Ah, motivation, that old chestnut which often trips us guitar players up. “When the going gets tough, the tough get going,” as the Billy Ocean song goes, but… Sometimes, you may feel like doing any old chore before you get going to play your guitar. It happens to us all.
It has been about 10 days since I first mentioned the 30-day habit plan which can help you establish a guitar practice routine, and here is just a quick reminder of what it is. If you struggle with motivation or “lack of time” for playing, then try this…
Many of you may be looking for guitar practice tips on how to be more disciplined about picking up your guitar and playing. Us human beings certainly are creatures of habit. We often take comfort in doing the same things each day and each week.
The other day I had to do a little plumbing and clear out the blocked “u-bend” in the sink. Yuck! DIY is not really my forte, but I got there. How does this relate to guitar fingerpicking patterns, you ask? Well, it made me think how lacking my toolbox is for such occasions.
There are some key guitar learning steps and sometimes people learn them the hard way. Back in 2008, I was in a band and one evening the other guitarist rocks up to practise. He excitedly said to us, “Guys you will never believe what I just bought. I got this awesome guitar for 30 […]
I’m thinking of starting a new little feature of three things that relate to guitar playing in some sort of way, such as three guitar playing tips, and doing this each week. It could be fun and hopefully, it will help you in a few ways as well as give you some tips and […]
I get asked a bit about arthritis prevention and guitar playing by students. Mostly how can I help people become better guitarists when they suffer from it? As many of you know, arthritis is not a pleasant thing to suffer from. I am no doctor and don’t give medical advice on such things, […]
One of my favourite films of all time is Terminator 2: Judgment Day. I remember watching it as a kid with my dad on VHS – I was probably only 8 at the time (and the film had a 15 rating here in the UK, so he might be mortified if he knew I told […]
The other day I talked about my complete disdain for most technical exercises out there in the land of guitar. Today, I want to give you a tip on how to play the most commonly taught one ever, but specifically… How NOT to do it and how you should practise it instead.