Tom Petty said that waiting is the hardest part, but when it comes to establishing a guitar practice routine, waiting is definitely the easiest part.
It's the STARTING that's difficult. Most of us wait and wait and wait just to get started. Before you know it, March has turned into July, and suddenly, it's November, and you've barely spent any time practicing.
I'll let you in on a secret: You don't have to be disciplined at finishing your practice every day; you just have to be disciplined at STARTING.
In his book "The Now Habit", Dr. Neil Fiore writes the following:
Essentially, all large tasks are completed in a series of starts. Keep on starting, and finishing will take care of itself. When you’re afraid of finishing, keep asking, “When can I start?”
This is the sentence that stuck out to me:
Keep on starting and finishing will take care of itself.
Rephrased for guitar, it could read:
Keep on picking up the guitar; the playing will take care of itself.
So how does this work? Let's deconstruct how improvement on guitar happens.
- The secret to improving on guitar is consistently finishing practice sessions.
- The secret to finishing practice sessions is starting them.
- The secret to starting practice sessions is picking up your guitar.
The secret to consistent practice is becoming disciplined at picking up your guitar. What you do with it after you pick it up does matter, but it matters more that you simply PICK UP THE GUITAR.
You need to become a pro at picking up your guitar. Pick it up whenever you can. Pick it up so often that it becomes a habit. Pick it up for 5 minutes before dinner. Pick it up to strum two chords. Pick it up even when it's not your scheduled practice time. Grease the tracks between your feet, that guitar, and your hands. The act of picking up the guitar and playing something should feel as effortless as picking up the remote control for the TV
How It Starts
Why is this simple routine so important? Here's why.
Imagine you've gone several months without playing guitar (I've been there myself). Think about how that drought started.
Your drought started on the first day you decided not to pick up your guitar.
Actually, it started the moment you looked at your guitar and instead of picking it up, you decided to spend your free time doing something else.
You weren't trying to start a months-long drought, you thought you would pick it up the next day. But the next day came, and it was slightly easier to walk away. By the time a week had gone by, you barely noticed it.
It wasn't until several months later that you saw a post on Facebook, or a video on YouTube that made you realize "I haven't played guitar in MONTHS".
Sound familiar? You're not the only one. This is how far too many guitar players manage to spin their wheels for years, having a few months of intense practice followed by months of..... nothing.
All because they decided not to pick up the guitar one day.
Closing Thoughts
Once you take all the pressure off of yourself to finish, it becomes so much easier to start. If you develop the habit of starting, you will eventually finish something. It could be a song, a solo, or a single lick that's been out of reach.
But even on that day, the day you finish, you still have to make the choice to start. Starting is everything.
If this resonates with you, drop me a comment below.
Take care,
Anthony Stauffer
Owner, Texas Blues Alley
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