How could I possibly get that good?

michelew
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Wed Aug 22, 2012 9:59 pm

dennisg wrote:
About 30 years ago, my brother Ken talked me into going skiing with him. The idea of trying to learn (and possibly fail at) something new terrified me, but the image of me skiing down a mountain effortlessly is something I also found intriguing, and I agreed to go -- with very mixed feelings.

I remember feeling totally nauseous as we took the chair lift up to the top of our first hill. And when I stepped off of that slow-moving chair, I immediately skied directly into a snow bank, since I had no idea how to turn a pair of skis. Ken decided that was a good place to begin my lessons -- how to turn. He demonstrated how to snow plow, and I was able to follow him.

Then we moved over to the top of the hill. And while it may have been a bunny slope, I felt as if I were standing on the top of Everest. I looked down the entire length of the mountain, and my knees started knocking, and I said, "I can't ski this! The mountain is too big!" What he said next surprised me; he said, "It doesn't matter how big the mountain is because you're only go to ski one turn, and then stop."

So I pushed off, snow plowed through one turn, then stopped. He skied over to me and said, "Now that you know you can do that once, you can do that again." And I pushed off, made another turn, and stopped. And then did it again for a third time. And again and again -- until, pretty soon, I was at the bottom of the hill.

What I learned from that day, and it has stuck with me ever since then, is that everything that's worth doing is difficult and potentially scary and might seem like an insurmountable mountain to be conquered. But, in reality, it's just one turn at a time. Remembering that has come in handy in my career as a writer, where I often face mountainous projects like book manuscripts or screenplays -- projects that look like Everest until I realize that every book manuscript begins with a single sentence. And then the next one. And the one after that. Until I've metaphorically skied the entire mountain.

I try to apply that to guitar playing, too. I remember back at the beginning of my playing, I'd listen to songs like Eva Cassidy's "Autumn Leaves" or Queen's "Love of My Life", and I could never imagine playing such huge and daunting songs. And then I thought about Ken's "one turn at a time" philosophy, and I decided to make my goal to learn only the first measure. I'd practice that for a solid day until I could comfortably play it, then I'd turn to the second measure, and learn that one, too. Then I'd link these two turns together. And pretty soon I'd be at the end of the song.

I have enough experience now to realize that if I apply Ken's philosophy to just about any song (or any daunting activity), I'll eventually be able to learn it. A song isn't Everest. It's a series of notes that make up a measure, and a series of measures that make up a song. One turn at a time.
I LOVE this analogy! I'm keeping it and will definitely remind myself "one turn at a time" when I'm feeling hopelessly incompetent.

Thanks den. Thanks Tony :)


tovo
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Thu Aug 23, 2012 1:59 pm

It's great to see such thoughtful replies, thanks all for providing them for the benefit of everyone.

Daryl, all good mate I'm not grumpy at all just really wanted to be clear that I wasn't using Tommy's words. Actually I saw him in concert only a couple weeks ago, he's amazing.

Cheers.


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daryl
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Fri Aug 24, 2012 5:11 am

How could I possibly get that good?

Hmmm.....in my honest opinion, I don't think I will ever be thát good. When I for instance watch Muriel Anderson play, well no, I won't ever get that good. Or I should go back in time and do it all over again... :blink:

The longer I play, the more I realise that I could've been a much better guitarplayer. I started out right though, young age, I guess naturally talented, practicing at léast an hour a day, but then at the age of 14 or so, I kept playing, but just for the fun of it, I wasn't really practicing as I had done in the years before. Those early years had turned me into a reasonable good player, it gave me a rocksolid foundation, that was it and yes I think that was already a lot. And sure the playing for fun for years and years to come has had definitely its benefits, it made the guitar totally natural to me. And I played in a variety of bands and a variety of instruments, so of course that made me a better allround musician.

But......If I had continued to develop myself as I did in those early years, and I mean up to this day, practicing for hours and hours each day......yes, again, I could've been a múch better player and máybe even close to the ones that I admire for their guitarplaying.

Then again, do I really want to become that good? Like Chris said, when you're into sports and you want to win golden medals and all, those people start young, train évery day for hours, for years and years, I think it's the same with an instrument, it takes a lót of time and sacrifices to become that good. So do I want to make that sacrifice? Well I guess not, otherwise i would do so. Otherwise I would've stayed focused when I reached my teens.

Anyway, the point, I won't ever get that good, since I chose to have other priorities in my life. In the meanwhile I'm quite satisfied of my playing nowadays, since it's indeed the best I can be. And sure I will get better, ooooooooh yés I will!! :P

Ness

Edit:

Sorry, I guess I wasn't finished just yet! ;) In any way, after years and years of playing and performing for the fun of it, I did want to develop myself some more again, so for that indeed hours of practicing and playing every day. Especially when I want to get something done, or when I get passionate about something, I do make that 'sacrifice', but it's not a constant thing, and I think it should be just that if I ever want to become that good. Well I already explained about that! :)


tovo
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Fri Aug 24, 2012 6:14 pm

Ness as I read what you have written (great thoughts) I was reminded of the reaction I often hear to people like Tommy E. People say that they are discouraged because they will never be that good but others are inspired. I prefer inspired.

In anything, music, sport, science, art....the list goes on...SOMEONE has to be brilliant! I can't understand a reaction that says "I'll never be as good as him/her, so why bother?" Doesn't make sense to me.


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