My New Vocabulary for 2026 - PHH 242

What if playing the harp felt easier the way you thought it would be, not because you practiced more, but because you finally understood what was getting in your way? I'm Anne Sullivan and welcome to Practicing Harp Happiness. Here we tackled the real challenges harpists struggle with. The sticky passages, the tricky fingerings, prepping for performance, and and all the ingredients that go into making music sound the way you want it to. I've studied with world class harpists, taught at a top conservatory for 20 years, and I love playing the harp. But what I love just as much is breaking down the real challenges harpists face and turning them into clear, step by step solutions. The same ones I teach my students and use myself. So if you're ready to play the music you love with more confidence, clarity and joy, you're in the right place. So let's get started. Welcome to the show. For me, and I think for many people, this last week of the year is a supremely hopeful one. The rush to get ready for Christmas is behind us and the promise of a new year is finally in focus. We're faced with possibilities for a change instead of pressure. I realize, of course, that for many of us, those possibilities for the new year include uncertainty and worry and fear, which are beyond any assistance I could offer here on the podcast. I can and do offer prayers that the universe grants us all the courage and resources we need to face the circumstances before us. But I'm gonna stick to what I know best, and that is helping you find more meaning, just joy and fulfillment in your heart. Playing it's become a pretty widespread practice here around the beginning of the year to choose a word or a phrase to be your touch point throughout the year, to inspire you, to motivate you, keep you focused. As I was thinking through my word for 2026, I realized that many of the words I've been using frequently in my teaching and in my own practice are words that carry too much weight. They have a charge, a negative charge, like a negative ion. Some of those words didn't start out that way in my vocabulary. In fact, more than one of them I intentionally chose to use to reduce the negative connotation of another word. Still, it's the right time to rethink them. Words shape our thinking. They can create boxes that limit us, that hold us back from achieving what we want in any area of life, including our heart playing. Or they can free us to love what we do and to find new energy for doing it. So I will share my word with you. Well, it's actually two words for 2026. But before I do that, I want to share the words that I'm rethinking for the coming year. My goal with this rethinking is to be more mindful of my language in my teaching, and that includes my teaching you on this podcast. These are words I use all the time, so it will be an adventure for me for sure. But if my 2026 vocabulary words help you reduce any negative charge that is impacting your heart, playing it will have been more than worth the effort. Now we're talking words and vocabulary and language today, but I will also share with you a very simple, I don't know, 60 second reframe so that when you catch yourself saying some of those things that are really unhelpful, we're going to use a little quick system I call the STAR system to help you realign things and get yourself back on the back on track with the right frame of mind. So that's coming up. And of course I'll talk about some Heart Mastery resources that we have that can help you move forward in all kinds of ways here in 2026. So there's a lot to look forward to here. And I want to start off our discussion today by telling you about a discussion I had with my coach. Now, I don't talk about the coaching that I take very often. I've been working with various coaches for in fact, if I hadn't been working with a coach, Harp Mastery would never have started. I sort of started on my own blogging back in 2012, but then every growth stage that I was approaching, I needed some help or felt I needed some support to get through that. And so I took coaching from various well known people. I moved up through the ranks where I wasn't just taking taking coaching for a specific purpose the way I started, but now I have been for the past number of years taking coaching through Brendon Burchard's High Performance Coaching. And this is a personal development coaching program I started years ago and have worked with a couple different coaches in that program and I wouldn't stop coaching for anything. This is how I get more insight about what's going on with me and it allows me to be the best or work toward being the best version of me, which is how I can help serve you and all the other harpists in the Heart Mastery universe just a little bit better. So this is why the coaching is so important to me. I want to show up in my life for me, for my family and for you in the best way that I can. So I think coaching is really important now. I like to talk about Brendan Burchard as my personal coach. He talks that way to all of his students, whether he's met them or not. And of course, whether I've met you or not, I'm your coach, too, even if we've never spoken personally. Now, Brendon coaches millions of people that way. I coach hundreds of people that way. We're at very different levels. But, you know, just by being here on this podcast or in the Heart Mastery hub, or certainly a member of my