Being a Parent of a Musical Child - Part 5: Confidence
- Aug 28, 2017
- 2 min read
Confidence is something plenty of musicians struggle with. Playing an instrument isn't easy, and no one likes to make mistakes.
It's easy for a young musician to fall into the trap of beating themselves up mentally when they don't perform as well as they hope, or when they don't progress as quickly as they think they should. Sometimes they will even compare themselves to other students or musicians and invariably the comparison is less than flattering to their own mind.
There are a few things you can do for your child to help them overcome this.
Probably the most focused effort should be spent helping them to develop positive self-talk. Turn comments like “I always mess up this part…” into comments like “Learning is a process, sometimes I'll have to work harder than others…”. Always turn negatives into positives, it's a solid habit that will help in all aspects of the musical journey.
Often musicians will have thoughts that are completely irrelevant and distracted. It takes effort to focus your thoughts to the task at hand. When your child becomes distracted it may help to have them think about the way they hold their instrument, whether they are sitting up straight, or how hard or soft they are playing. This centers their mind on the task at hand.
Never let your child spend too much time dwelling on mistakes they may have made. Keep track of their progress, have them go back and play something they once thought difficult. Make a list of their accomplishments so they can visually see how far they've come.
Building these habits early on will help with bigger road blocks to come. It doesn't get any easier, but managing learning, performing, and the stress that comes with it can be.
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