Keep Your Guitar Plugged In
I was trolling some sites dealing with getting better at guitar today, looking for tips on how to develop my practice routine, when I ran across this interesting tip. In a nutshell, the recommendation is to leave your guitar equipment set up in your practice space, lowering the “activation energy” to getting started as much as possible. If you keep your equipment packed up and put away, the mere effort of unpacking and setting up may be enough to crush your motivation to practice. After all, it’s not every day that you have a powerful drive to practice – more commonly, you simply remember that you’re “supposed” to practice, and it’s only after playing for a little while that you get back into the groove. The faster and more easily you can do that, the more likely you are to have a productive session each day.
Motivation is a fragile thing – it comes unpredictably, and if neglected it fades quickly. This is true for not just music, but everything – language practice included. How to “keep your Japanese plugged in” will differ depending on what your practice routine consists of, but for me it includes having Anki open at startup, keeping my books open on my desk, having podcasts and movies set up in advance, and having my electronic dictionary available in my top desk drawer. Japanese posters and wall hangings help too.
Spend a little time brainstorming how you can keep your Japanese plugged in, and you’re sure to find yourself practicing longer and more often!
勉強中 