Productivity and goal-setting for singers
Singing is fun, but it is also a skill that we’re not born with. Consistency makes all the difference when it comes to your singing practice. But how can you make sure that your goals don’t remain mere dreams, but actually something you achieve and can feel proud of? Here are my best tips as a singing teacher/productivity nerd.
Goals are good, systems are great
I’m sure you’ve heard that it’s not about the result, but about the journey. It might sound cheesy, but there is definitely some truth in it. When you tailor your singing practice to work with your life and goals, don’t forget that it should be an enjoyable process and that you’re never truly done.
This is why systems work better than goals, because they help you structure your practice. There are many different ways of designing systems. Here are some things to keep in mind as you try to incorporate singing in your life.
Follow a program or have your go-to place for singing education
This means that you don’t just search for random YouTube videos, but that you always have something to work on. Preferably something that’s tailored to your own voice, where you can get feedback from a professional vocal coach, something that is included in the Singable Toolbox membership.
Habit stacking is amazing
Habit stacking is exactly what it sounds like – you attach a habit you already have to a habit you want to start doing. Brushing your teeth is a classic, but it could also be that you warm up your voice five minutes before you take a shower, or that you practice after you’ve vacuumed.
You might not always have much time to practice singing when it’s time to do the habit you stacked the singing onto, and that’s okay. It’s establishing the routine that’s important, especially in the beginning. Even if you just sing one scale, it’s better than nothing and helps you train your brain to know that every time you do your regular habit, you will also sing.
To-do lists help if you do them right
Write a checklist every night on things you want to get done the next day, including when, what and how long you will be singing. You can also make a weekly checklist Sunday night if you want to get a better overview. Don’t include too many items on your list, and don’t write down simple things that will happen anyway like “washing my hair”. Having a few bullet points, maybe 3 to 5, is better than writing a long list of things you have no chance of accomplishing.
Writing your singing practice on a to-do list is a great way of showing yourself that you view it as something important that you want to prioritise.
Bonus tip: Feeling like you didn’t get anything done today? It’s probably because you forgot to make a to-do list that you could tick things off from. So try making a ta-dah list! Write down everything you did today. You’ll probably realise that it wasn’t so bad after all! Ta-dah!
Set reasonable and achievable goals
Dreaming big sounds nice, but it’s usually not very helpful. Small, regular steps will get you much further than leaping for a huge milestone and missing it and giving up. So instead of thinking that you have to become a professional singer, why not have a smaller goal to work toward? Here are some ideas:
- Learn the lyrics to a song by heart
- Post a song on Confidence Corner (our positive-only feedback community)
- Record yourself and save the recording. Listen a year from now and celebrate the progress
- Host a karaoke night with your friends and sing a couple of songs you’ve prepared
- Train your voice to extend your range, balance your mix voice, or other technical skills
- Sing once per week just because it’s fun, without any pressure (perfectionists, you need this!)
- Take one of the courses available to members of the Singable Toolbox to learn more about voice care, genres, straw phonation, microphone use, etc.
- Send a recording in for feedback (available to members only) or book a singing lesson
Accountability matters
Most people need outer accountability to get stuff done, including singing practice. For some, it’s enough to simply tell a friend that “I always practice my singing on Tuesdays”. Others might need to ask the friend to check up on you and make sure that you actually do practice. You could also post on social media to let people know that you’re supposed to be practising. For some people, it’s enough to simply put it in their calendar.
The point is: don’t leave your singing practice to “when I have time to spare”, because it’s not realistic that it will happen very often. And if you let other people know, whether it’s your mum or your singing teacher, that you’re going to practice, you have a much higher chance of making it happen.
For more info about using accountability to get things done, check out Gretchen Rubin’s The Four Tendencies system. She breaks down how people respond to outer and inner accountability in four different ways, and it’s mind-blowingly accurate! It has helped me a lot, both when it comes to singing and just general productivity.
More productivity tips
Here are some resources I can recommend if you’re trying to become more productive (or like me, is always up for trying something new to reach my goals):
About the author: Noomi Kifarkis is a Swedish musicologist and MVT-certified singing teacher (and productivity nerd).
