Can I learn piano if I have a hard time with focus?

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amother

OP ↓

Tue, Nov 26 2024, 9:33 pm

Hi I very much want to learn how to play piano but I have a hard time with focus like undiagnosed ADD.
My question is if it's possible or it's going to be too hard to learn and stay focused and I won't enjoy it

amother

Lightcyan

Tue, Nov 26 2024, 9:35 pm

Depends on your interest level. My son with add will hyper focus on things he’s interested in.

imasinger

Tue, Nov 26 2024, 9:53 pm

Exactly.

And if you enjoy music, you're likely to push yourself.

It's worthwhile to use a good teacher with whom you can sit and play in person, as opposed to an app or video class.

It might even take more than one try to find a teacher who's a good fit, but the right person will understand, encourage, and motivate you, and can help you figure out the best way to fit the necessary practice into your schedule.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 7:35 am

Thank you so much for your replies 😘! Iso appreciate it!
Bumping for more... Want to know before I place my order

amother

Clear

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 7:46 am

IME the problem with adhd won't necessarily be focusing in the moment of learning a hobby. It's being consistent with the practicing and actually putting in consistent effort and not just letting it be a passing phase. In your past do you have passing phases where you start out very interested and then completely lose interest? Or do you usually stick with your hobbies?

write on

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 1:21 pm

You might benefit from an online course where you can watch and rewatch the lessons as many times as you want so you can work at your own pace and also, if you lose concentration, you can always go back to it later when you're feeling more focused. Less pressure than a teacher.

On my marketplace, Skillnosh.com, we have an amazing piano course by Chaya Sara Licht, who's a well-known piano teacher in Lakewood.

Hatzlacha! Learning piano is an incredible gift to yourself! (I'm a classical pianist and playing piano is totally my outlet and self-care!! ❤️)

amother

Lightgreen

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 2:52 pm

I play piano, it's an amazing outlet.
My dd always wanted to play but I wasn't getting her lessons because she has adhd-inattentive and I didn't think she'd follow through with practicing. I had enough getting her to do homework and take a shower, didn't need extra stress. I made her wait til she was a teen and she still wanted to take lessons. So I signed her up for in person lessons. It was really hard at the beginning because, to be honest, it's boring when you can't really play much. But she was super motivated and stuck it out and now she's really amazing at it. And she still takes lessons and practices consistently.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 3:37 pm

amother Clear wrote:

Unfortunately all my hobbies are passing stages Mad

amother

↑ OP ↓

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 3:39 pm

Thank you wright on and light green!
I would so love to have an emotional outlet but I guess the learning phase is difficult

ora_43 ↓

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 3:41 pm

I mean, what's the worst that can happen here? It's not like you're taking on a responsibility to learn and would be letting someone down if you quit. You'd be learning for fun. So start learning, and if it's not fun, stop.

The one thing of course is don't spend a lot of money on a piano right off (unless you can afford that kind of money on temporary hobbies, in which case, why not?). If you don't have a piano yet, go for a used electronic keyboard until you get to the point where you see you have sustained interest.

↑ ora_43 ↓

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 3:46 pm

A tip that might help, if you want to stick with hobbies - if you get really interested in new shiny things, then lose interest, it can help to have 'front burner' and 'back burner' hobbies.

Like let's say I want to learn baking, Spanish, and the piano. Piano is new and shiny and I want to do it all the time. I might say that ok, december-january I'm going to let myself focus on the piano, with the goal of learning to read music, play chords, and play a few basic songs. Baking will be a back-burner hobby; I'll bake something new every couple of weeks but not more than that. Spanish I'll just maintain - I'll run through flashcards 2-3 times a week and watch TV in spanish for 10 minutes a week, even though I'm not so interested, just to keep it going.

Then by February, I'm bored of piano. But Spanish is looking kind of interesting again because I've barely been working on it. So February-March I focus on Spanish, and do just enough piano practice not to forget how to read music. April-May is baking, with minor progress on piano and none on spanish. etc.

Basically if you can rotate hobbies instead of dropping them completely, you can get pretty good at things even without sustained focus.

↑ ora_43

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 3:48 pm

Non-traditional practice schedules can also help. Eg your average person might do best to practice for 20 minutes every day, but some ADD people are going to find it easier to do two straight hours once a week.

(you do need some regular practice for some hobbies - eg for languages you need to repeat new words daily or close to daily - but most of the new learning can happen in a single burst of focus, if that's easier)

amother

↑ OP

Wed, Nov 27 2024, 4:07 pm

Great tips Ora 43! Thanks

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