Heart Mastery or our coaching program or my Gold Circle program, I am your coach. And that's one of the reasons I work so hard at putting resources like this podcast together for you. I want to be sure that I'm helping you the best that I can. So in the coaching that I was taking, I had a session with my coach just before Christmas and. And she called me out on some of my language I was using for myself, not about my heart playing specifically. And I think I'm pretty careful with my words. You know, I think I'm. I'm pretty careful most of the time about the. The ways I talk about myself and what I do. I try to make sure that I'm framing things truthfully and honestly, but without a lot of emotional charge on the words, because I know that doesn't help me. So I think I'm being pretty careful. But she called me out on some of the things that I was saying, and she was right. So this got me thinking a little bit harder and a little bit deeper about some of the words that I've been using in my coaching with you. That's what's important to me. Of course it's important. The words that I use for myself as well. And I just wanted to share this with you. So that's the genesis for today's episode. And I hope that you take this in the spirit in which it was meant. It's my own improvement and my own self awareness that led to this little discussion. So you probably know that we are pretty careful about words that we use at Harp Mastery. We, for instance, and this is a big example, I think we try to avoid the word performing. I mean, there are times when it's really appropriate. But I know that a lot of people are playing the harp because they enjoy it and they don't particularly enjoy the idea of performing, and that's fine. I think performing carries a lot of weight, a lot of heaviness, and as a word, it makes it Feel like we're being judged, like we're on display. And sometimes those things are true, but not always. Sometimes the thing that we talk about as performing is really just playing music for somebody who wants to hear it. And that's why, at heart, mastery, the word we use most often for that kind of playing music. Sharing. I believe that sharing our music is important. Putting it out into the world, allowing other people to enjoy it, is part of why we do what we do. After all, we hear music that other people make and that inspires us to make our own. And that's a gift that we can give back, that we can continue giving. The music that we practice, that we play, that we love, is music we can share. There's not perfection, there's not judgment. There's not that sort of heaviness necessary for us to just play our music. And that's why we talk about sharing. I think that's critical. There are some other words and phrases that I've always tried to call out, and I'll just remind you of those in case they have crept into your vocabulary as some words crept back into mine. And remember, too, I'm not even talking about really nasty words. We're just talking about everyday phrases that we use that are coloring our perception in a way that's possibly not helpful. So when was the last time you said I have to? As in, oh, I have to practice or I have to play at this particular place or for this particular person or I have to work on. And we're going to talk about that a little bit, too. I have to work on this particular measure or this technique or this tempo. I have to do this. Have to. Can we reframe? Have to. As. Get to. I get to do this. I get to play for these people. I get to practice today. I get to practice longer than usual today. I get to dig into these measures and try to make them sound exactly right. I get to strengthen my technique. I get to try to play fast. I get to get to do these things. Granted, sometimes they feel like a chore, but that's what we want to avoid. Why should our harp playing feel like a chore? We are so privileged. I know I feel this way. And I know you feel this way, too. We can play the harp. We have a harp. We have an instrument that we can use to make our lives just a little bit richer, a little bit more fulfilled. We get to do this. I don't have to practice every day. I get to practice every day. Feel the energy shift in there. That's the kind of energy shift that I'm talking about today. Going right along with that have to phrase that we want to banish is need to. Oh, I need to work on this. Oh, I need to get this faster. I need to fix that measure. I need to fix my left hand, fourth finger, or I need to get my thumb to play better. Need. I'd love to change that. That's got so much drudgery in my own mind anyway attached to it. And in itself, it's not harmful. It expresses a desire that we have, a strong desire. That's what a need is, right? It's a strong desire. Now, sometimes need is something even more important, like we need air, breathe. But when it comes to harp playing, our needs aren't generally that dire. And maybe a substitution we could consider for the phrase I need to do this is I'm planning to do this. I'm starting to do this. I'm starting to get the tempo picked up with this particular section. I'm starting to take these measures apart and see what's going on. I'm starting to strengthen my technique. I'm planning to put that fourth finger through its paces and try these exercises and see if I can strengthen it. We're talking here, when we use the phrase like planning or starting, we're talking about an action, something that we can do, which is