The best musician I can be.

"I've always wanted to be somebody, but I see now I should have been more specific." - Lily Tomlin

Imagine yourself as the best musician you can be. You can play anything you want, sing anything you want. You're respected and admired by all the musicians you look up to today. Who would you be? What would that feel like?

That vision of your potential musical self is powerful. It can guide your practicing. It can help you decide what to practice, and how much to practice. It can provide inspiration when you need it. It can help you set goals. It will be an important answer to the question, “Why do I practice?”

This exercise will help you imagine your future musical self. Ask yourself these questions. Your answers may suggest more questions; answer them, too.

• Who are the musicians you admire most? Why do you admire them?

• What new music have you learned about this year? What new music have you learned to play this year?

• What music would you like to learn in the coming year?

• What are your dreams about playing music?

• What's the best part about playing your instrument?

• What music, more than anything else, would you love to be able to play?

• What do you most enjoy about playing?

• What do you most enjoy about practicing?

• What instruments do you play?

• What instruments would you like to be able to play?

For the next set of questions, picture yourself, years from now, performing at the peak of your ability.

• You're about to being a performance you've been looking forward to eagerly for months. Where are you performing?

• Is anyone performing with you?

• How big is the audience? Who's in the audience?

• What music are you playing?

• How do you feel as you play?

With that same picture in mind, think about what your life could be like if you were performing at the peak of your musical ability.

• Where would you live?

• Who would you know?

• What would your days be like?

• How often would you play?

• What kinds of places would you play in?

• Would you record your music?

• What would it feel like to live like that?

• Would you write music?

• Would other people perform your music as well?

• Would you teach music?

• What is it about your music that makes you proudest?

Imagine your fingers, hands, arms, voice, legs and feet were capable of any musical task you wanted to do. All the speed, strength, flexibility and dexterity you could ask for are available to you.

• How would that feel?

• What would you play?

• What would your friends and family think and say if you reached this level of skill and accomplishment?

• How will you feel when you reach this level of skill and accomplishment?

Read over your answers and write down any other ideas that come to mind about what you'd like your life to be like when you become that future musical self.

Take your favorite answers to these questions and turn them into your own personal, private description of your future musical self. Use all time and all the paper you need.