One rule that I learned through the many years playing music is:
Momentum is the one thing that will keep you moving faster and faster
What does this mean for you? What does this mean for your playing? What does this mean for your musicial dreams?
In short, you will continue to stay where you are unless you make a change. If you skip practice, or miss an exercise, there is a high chance that you will continue to do the same thing.
If you stick with that habit, the longer it will take to get to your dreams. It will continue to be a habit that will be harder to break. The one fact that shocked me was that experts say it will take 21 days to take a new activity to a brand new habit. If you don't want to be another statistic it's time to break that with some motivation and get in gear.
The holiday season approaching and a new year is going to begin soon. It's time to gain momentum. The question that's probably on your mind is: How do I gain momentum?
Planning
Direction
Commitment
This are the three words that are going to help you achieve that momentum. Study have show that if you plan something around the same time frame every day you are more likely to achieve.
Think about a bicycle for a moment.
Once you start pedaling and you gain enough speed to keep the bicycle moving. You can then start changing gears from 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and so on. Each time you decide to change gears it's get hard and hard but you have to keep pedaling to maintain the same speed. Once you release you will maintain the same speed.
This is how reaching you goals and dreams will feel. It will take a lot of time and energy but in the end this is what will make it worth while. Once you get it going the momentum and drive will do the rest. Then it's your job to decide where you want to go.