Practice Makes Better

Some inspiration to get started...

"Practice is the hardest part of learning, and training is the essence of transformation." (Ann Voskamp, author)

"Practice doesn't make perfect. Practice reduces the imperfection." (Toba Beta, author)

"Forget perfect on the first try. In the face of frustration, your best tool is a few deep breaths, and remembering that you can do anything once you've practiced two hundred times." (Miriam Peskowitz, author)

"Talent is only a starting point." (Irving Berlin, composer)

"What I have achieved by industry and practice, anyone else with tolerable natural gift and ability can also achieve." (Johann Sebastian Bach, composer)

"Champions keep playing until they get it right." (Billie Jean King, tennis player)

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit." (Aristotle, philosopher)

"The secret of getting ahead is getting started." (Mark Twain, author)

And some inspiration to keep going...

"I can accept failure - everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying." (Michael Jordan, basketball player)

"It's fine to celebrate success, but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure." (Bill Gates, inventor, programmer, investor)

"Don't be afraid to fail. Don't waste energy trying to cover up failure. Learn from your failures and go on to the next challenge. It's okay to fail. If you're not failing, you're not growing." (H. Stanley Judd, author)

"A failure is not always a mistake; it may simply be the best one can do under the circumstances. The real mistake is to stop trying." (B. F. Skinner, psychologist)

"I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work." (Thomas Edison, inventor)

"For every failure, there's an alternative course of action. You just have to find it. When you come to a roadblock, take a detour." (Mary Kay Ash, entrepreneur)

"Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle." (Napoleon Hill, author)

"All growth depends on activity. There is no development physically or intellectually without effort, and effort means work." (Calvin Coolidge, 30th U.S. president)

Now pick up that recorder/basketball/pencil/math problem/book/controller/snowboard/etc. and get to work! It might be difficult...but it will be worth it. Be gentle to yourself, observe things without judging, and realize that perfection won't happen right away. If you start practicing now, though, you'll get better faster than if you choose not to practice! :)

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DRUM card opportunity: Using proper spelling and grammar (and proper punctuation and capitalization!), tell me how practice, failure, and success are all related. If you'd like, you can also share your reaction to the "Practice Makes Better" post.