How could I possibly get that good?

tovo
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Tue Aug 21, 2012 9:19 pm

I hear that a lot. I just got through checking out a couple of really advanced players jamming together on Youtube. So many comments on their video were along the lines of "damn I'll never be that good"...etc, etc.

In my relatively short time playing I have at times made the mistake of getting frustrated over the gap between where I was and where I wanted to be in terms of my music. It's a road to nowhere and it's a real waste of energy.

I think something important to keep in mind is that no really good player got there overnight, and no great player became great without a hell of an amount of work. If it's worth doing, it's worth the effort it takes to get there. That's the attitude I try to bring to my practice each day and I just accept that with intelligent application and plain hard work I will get better. Might not be as quick as some, or as good as others, but it will do me. I try now to enjoy the journey, hoping that one day I'll reach a destination. More likely though is that I will just keep traveling the road.

Any thoughts on the issue?


tombo1230
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Tue Aug 21, 2012 10:12 pm

tovo wrote:
I hear that a lot. I just got through checking out a couple of really advanced players jamming together on Youtube. So many comments on their video were along the lines of "damn I'll never be that good"...etc, etc.

In my relatively short time playing I have at times made the mistake of getting frustrated over the gap between where I was and where I wanted to be in terms of my music. It's a road to nowhere and it's a real waste of energy.

I think something important to keep in mind is that no really good player got there overnight, and no great player became great without a hell of an amount of work. If it's worth doing, it's worth the effort it takes to get there. That's the attitude I try to bring to my practice each day and I just accept that with intelligent application and plain hard work I will get better. Might not be as quick as some, or as good as others, but it will do me. I try now to enjoy the journey, hoping that one day I'll reach a destination. More likely though is that I will just keep traveling the road.

Any thoughts on the issue?
Hi Tony,
I think you are having the same thoughts that almost every serious guitar player has had from time to time. The fact is we all want to improve and move on musically. I agree with your thinking. it doesn't happen overnight without hard work. If this were the case everyone would be playing guitar.

People who say 'I will never get as good as that, should be saying to themselves, this person was at my level once and now they are at this higher level, I am going to play like this in time. You are then programming the subconscous part of your brain to succeed rather than to fail. Maybe to succeed quicker we need to set some short and long term goals and keep a practice log to help to get to where we want to be. The bottom line is you have to be enjoying playing or what is the point?

The trouble with learning guitar is that you can improve slowly and almost not notice the improvement taking place. I sometimes cast my mind back and think, 'what am I able to do or play on the guitar now that I couldn't do last year?' Try this, you might just be suprised how far you have come.
I also think we have to be inspired by good players and not be put off by them. They are where we are heading. Being part of this forum gives us a great advantage and opportunity to definately improve our playing. When you think of it, we really have no excuses, as it is all here for us.

Ok, enough of my ramblings, I get up for work in three hours LOL! :)

Tom N.


willem
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Wed Aug 22, 2012 1:14 am

tombo1230 wrote:
tovo wrote:
I hear that a lot. I just got through checking out a couple of really advanced players jamming together on Youtube. So many comments on their video were along the lines of "damn I'll never be that good"...etc, etc.

In my relatively short time playing I have at times made the mistake of getting frustrated over the gap between where I was and where I wanted to be in terms of my music. It's a road to nowhere and it's a real waste of energy.

I think something important to keep in mind is that no really good player got there overnight, and no great player became great without a hell of an amount of work. If it's worth doing, it's worth the effort it takes to get there. That's the attitude I try to bring to my practice each day and I just accept that with intelligent application and plain hard work I will get better. Might not be as quick as some, or as good as others, but it will do me. I try now to enjoy the journey, hoping that one day I'll reach a destination. More likely though is that I will just keep traveling the road.

Any thoughts on the issue?
Hi Tony,
I think you are having the same thoughts that almost every serious guitar player has had from time to time. The fact is we all want to improve and move on musically. I agree with your thinking. it doesn't happen overnight without hard work. If this were the case everyone would be playing guitar.

People who say 'I will never get as good as that, should be saying to themselves, this person was at my level once and now they are at this higher level, I am going to play like this in time. You are then programming the subconscous part of your brain to succeed rather than to fail. Maybe to succeed quicker we need to set some short and long term goals and keep a practice log to help to get to where we want to be. The bottom line is you have to be enjoying playing or what is the point?

The trouble with learning guitar is that you can improve slowly and almost not notice the improvement taking place. I sometimes cast my mind back and think, 'what am I able to do or play on the guitar now that I couldn't do last year?' Try this, you might just be suprised how far you have come.
I also think we have to be inspired by good players and not be put off by them. They are where we are heading. Being part of this forum gives us a great advantage and opportunity to definately improve our playing. When you think of it, we really have no excuses, as it is all here for us.

