Student Blog: Learning to Be Consistent

Every December, the question of resolutions resurfaces. It fills my social media feeds and comes up in casual conversation, and even though it’s meant to be motivating, it mostly makes me feel anxious. Resolutions often call for drastic habit changes or lofty goals, and instead of feeling exciting, more often they just are unrealistic. The idea that on January 1st we’re supposed to suddenly overhaul our lives has never sat right with me. Maybe that’s because I’ve never actually stuck to a New Year’s resolution, but I don’t see that as a personal failure. 

One goal I constantly come back to is spending less time on my phone. The number of hours I lose to TikTok each week is honestly alarming. I override my two-hour limit every single day, which makes it effectively useless. And the frustrating part is that I want to be using that time on things that are productive or genuinely fulfilling.

Each week, my voice teacher asks if I practiced, and every week I nod—knowing I didn’t spend nearly as much time as I could have. Two years ago, I injured my voice, and I still deal with lingering issues that would require surgery to fully fix. My voice doesn’t sound the way it used to, it takes longer to warm up, and sometimes it cuts out entirely. I love singing, but it’s hard not to get discouraged. On days when my voice isn’t cooperating, I tend to just stop altogether.

The problem is that those “bad vocal days,” which used to be occasional, are now the norm. Instead of safely pushing through or adapting my practice, I avoid it. My goal this year is to not let that frustration stop me—because I know that consistent practice is the only way forward. It’s a mental challenge as much as a physical one.

So I’ve started making one small adjustment: when I catch myself reaching for my phone, I open my clock app instead and set a timer for how long I want to sing. It doesn’t always feel great (emotionally - never sing if it hurts!) and it definitely doesn’t always sound great, but it helps me work toward two goals at once - less time on my phone, and more time practicing. It’s not a perfect system, but it’s a start.

So this year I’m focusing on small, manageable changes: taking the stairs instead of the elevator, going to bed early enough to actually feel rested, reading a book instead of binge watching a tv show I’ve already seen. None of these things are dramatic on their own, but their cumulative impact is. As an artist, progress doesn’t usually come from one big breakthrough, but showing up consistently, even on the frustrating days. These habits are my way of doing that. And over time, those choices will shape my year and beyond and help me achieve whatever I’m setting my mind to.