Thrown in the towel on piano learning already? Beat Quitter’s Day blues with the ROLI Piano System
Almost given up on your New Year’s piano goals? Here’s 5 ways to stay motivated with ROLI this year
The start of a new year is always full of promise. The mantra “New year, new me” rings loudly in our minds, and we’re all hungry to start fresh routines and make big plans to finally learn something we’ve been dreaming about. For many of us, that includes picking up the piano and playing the songs we’ve always loved. But by the second Friday of January, the excitement can start to fade. Today, January 9, is what’s colloquially referred to as “Quitter’s Day,” the date when nearly half of all people abandon their New Year’s resolutions.
Experts say that the main culprit behind so many of us calling it quits so soon is the way our goals are designed — either they’re too vague or unrealistic to follow, too demanding to maintain, too boring to keep us interested, or we lack the framework and support systems surrounding our goals to set us up for success.
So, what do you do when you’re thinking about calling it quits on all those goals you had planned for 2026? Well, first of all we want to say it’s okay to start again. When January 1st rolls around, the “fresh-start effect” all too often pressures us to reach for the stars with new things we want to achieve over the next 12 months, and maybe we put way too many eggs in one basket. But just because you fall off the wagon doesn’t mean you can’t get back on. It’s often said that it takes about three weeks to form a habit, but we all know that when it comes to learning new skills or starting new routines, one size doesn’t fit all, and it can take anywhere from 21 days to a couple of months for something to stick. So, with that in mind, we have to give ourselves a chance to see progress with the goals we set ourselves, even if we stumble along the way to reaching them.
That said, if you’ve already thrown in the towel with your piano learning, don’t fret. Here are five ways that the ROLI Piano System will help you stick to your piano learning goals throughout the year.
1. Take the guesswork out of what and how to learn
The ROLI Piano System tackles a lot of the issues ‘New Year, New Me’-itis brings when we’re planning our New Year's resolutions. In a previous blog, we went into detail about how setting S.M.A.R.T. goals can help you stay on track with your musical ambitions throughout the year. Rather than setting vague, unachievable targets, using Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound criteria, you’re more likely to set goals you can actually chalk up as successes by the end of the year. If that all feels like too much work to figure out, the ROLI Learn app will help you. As you start on your piano learning journey, you’re eased into the process with an intelligent practice partner to guide you along the way. Take small, daily lessons and challenges, track your progress, and feel rewarded with each note.
2. Make piano learning fun by playing the songs you love
When it comes to learning music, a big challenge a lot of us face is what we’re made to learn. Major scales and music theory can seem daunting at first (and for some, boring enough to make us never want to touch the keys again), but with ROLI Learn, we’ve transformed the traditional approach to piano learning for the modern learner. While scales are important, we know that our fingers are itching to play along to our favorite tunes, so we’ve included those in the app too. From pop titans including Beyonce and Sabrina Carpenter, rock pioneers like The Beatles and David Bowie, to classical mainstays like Tchaikovsky, Beethoven, and Bach, you can take your pick of any musical style you want to master, and grow your piano skills through the songs you love.
3. No teacher? No problem — meet your personal practice assistant
Hands up if you’ve tried learning piano on your own through a YouTube tutorial and have been left more confused than when you pressed play. If that sounds familiar, you’re not alone. Learning to play an instrument with very little guidance and unclear instructions on things like finger placement, posture, and timing can be a real headache. And if traditional lessons with a piano teacher are just out of reach—whether due to time or financial constraints, or bad experiences in the past — it can make navigating the world of music learning even more tricky.
With the ROLI Learn System, we’ve changed that. The ROLI Piano System meets you where you are, offering guidance, insight, and encouragement every step of the way. Piano Assistant interprets your playing and grows with you, making sure you stick with tricky passages until you get them right before moving on, and offers helpful advice on the next practice steps you should take toward your goals. Ask it questions, receive meaningful feedback, accelerate your progress, and enjoy the process even more. Plus Airwave’s ROLI Vision tracks your technique, and ROLI Piano’s illuminated keys direct your next move, so you always know what to do. But, if you do need a teacher to help you along the way, the ROLI Learn app’s got that too. With six different piano coaches each covering different styles, you can find one that suits you and enjoy learning together.
4. Learn your own way and celebrate the small wins
If you’ve tried traditional methods of learning piano, it might feel like it just doesn’t work for you. Unfamiliar notes, tricky rhythms, and long stretches of practice can make it tempting to quit learning piano before you’ve even really started. Even the idea of learning how to read sheet music might send shivers down your spine.
That’s where ROLI Piano changes the game. Instead of overwhelming you, it breaks music and keyboard skills into small, approachable steps that fit your pace. If sheet music feels like a foreign language, you can follow a more visual approach to learning notation with Cascade View and work your way up to Classical View to read traditional notation. Stuck on a passage? Slow it down, loop it, and practise until it clicks. Gentle streaks and goal rewards help you see every small achievement and celebrate them as you go. All the small challenges you accumulate, daily, weekly, and monthly can add up to a big win at the end of the year. And even when you want to step away from learning mode, you can still keep learning with music-based game breaks — from escaping lava in Springboard to defending against aliens in Superliminal — build muscle memory while keeping the process fun.
5. Rather than learning alone, join a musical community.
Whether it’s joining in with other ROLI Learners in our close-knit community, or simply learning alongside friends and family, having a support system around you as you go on your music learning journey can be the perfect way to stay motivated, and do wonders for accountability. It’s very easy to give up on goals when done in secret, not so much when you’ve got people cheering you on.
Don’t let Quitter’s Day win and find your groove with ROLI Piano
As we mentioned above, the “all or nothing” attitude many of us have when taking New Year’s resolutions can be a surefire way to prevent us from reaching our goals — and learning a new instrument is no different. But by taking small steps toward bigger goals, celebrating each small win, and making sure we enjoy every note we play, we can increase our chances of success and stick to our goals for longer. And remember: non-linear progress is still progress! We may stumble along the path to piano mastery, but what matters most is that we pick ourselves up and keep going. With ROLI by your side, that journey becomes a little bit easier.
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