make progress and start finding more meaning in your learning journey. Your motivations and goals will slowly change in order to shape you into a better musician.(After learning the piano covers, I focused on the piano theory composing each cover. This helped me to not only fulfil what I wanted but also progress theoretically.)

Therefore, it is essential to keep track of your motivations at each step of your instrument journey and utilise them to drive you accordingly.

If you still feel stuck and cannot find out how to learn an instrument, here is a 7-step challenge for you.

1. Learn your current favourite song that you would like to play on your instrument.

2. Identify the theory details that compose the song and note them down.

3. Listen to a song that sounds similar.

4. This time, do not learn the new song on your instrument but look at the theoretical details it comprises.

5. Compare this to your initial theory notes. (For example: compare the keys, chords, majors, minors, placement of verses and overall structure of the song)

6. If you found any similarities, congratulations🥳! If you did not, continue trying out other ways that interest you. I am rooting for you💪!

7. Let me know down in the comments if you found this way of learning to be useful.

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