Summer motivation is hard to come by for everyone. Whether you're a student and summer is seen as a time to relax and disengage from learning or you're an adult and the warm weather makes relaxing with a cool beverage a lot more appealing than making progress in the practice room, we all struggle to stay focused on our goals during the season we've come to associate with "vacation time".

There's nothing wrong with going on vacation, taking a break, or living life to its fullest, but if one of your goals is to make massive progress on your instrument, there is no better time to do so than during the summer months!

First of all, get specific with your goals: what would you like to really accomplish over the next few months? Break that big goal down into monthly milestones, then break those down further into weekly check-ins. Finally, let those weekly goals gently guide how you prioritize and spend your practice time, instead of serving as grim deadlines of possible failure.

Second, abandon an all-or-nothing approach. Use the goals you set to inspire and guide you, instead of using them to punish you, if (and when) you don't meet them. Not meeting a goal is not a sign of failure, but rather can be a gentle nudge that the strategy or process you used may not be as effective as you originally thought. Use this feedback to help you pivot, be more creative in your problem solving, and provide the latitude to try new solutions.

Third, celebrate your wins! We don't congratulate ourselves enough in this culture of lack. When you do well and commit to the goals you've set, give yourself a reward. Whether it's a Popsicle on a hot day, a dip in the water, or a mini YouTube binge session, honor the times when you serve your best interests!

Finally, realize that progress is rarely linear, and even five minutes can yield a game-changing epiphany or two! Investing in yourself is never a bad bet, and remember that if you can get just 1% better each day, (with compounding) you'll be 37 times better by the end of the year!