Talkin’ ’bout practice…

As a pianist in a past life, I spent (in order) not very much time practicing, a lot of time practicing, a WHOLE lot of time practicing, and no time practicing the piano. The practicing thing made a HUGE difference in my playing, and now, well, just let’s not talk about my “technique.”

And this practice thing works for things other than musical instruments – really, anything that involves a skill in life; obviously sports (unless, of course, you’re The Answer), cooking, thinking, dancing, just to name a few… and one of the reasons for this blog – writing.

I confess: I’m a binge writer, which is certainly linked to my deep need for procrastinating. So I’m hoping a lower-stakes writing assignment, like this blog, will help me get in the practice of writing, and consequently, move me along in this silly journey of getting a PhD.

You see, I’m at this sort of miserable, awesome, overwhelming, exciting point in my academic career that requires me to write a dissertation. And there’s plenty of research that suggests writing for just an hour a day is much, MUCH more productive than spurts of binge writing.

I’m skeptical, but here’s hoping.