How to Create a

Practice Schedule for

Musicians
Brayden Smith
Establish a Time
● The most important step to practicing is establishing a time in your
schedule.
● Give yourself time to get ready and find a place, don’t rush your practice.
● Keep a consistent schedule and don’t plan for a time your know you won’t be
productive, like late evenings or too early.
Stretch!
● Make sure your body is prepared to practice.
● Any part of your body, whether that’s your arms, vocal chords, or your oral
cavity.
● Spend time after your practice to stretch any parts that are sore, make sure
you pay attention to any pain or tension and work to avoid it.
Effective Warmups
● Find warm ups that relate to the style and technique you are working on.
● Don’t play warm ups that are too hard, don’t wear yourself out before you
start your rep.
● Spend about one third of your practice time on these warmups.
Break Down your Rep
● Make sure you approach your rep with a game plan.
● Work the piece in chucks, consecutively forwards or backwards.
● Focus on parts that need attention slowly, work with a metronome and tuner
to ensure your play it correctly before bringing it up to tempo.
Pace Yourself
● Make sure you don’t over practice, pace yourself with 40 minutes to an hour
of practicing at a time.
● Don’t over work your mind or body, stop when you feel pain or tension.
● Don’t plan too much rep that you're not ready for.