{"id":19613,"date":"2024-01-02T10:10:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-02T15:10:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/?p=19613"},"modified":"2025-10-09T17:48:04","modified_gmt":"2025-10-09T21:48:04","slug":"setting-new-years-resolutions-music","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/splice.com\/blog\/setting-new-years-resolutions-music\/","title":{"rendered":"How to set New Year’s resolutions for your music that actually stick"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Photography:<\/strong> Anjelica Jardiel<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

How many New Year\u2019s resolutions have you set this year? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

More importantly, how many of them will actually last past January? We all love setting New Year\u2019s resolutions, whether they’re for music or other pursuits\u2014January 1st feels like a clean slate and a chance to finally become the best version of yourself and reach your full potential. \u201cNew year, new me,\u201d right?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, New Year\u2019s resolutions mean nothing if you\u2019re not ready to put in the work that will make them last. This is why so many of us fall off track after a few months, weeks, or even days. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Underneath the catchy name, New Year\u2019s resolutions are simply a promise to develop new good habits or ditch existing bad ones. In either case, it\u2019s virtually impossible to keep these promises if all you\u2019re relying on is your motivation and a vague \u201cnew year, new me\u201d mentality. At some point, both of these are bound to wear off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instead, let\u2019s look at New Year’s resolutions from a habit-building perspective. In order to create a lasting new habit, you need to set up a system that will help support it. With this system, you\u2019ll be able to build the habit slowly over time and make decisions that will help you stay on track for the entire year (and beyond). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this article, let\u2019s take a look at how to set up this system and develop new habits that actually stick. Many of these ideas come from James Clear\u2019s Atomic Habits<\/em><\/a>\u2014if they resonate with you, be sure to read the full book for even more actionable tips. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether you\u2019ve set music-related New Year\u2019s resolutions (e.g. work on music every day) or something more general (e.g. eat well and exercise), these eight tips will help you develop healthy habits and have a truly transformative year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s dive in!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1. Make your New Year’s resolutions a part of your identity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Say your New Year\u2019s resolution is to work on music every day, be it songwriting, practicing an instrument, or producing. A common mistake that people make when setting a resolution is tying it to a specific goal. For example, maybe you want to work on music every day because you want to create a hit song this year, release a certain number of songs, or make a certain amount of money producing for other artists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While a goal can be a great source of motivation, it rarely works in the long term. What happens when you achieve the goal? Or what if your goals and priorities change halfway through the year?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A much more effective strategy is to tie your New Year’s resolution to your identity. In other words, you want to work on music every day because you\u2019re a musician, and that\u2019s what musicians do. No goal, life event, circumstance, or outside factor can change this fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whenever you feel uninspired or unmotivated to work on your craft, just remind yourself: \u201cIf I want to call myself a musician, I have to act like a musician.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It may also help to think of an artist, songwriter, or producer whom you admire. When you feel like slacking off, tell yourself, \u201cWhat would insert their name here<\/em> do right now? Probably work on music\u2014as should I.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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2. Start small<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re not a full-time musician, it can be especially hard to find the time to work on music every day.<\/a> You likely have school, a job (or two), responsibilities, commitments, and other priorities. In other words, life often gets in the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the new year rolls around, it can be tempting to say, \u201cFrom this day forward, I will work on music for two hours every day.\u201d But if you\u2019ve never been able to find that kind of time in the past, and nothing else in your life has changed, how are you ever going to be able to keep up this new habit?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You may stick to it for a few days, or even a week, but something will inevitably come up and you won\u2019t be able to keep your promise. Your other priorities will turn into excuses (though they can be perfectly valid) as to why your habit didn\u2019t stick.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To avoid this, try setting a much smaller goal. For example, aim to work on music for just ten minutes every day. No matter how busy you are and how many other commitments you have, there\u2019s virtually nothing that should stop you from sitting down and working on music for ten minutes a day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You may find that some days, ten minutes is really all you can manage. More often than not though, you’ll end up getting into a groove and working for much longer than that. The important thing is that there\u2019s absolutely no pressure to work beyond the ten minutes, so you can\u2019t talk yourself out of doing it every day. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As you keep showing up every day for at least ten minutes, your habit will develop and it’ll get easier and easier to commit to longer periods of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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3. Make it easy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to building a new habit, it\u2019s important to eliminate all obstacles that could potentially prevent you from showing up and following through on your promise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019ve set out to work on music for ten minutes a day, for example, make it as easy as possible to get started. This might mean having a dedicated space just for music, leaving your DAW<\/a> open on your computer, and leaving your instruments and microphone plugged in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you don\u2019t do this, just setting up before each session might take well over ten minutes and will likely deter you from sitting down to work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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4. Don\u2019t aim for perfection<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Wouldn\u2019t it be great if every song you wrote or produced was absolutely perfect? Unfortunately, this is an impossible standard to uphold,<\/a> and the more you aim for perfection, the more you sabotage your habit building process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you worry too much about what you can accomplish in each session, you might subconsciously protect yourself from failure by not working on music at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To combat this, let go of any standards or expectations. The music you create as you build your habit doesn\u2019t actually matter\u2014what matters is that you keep showing up every single day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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5. Try habit stacking <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Habit stacking is the process of combining two or more habits together. For example, make coffee, then check emails, then play ten minutes of guitar. Day after day, complete this combination of tasks in this order.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The trick is to start with habits that are already well established. Better yet, start with something that you can\u2019t help but do every single day (if you can\u2019t go without your daily cup of joe, this is a great option).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After some time, your brain will associate the act of making coffee with checking emails and playing guitar, and it’ll become quite easy to complete this sequence of tasks on a daily basis. Eventually, you may even be able to add new habits to the sequence and create an entire routine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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6. Try a habit tracker<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

A habit tracker is a visual representation of your habits. It works by keeping track of the days on which you keep up with your habit. You can use a page in your journal or planner, a digital app, or even a monthly calendar hanging on your wall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tracking your habits will accomplish a few different things:<\/p>\n\n\n\n