a far cry from what we can perceive as a need, which is we're lacking something, we're missing something, Something. So that's the next thing I'd like you to consider. When you need to do something, do you really need it because you're lacking it? And can you plan to do it and act on it instead? A small shift, but I think an important one. Another word I have generally tried to avoid is the word better. Better sounds like maybe we're sick. It's a comparison word. I need this to be better. Well, what if you needed it to be more of something specific? I'd like it to be clearer. I'd like it to be cleaner. I'd like it to be more expressive. I'd like it to be stronger. I'd like it to be more legato. Thinking about it in terms of that sort of clarity, that specificity is very different from saying, oh, I need it to be better. And so that's an important shift, perhaps for you. I think it's an important shift for all of us to get out of the realm of comparison and get into that realm of exactly what we need to do and exactly what we want One last phrase that I have always encouraged my students to avoid is the phrase, well, I'm not, not good at this, I'm not naturally this. I'm not able to do this. How about if we switch out? I'm not for. I'm becoming, I'm not good at rhythm. I'm learning more about rhythm. I'm getting better at rhythm. There's a comparison for you. I'm growing more with my rhythm. I'm studying rhythm, I'm practicing my rhythm. I'm using the metronome more. I'm trying to count. Because whatever we are is changeable. We are not stuck in one place. So it's not that you are not good at something. This is something you have to learn. This is something that you can plan to get, plan to make improvements. Oh, these words are hard, aren't they? You can plan to act on them. They're things you can do something about. So that sort of categorical, self defining, I'm not, I'm not good at this is something that I don't think we should be doing. What we do instead is we act, we play the harp, and it all gets better. That's such a hard word for me to avoid. But it's a perfect example of what I'm talking about because I'm practicing using more helpful vocabulary. So I managed to avoid that dreaded word better. But I can promise you that I will be using that word plenty of times in the coming year because it's really hard for me to avoid. So let's just understand that we are all works in progress and that includes me. And I will continually stress, strive to make my vocabulary as specific and positive as I can. Phew. All right, now that just covers a few of the words and phrases that I have already been trying to banish from my vocabulary. You can see that the success level here has been rather mixed. But here are a few that I'm catching up and adding to the list for 2026. And one of those is a word that I'm going to end up using quite a bit anyway. But I want to be really careful about it. It's the word improve. Improve carries that little bit of comparative stuff, a little bit of judgment with it. And I'm going to try to substitute some words like strengthen. Strengthen is a word I like a lot because it embodies what we do by our practicing habit. What we do every day strengthens our harp playing in every way. So I do like the word strengthen. I'm also considering employing the word Upgrade. Because what is an improvement if it's not an upgrade? So we want to upgrade our abilities in some ways. So I'm going to be considering that word as well. But improve is on my watch list for 2026. As I said, you're going to be hearing it because I'm going to find it very difficult to avoid that. But I'm going to try. Another phrase that I am reconsidering is the phrase problem spot or tricky spot when it comes to those couple of measures or even one measure or a something that you really have difficulty with because it's inherently tricky or a problem. Well, problem is that negative sort of word again, right? So I'd like to see what I can do to reduce at least the frequency with which I use that phrase. So I'm considering some alternatives for problem spot like focus area or growth point. Now, I know those may sound a little bit hokey, but it's absolutely true. Anything that is difficult for us needs to become easier for us. We obviously need to focus on it and it is going to be something that propels our growth. So how much more fun is it to think of that measure that you are doing over and over again, not as a problem spot, but as a growth point, something that's going to lead you to better things in the future? I really like that I'm not going to remember to use one of those phrases all the time, but I'm going to grow into it and I'm going to try to rethink these problem spots as focus areas and growth points. I like that. One of the words that I've used very frequently for a difficult spot in a piece or for a problem spot is that it's a challenge. And I'm rethinking that as well. I don't mind the word challenge, but I'm looking for something even a little bit more positive. And the words that I'm experimenting with instead of challenge are adventure and opportunity. I like both of these because just like problem spot, if we think about a problem as something that we're going to focus on and something that is going to initiate growth for us, a challenge is the same thing. It's an adventure. It's something we get to work through, right? It's a journey. And so therefore it's an adventure and it's an