Ok, enough of my ramblings, I get up for work in three hours LOL! :)

Tom N.
Yeah Tony and Tom,,,Just keep at it and learn everything slooooooowwwwww...it will come,, I never could play blackbird,,now I dream it..I have a lot of fun by learning Or to have some knowledge a bout it,,

Willem


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neverfoundthetime
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Wed Aug 22, 2012 2:06 am

I have had these "will never be able to" thoughts on many things I've learned and certainly so with the guitar. I've noticed that if the gap is too big between what the able doer is showing and what the novice thinks (s)he can do, it can be very de-motivating. The line between inspiration and de-motivation is a thin one. Maybe "being the best I can be" is the most helpful thought: you know you'll (probably) never be Tommy Emanuel, but you probably can play a lot of those songs you've always wanted to play. If you like a challenge and can accept that the journey is always the biggest part of any achievement (how many years of training does it take for a gold medallist to be able to enjoy his/her 3 minutes on the podium?), you will get a lot of enjoyment out of trying.

I like to use songs I really want to play as milestones, I'm motivated to jog the mile but I would wilt at the thought of going for 10 or 100 miles. I'm up to 200 miles by now... never would have thought I'd make that! So I keep going mile for mile and I'm loving it!


Chasplaya
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Wed Aug 22, 2012 5:46 am

Hey mate I hear your pain, although... I don't know where you want to be??? WHere do you want to be?


Chasplaya
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Wed Aug 22, 2012 5:50 am

Chasplaya wrote:
Hey mate I hear your pain, although... I don't know where you want to be??? WHere do you want to be?
Read article again and don't change my thoughts too much, but you did say enjoy.... and well dude what more to say... If you enjoy who the F cares


Chasplaya
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Wed Aug 22, 2012 5:51 am

Chasplaya wrote:
Hey mate I hear your pain, although... I don't know where you want to be??? WHere do you want to be?
Read article again and don't change my thoughts too much, but you did say enjoy.... and well dude what more to say... If you enjoy who the F cares


Catman
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Wed Aug 22, 2012 7:25 am

I agree completely with all the above.

But something I realized at guitar camp is that you have to make sure you master the tools that will allow you to "get that good". Of course, the tools depend on where you are and where you want to go. In my case, in order to advance to my next level I think that I need to master scales and arpeggios in all forms and positions, and I need to improve my understanding of some aspects of music theory. And if I do (at least some of) that, I really believe that I will be able to play Big Bad Bluesy in a year.

-David


suziko
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Wed Aug 22, 2012 9:01 am

Tony,

You certainly brought up something that I've thought about many times since I started playing guitar. I know I shared with you that a few months ago I had a chance to play with some guys who are MUCH more advanced musicians than me. At the beginning of the jam session, I had a moment of feeling really awful. I felt like, "I am so out of my league and I should just pack my guitar up right now and, heck, I might as well head right to the guitar store and sell this thing because I suck." But I kept those thoughts to myself and stuck it out. And soon I started thinking that, sure, the guys are better than me, but so what? That meant that there was a lot I could learn from them by playing with them. Thankfully, they were also very patient and encouraging with me. One of the guys later asked me how long I'd been playing, and when I said "About 3 years" he seemed surprised and impressed. They've all been playing since they were teenagers, and they're all now in their mid 40s to early 50s. I wonder where my playing will be after I've been playing for 20 (or more) years?

I often think "I should be better than I am now." But I try to remind myself that I shouldn't be anyplace different from where I am at this moment. Thinking things about where I should be just depresses and discourages me. So I just keep practicing regularly, keep trying to take on new challenges and try to improve my technique, and I figure that I will continue to improve. When I look back on older videos, I do see improvements in my playing. So, that is certainly encouraging.

Luckily, playing guitar is so much fun that it's not a drag to practice it. I love it and I figure it's a hobby I can work at for the rest of my life.

Suzi


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Music Junkie
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Wed Aug 22, 2012 9:47 am

Interesting topic Tony.

When I first picked up the guitar 4 years ago, I did not have high expectations at all. I really wanted to be able to pick one up and strum some songs and maybe learn to sing at the same time. I held no delusions that I would ever play 10% as good as the folks who motivated me and made me want to learn in the first place. I just thought to myself, I don't have to play that well to enjoy myself. I would venture a guess that I can maybe play 5% as good as them these days... ;)

Interesting how my capabilities and desires have changed over the last year or two though. I can now strum through just about any song if I have the music in front of me, and many songs without the music. I have learned to throw little hammer-ons and runs in on some songs (something I did not think I would be able to do). My practice habits are less than diligent, as I lack the discipline and the quiet area/time to really concentrate on mastering new techniques. I have made my peace with that, and just try when I can. I find that some nights I play very well, and others I wonder why I am even trying.... Overall though, at the end of another month or two, I see the difference. PATIENCE is the key. So many of us here at TG are either complete beginners in our later years, or are revisiting the guitar after a long hiatus... I am sure if all of us had been playing for 25-30 years, we would all be far more capable. Suzy made a great point!

For now I will, as you say Tony, "keep traveling the road". After all, I have met many a wonderful fellow traveler on the journey and we seem to be heading in the same general direction. Some have destinations further up the road, and i might join them up there someday. I am just so glad that I got on the road to begin with. I would be hard pressed to imagine my life without the guitar these days. Not only has it given me a sense of accomplishment, but it has also been a type of therapy for those long days at work.

So after babbling on, I would say that you could possibly get there by sticking with it, working hard and, most of all, being patient with yourself. We have all witnessed the progress of those who post regularly, and can see that they are moving in the right direction. Time will tell..... B)

J


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