Setting effective goals for yourself

In a recent monthly motivation, Tatiana touched on the unique individuality of each flute player. I loved her analogy of unwrapping a gift each time she hears a flutist playing for the first time.

Since everybody is so unique, it only makes sense that the flute goals you set for yourself should get you to where you want to be. I like to call it that “sweet spot” between not overwhelming yourself with a goal that’s too high for you, but also not making it too easy, which could cause boredom. 

So how can you set effective goals as a flutist? Keep reading to find out!

Decide what is important to you

Setting realistic goals should not serve anybody’s purpose but your own. You know what you’d ultimately like to achieve on the flute. And if you don’t, think about it.

This could look completely different for each person. Some examples could be:  “I would like to be able to pass a grade 3 flute examination.” or “I would like to feel comfortable playing at community events.” or “I would like to improve my tone.” And it doesn’t have to be just one goal, it could be two, three, or even four goals. You decide.

While involving others (for example your flute teacher or a friend) might be important in helping you define those goals, don’t let them decide for you. Taking the time to think about what you’d like to achieve will also help you to take ownership of your flute journey.

Make a realistic assessment of your abilities

Assessing yourself realistically is important for several reasons. Firstly, it will help you to create better goals. Aiming to play Carmen’s Fantasy might not be realistic if you’re only just starting. But neither is underestimating your ability – you might be better than you think!

So, how do you find out where you stand? Well for one, we have a page dedicated to finding your flute level on our website. Click here to access it.  Once you’ve figured it out, give that level your all. Ask for feedback often, learn from your mistakes, and take the necessary steps to improve at your assigned level. 

Why is this so important? Well, as much as we’d like to be better than we are now, it’s essential to first work with what we have. Again we’re back to that sweet spot I mentioned earlier: Getting things right and improving your skills will motivate you to continue. At the same time, having something to aim for (challenges) will also make you want to push yourself a little to achieve it. Set your aim too far away and you’re bound to get discouraged.  

The Flute Practice has some wonderful resources called Let’s Practice available for all kinds of players, ranging from beginners to more advanced flutists, making it that much easier to start at a level that’s comfortable for you. They contain everything you need to practice for a whole month, suited to your proficiency level. They come with a practice plan and recordings of the pieces so you know whether you are on the right track! Click here for more information on our Let’s Practice resources.  

Comparison is never helpful

Being a part of a flute community means that you will no doubt meet other players who are at a different stage in their playing than you are. And – as we generally tend to do as humans – it might be tempting to compare yourself to them. My advice – don’t! It will not help you, because you are you and they are someone else. Comparing yourself is really a pretty fruitless endeavor.

By all means, learn from others, but try and resist the temptation to compare yourselves to them. Comparison will only make you miserable and detract from your progress and goals. Let your only competitor be you, nobody else. 

Look back on your progress often

As a language teacher, I once had a student who did not have the feeling that he was making much progress. At every lesson, he would focus on his shortcomings and difficulties. One day I challenged him to take a moment and remember that very first lesson we had together. He could barely string a sentence together and most of our conversation was in the secondary language, not the language he was trying to learn. Nowadays, we have 20-30-minute  conversations in the language he is learning. I reminded him of this and he had to admit that he has certainly come a long way since then. Moral of the story: once you make progress, it’s so easy to forget where you once started.

I encourage you to look back often at how far you’ve come, and how you’ve improved since you first started playing. On a practical note, it might even be helpful to record yourself and compare how you sounded at the beginning to how you sound now. 

Break up your big goals into smaller, actionable ones

I’ve mentioned the importance of setting your own goals, ones that resonate with you, and reflect what’s important to you personally. Some of those goals may seem far away, however, the key is to make them attainable. So how do we do that?

Well, after deciding what your goals are, you need to decide how to get there. Let’s take “I want to feel comfortable playing at a community event” as an example. Perhaps your problem is feeling quite uncomfortable performing in front of people. Thinking of smaller steps that would eventually help you to reach your goal of playing at a community event, will help build your confidence along the way and eventually reach your goal. Connecting your goals with a timeline will also help you to track them better.

Remember that I mentioned trying to be as specific as possible in setting your goals? Our example could look like this: “I would like to be a part of my town community’s Christmas concert at the end of the year”. Spelling out the exact details makes it specific, realistic, and attainable. 

After you’ve set your main goal, try and think of steps to get there. The first step can be minuscule, as long as it’s a step. For example, if you struggle with feeling uncomfortable playing in front of others, a very small first step could be playing a piece in front of a friend or family member you know well. Or even your dog, if you’re not yet ready to play in front of people! 

After you feel confident with the first step, go on to step two. In our example, it could be playing in a bigger group or perhaps in front of your flute community, which is also a safe space to practice growing in boldness. Eventually, as you build confidence, reaching your end goal will simply feel like the next step. 

So, in a nutshell: Be specific and create small steps to reach your goals. A generic, “I would like to get better” will not sustain you! Your goals need to be tangible and actionable and as specific as possible. 

Stay accountable

It’s easy to make a plan, but sometimes even easier just to discard it…especially if nobody knows about it! This is why it can be a good idea to tell someone about your flute goals. Yes, I’m talking about sharing your goals with others, even if it’s just your flute teacher. I’m not saying that that person should be policing your every move and chastising you the moment you slip up. No. What I am saying is that it’s never wrong to find someone who will help remind you of what you set out to achieve. 

Consider “appointing” someone who can check in with you now and then and is allowed to ask you about your goals and progress. Not in a controlling way, but just in a way that might help you to stay focused. This could even be a member of our awesome flute community here at The Flute Practice.

Happy goal-setting!