opportunity. It's an opportunity for us to grow, for us to find that upgrade, for us to find that next level in our heart playing. So I'm rethinking that. I don't mind the word challenge some of the time, but I really am inspired by the words adventure and opportunity. So those I hope will be coming up more frequently in our conversations here on the podcast and in my work with all our students as well. And that brings me to the last word that I am adding to my vocabulary watch list for 2026. It's the word progress. Now, I'm not going to banish the word progress because progress is a good thing, but I am looking to be really specific when I'm talking about progress. And that's because although progress seems very positive, it often carries sort of that little hint of blame with it. Like, okay, well you're not making progress, meaning you haven't been doing enough. And that's not always the case as we know the harpists like you, who are thoughtful and I know you are because you're here, you're listening to this podcast, you're disciplined, you care about your harp playing, you're doing what it takes to move forward. It's just that progress often shows up in its own time. Progress isn't something that we necessarily control or at least not the pace of our progress. So I really think that we need to look at progress in some different ways. Sometimes it's about clarity, sometimes it's about technical stability or integration of skills, or just our capacity in various areas. The things that we are good at, the things that we haven't learned quite as well yet, the information that we have, our general readiness. So progress isn't about us per se, and it's not necessarily about what we are doing. It's just the stage, right? It's just the fact, it's just the journey itself. So I want to be really careful about how I use the word progress. So that's something that I'm not quite sure how I'm going to reframe it, but I have a feeling it's going to be case specific. So we'll be talking about progress for sure. But I'm going to try to be very clear when I use that term. Trying to find ways to use the word with a little bit more intention and clear purpose. We'll see how I do with that. Now, I'd like to give you a very quick exercise that you can use when your particular watchwords come up for you. And when are they most likely to come up for you? Well, when you're practicing, of course, that's when our emotions are running the highest and our self regulation for our vocabulary is probably at its lowest point. So I'm Giving you this very quick little way to reset your thinking and hopefully bring more clarity and lots of focus to your practice. The right kind of focus. So I call this the star system. It's got four particular steps. S, T, A, R. So here we go. We're going to start with the letter S. And that word is stop. When you hear your language in your head starting to go over to the negative, to the dark side, it's time to stop. Just pause your hands, take them off the strings. Take a deep breath, let it out. And remember, you're not doing the harp to fix things. You're not doing it to be judged or to judge yourself. Just take a moment and say to yourself, okay, my practice is just for gathering information. Whatever it was that happened, you now know something you didn't know before. You know maybe what that note is supposed to be, or, you know, what finger you need to put on that note, or what pedal you should have pushed, or all those things. You know a little bit more about what is on the page that you're trying to play than you did a second ago. So whatever just happened, that's not a failure, it's not wrong, and you're bad because of it. It's just information. And notice what it was you said to yourself. What was that first thing that came up, I can't do this. I can never do this. I always make that mistake. Whatever it was, that's not helpful. So that first thing you do is stop. Then we're going to get to the word that starts with T, and that is translate. I want you to translate what happened and what you said about it into more neutral and more actionable language. Instead of judging yourself and just mentally beating yourself up about it, I want you to describe what happened. That passage still isn't settled. I'm still trying to get those hands together. Or my third finger doesn't know what it's supposed to do yet. I don't know all the notes for those chords. I'm not placing. Describe what happened, not who did it, not even why it happened, just exactly what it was that happened. No adjectives here, just observations. And give yourself a sentence that describes what happened without the judgment. That's translate. The next step, our letter A, is to ask. I want you to choose a simple question that you will ask yourself to guide the next time you're going through that little passage or that measure or whatever it is you want to ask a question like, okay, now what does my third finger need to know? I don't know why I'm focusing on third fingers today, but there you are. What does my thumb need to know? What is something I need to remember so I do it correctly this time? What do I need to understand? What do I need to remember? What is the next piece of information that will help me do this correctly? Just pick one. Just ask one question. Where does that third finger need to go? What is the string it's supposed to be playing? Ask that. Okay, we've stopped. We've translated the negative