Everything on Practicing
The Age-Old Question: How Much Should I Practice?
The short answer
Practice every day — even if it’s only five minutes.
Consistency matters more than long practice sessions.
The full answer (and why this works)
I was told growing up that I needed to practice 30 minutes to an hour a day.
That’s still great advice — for anyone who’s ready to take music seriously.
But let’s be honest.
In a world full of phones, homework, sports, jobs, and constant distractions, that’s a tall order for someone who’s still building a foundation.
What I’ve found over years of teaching is this:
Consistency is the single most important factor in progress.
Everything we do in music — timing, coordination, accuracy, tone — is built on muscle memory.
And muscle memory is developed through daily repetition, not occasional long sessions.
Build the habit first. Time comes later.
The first goal for any student shouldn’t be clocking minutes —
it should be building the habit of picking up the instrument every day.
I’m a big believer in baby steps.
For some students, that might mean:
5 minutes a day
Or simply as long as it takes to brush your teeth
If you can commit to 5 minutes a day for three weeks, you’re well on your way to building something real.
Once the habit is established, practice time almost always grows naturally.
What doesn’t work (and why)
A very common pattern I see:
New students start motivated
Life gets busy
Practice drops to once or twice a week for 20–30 minutes
Unfortunately, this does almost nothing for us.
It’s barely enough to tread water.
Five minutes a day + a weekly 30–60 minute lesson
will outperform
20–30 minutes twice a week
every single time.
We’re playing the long game here.
This isn’t a sprint.
But what about becoming really good?
At the same time, I do believe in the 10,000-hour rule.
Do a little math and it gets eye-opening fast:
5 minutes a day → ~85 hours per year
15 minutes a day → ~270 hours per year
30 minutes a day → ~550 hours per year
60 minutes a day → ~1,100 hours per year
If you want to be a serious player, it takes a serious commitment over time.
That said…
To be a casual hobby musician, you might only need 20 focused hours to feel up and running —
but those same 20 hours can easily double or triple if you only practice a couple times a week.
The takeaway
Daily practice beats long practice
Habits beat motivation
Small, consistent wins compound over time
Start small. Stay consistent.
The hours will take care of themselves.