With the onset of the New Year, this is normally the time to make New Year’s resolutions. Before doing that, however, think back to just last year and ask yourself if you accomplished your goals for the year. Since most of my topic is bagpipe-related, I will probably be aiming this at bagpipers. However, it could apply to everyone. After you have evaluated your resolutions from last year and you find that you didn’t keep them all, don’t be discouraged. Goals are not all or nothing. If you don’t set any, you drift from one year to the next and wonder how you got there.
What do you want to do with your bagpiping this year? If you’re new to this, I think your goal should be to get pipes as soon as possible. If you have pipes, your goal should be twofold: learn some new tunes and practice playing your pipes for longer durations. If you’ve been playing for a while, maybe you should think about competition. Your instructor will certainly give you a heads-up when he/she thinks you’re ready for the next step.
As I said in previous posts, playing any instrument, including the bagpipe, is a habit. Habits are formed by taking one day at a time and working your bagpipe time into your schedule. The people who get frustrated and quit usually do so because of guilt and not because of performance. The guilt comes from not practicing regularly. Again, I would tell you to make sure that you do something about this before you leave the house in the morning. At that point, the job is done, and anything you do at night is a bonus. If you’re a young unmarried person, I would definitely tell you to get the job done now as the majority of my students are people over 40 who had good intentions too when they were young and single. If you get the hard part done early then your kids will grow up with the pipes as part of their lives and may want to be part of that someday as well.
All of what I have said could apply to anything that you do. The dream is to be able to do something, the goals are the steps to get there, the plan of action is what helps you reach your goals and the only thing needed is regular effort. You can do it! Have a great year!