thought, the negative language. We've asked a question so that you can remember what it is you are going to focus on in this next time through and then just do a reset. That's our last word, our letter R. Reset and restart. So just before you get ready to restart, say to yourself, this time I'm going to focus on this. It's the power of the single intention. I've talked about that before. So let's find your intention. It's maybe putting that third finger on a specific string or pushing the lever at that precise time. Whatever it is, this is what you're going to do this time through. And then play it once. You only have to play it that one time with that particular intention. That's all it is. It took me about five times longer to talk about it than it'll take you to do it. Stop. Translate the negative thought into something that is more neutral and more actionable. Ask yourself a question. What will help me here? What is the information I need? What should I be doing? And then reset and restart with that single intention. Play it once and you're done. That's the star system, and I think it's a terrific way to begin finding the language that you want to use. All of this is about your language because it's about your harp playing and where you want to go with it. Our harp journeys are all personal and all individual to us, and that's one of the reasons we have so many resources at Harp Mastery. Of course, we have plenty in the app. So please, if you haven't downloaded the app, it's a great way to just get involved with the Harp Mastery world. Of course, our signature membership program, My Harp Mastery, is available and open to you as well. And that's a wonderful way to dip your toe into learning with a community. We also have our coaching programs and we have the Gold Circle. That is the coaching group that I teach. I teach one on one in that group. We have classes, we have retreats all built into the program. And I just love working with my Gold Circlers. And of course, we have our retreat coming up, which is an accelerator for you. And one of the things we're working with at that retreat is progress. We're not banishing that word in that case, but we are going to have workshops based around the clarity you need to make the right kind of progress for you at this point. So we're going to be talking about our passion and our purpose and how they feed our progress. That's the focus of the retreat. It's going to be very powerful. And we still have some spots open, but it's coming up the end of February, so you need to get in there and register today. So all those links, or at least the link to the retreat and to the hub, they're in your show notes. Please check them out. We have so many resources for you here, and I want you to be sure that you have the kind of support you need to make the progress that you want in 2026. I can't end the podcast before I share my words for 2026. These are my, you know, my focus words for the year. I shared them with my coach and she was just laughing and she knows me well, so it wasn't a surprise to her. But she asked me what I wanted to be the focus for my year and I told her, magic beans. Yeah, magic beans. And she just laughed. And maybe you're laughing too, or maybe you're scratching your head and saying, this woman is crazy. But let me expl. The magic beans concept is from the fairy tale Jack and the Beanstalk. Remember, he found the magic beans and he planted them and then that giant beanstalk grew. Well, see, I think I have a whole bunch of magic beans in my pocket. I have amazing team members. I have fabulous expert certified coaches that work with our harpists at Harp Mastery. I have marvelous colleagues I can rely on for support and advice. I have harpists that I get to talk to every week. Like you. I have these incredible 21st century ways to reach harpists all over the world. I have plenty of magic beans. I've got a whole pocket full of them. And this year I want to plant those magic beans and see how big our Harp Mastery beanstalk can grow. So my year is all about the magic beans. And I'd love to see how many magic beans I can help you plant and grow in your own heart playing this year. So my words may be a little silly sounding magic beans, but I think that they have a lot of potential and I'm looking forward to seeing where they take me this year. Next week on the podcast I'm gonna be talking about systems. Systems for everything you need to work on in your heart, playing everything that you want to discover and to include in your growth for 2020. Going to be talking about systems very actionable things on next week's podcast. So I'm looking forward to starting off 2026 with some really good things that you can put into place for yourself right away to see the kind of upgrade that you want in your playing. In the meantime, I wish you a very happy New Year as we move into 2026. I'm excited for everything this New year holds and I want you to remember in this new year, every single day is a day you can add more Harp Happiness to the universe, to your world, and to your spirit. And all you have to do is play. Thanks so much for listening and I will look forward to talking to you next year. See you then. Enjoyed today's episode? Then share it with a harpist friend. Subscribe for your weekly Harp Happiness Boost and check out harpmastery.com or the harp Mastery app in your app store for more resources and ways to connect. I'll see you next time.