Have you ever struggled to learn a guitar technique and gave up
out of despair when you didn't master it fast enough? Or perhaps you're
feeling you should be able to learn how to perform a new technique
faster than it takes you. These feelings indicate that something is
amiss in your training which needs to be addressed if you are going to
get the most out of your practice sessions.
It has happened to every student of the guitar at some point. You get excited about the prospect of learning some new song you've always dreamed of playing. You feel you're at a point in your
guitar journey where you should be able to learn that song fairly quickly. As you dig into it, however, you discover you lack mastery of at least one guitar technique that will be essential in playing a faithful rendition of the song. Instant bummer, right?
In teaching guitar to many students around the globe over the years, I've seen how the struggle to master a new technique often leads budding guitarists to lose enthusiasm and burn out, short-circuiting the exciting journey they had begun. But the good news is it doesn't have to be that way. There are things you can do which will help you learn new techniques faster, keep your momentum going, and propel you faster down the path to the guitar mastery you desire.
It's easy to get discouraged when you aren't able to master a technique as fast as you'd hoped. This can result from any number of reasons, but my experience has shown that it's rarely because the student isn't dedicated enough or not putting in enough practice time. Rather, I've found it usually has more to do with exactly how the student is spending that practice time. Specifically, increasing the efficiency of your practice is what will allow you to master a new technique faster.
Let's face it - there's only so much time in a day you can devote to practicing. No matter the technique - whether it's bends, trills, hammer-ons, pull-offs, sliding, tapping, chucking, or some other technique - there's going to be some time and effort required to master it. The key is reducing that time and effort as much as possible. To do that, you need to implement efficiencies into your practice routine which speed up the learning curve while also eliminating anything that derails your focus.
There can be a number of factors contributing to this phenomena including, but not limited to: distractions while practicing (psychological and environmental), not using a training log (or not using it properly), lack of proper warm-ups, improper technique, lack of a mentor, and not following a structured training program.
Here's 7 ways you can increase the efficiency of your practice. Implementing these proven learning skills into your practice routine will enable you to learn any technique quicker so you can get on with cranking out your favorite tunes.
First, It's been shown that we learn new things faster when devoting small chunks of time to it. So practice your guitar technique in small blocks of time rather than attempting to master it over a few marathon sessions. You'll find yourself making faster progress, as well as staying more enthusiastic and energetic when practicing.
Second, eliminate distractions before you begin to practice. Before you even pick up your guitar, turn off your TV, computer, cell phone, etc. Trying to master a difficult technique during commercial breaks of a favorite TV show is only going to hinder your progress. Likewise, answering phone calls or checking emails and text messages when they come in interferes with the memory patterns you're trying to establish in your brain.
Third, maintain an uncluttered practice area. Try to keep a designated area for your practice and keep it uncluttered as much as possible. Sure, there may be guitar cables on the floor and other things in the room that you need for your playing, but try to have all non-essentials unrelated to your practice out of the way and in their place.
Fourth, pay special attention when you practice the technique so that you are actually practicing it correctly! I really can't stress this one enough. This is huge because if you are practicing a technique incorrectly, you are actually burning into your memory an incorrect version of it! This only takes you further away from your goal of mastering the technique fast.
Fifth, have a guitar mentor and take advantage of the expertise they can offer. A mentor is an invaluable aid to making faster progress in your guitar journey. This is usually your guitar teacher, but in any case you need access to someone who is well-versed in guitar and has already been where you are now in your journey. This allows them to help you overcome obstacles that come up as you progress from one skill to the next. Your mentor will be familiar with the technique which you are struggling with and can give specific instructions to help you master it.
Sixth, keep a training log and use it the right way. Many keep a log of only what they practiced and when. That's not good enough if you want to master a challenging technique. You need to be making note also of the specific issues you are encountering when performing the technique. You can then provide this information to your mentor so he/she can give you the specific help you need so you can quickly overcome that issue.
Seventh, be sure you are learning techniques as part of a structured plan which leads you down a progressive path that logically builds upon itself. Attempting to master a technique before you have laid the proper foundation for it will not only add to your learning time, but the frustration it leads to can further hinder progress in your guitar journey. It's therefore crucial you are learning techniques according to a well-crafted program that teaches them in a logical sequence. Attempting to master new skills in a random, haphazard order is a sure-fire path to frustration and delayed progress.
It is imperative you learn how to master each new technique fast for several reasons. Foremost, you'll be able to begin using it proficiently in your own playing. Doing so will not only improve your competence as a guitarist, but you'll also rapidly expand your song repertoire. You'll find yourself performing songs that were previously beyond your skill level faster than ever. And it's this success that will keep you motivated to practice.
It's important to remember that learning guitar is a building process. Each new technique you learn builds a new level to your existing foundation, allowing you to reach greater heights with greater ease as you progress further. So with each mastery of a new skill, you'll be able to tackle more of them with greater confidence, allowing you to learn new techniques even faster.
Of course, it goes without saying that one of the major benefits you will reap is the personal satisfaction you will feel as you impress people each time you pick up the guitar. Whether your goal is to play for family and friends, impress a love interest, or play to an arena of raving fans, having an array of techniques at your disposal will help you become the guitar hero you've always wanted to be.
If you're feeling overwhelmed and are not sure which of these tips you should focus on first, let me suggest something you can implement right away into your practice routine that can help you learn challenging skills faster than ever. Practice the technique as the first and last thing you do every day until you've mastered it. That is, practice it at least a few minutes right before going to bed and again first thing in the morning upon waking (yes, that means even before breakfast!). This is in addition to your regular practice sessions.
This little bonus tip goes along with what I said earlier about breaking your practice sessions down into smaller blocks of time throughout the day. In this case, what we're doing is adding a small chunk of laser-focused practice on the one technique just as our mind is winding down for the night and again just as it's winding up the next morning. Many have found this trick works great for learning anything - and it works wonders on guitar whether it's a challenging chord change or an advanced technique. Try it yourself and I think you just might be amazed at how much it reduced your learning time. So now you have some concrete action steps you can use to learn and master any technique faster.
Of course, it's not enough to just know what to do - you must actually take action and implement these ideas into your practice sessions. But if you do, you'll find yourself nailing down those techniques in much less time and your playing will quickly reach a whole new level!
It has happened to every student of the guitar at some point. You get excited about the prospect of learning some new song you've always dreamed of playing. You feel you're at a point in your
guitar journey where you should be able to learn that song fairly quickly. As you dig into it, however, you discover you lack mastery of at least one guitar technique that will be essential in playing a faithful rendition of the song. Instant bummer, right?
In teaching guitar to many students around the globe over the years, I've seen how the struggle to master a new technique often leads budding guitarists to lose enthusiasm and burn out, short-circuiting the exciting journey they had begun. But the good news is it doesn't have to be that way. There are things you can do which will help you learn new techniques faster, keep your momentum going, and propel you faster down the path to the guitar mastery you desire.
It's easy to get discouraged when you aren't able to master a technique as fast as you'd hoped. This can result from any number of reasons, but my experience has shown that it's rarely because the student isn't dedicated enough or not putting in enough practice time. Rather, I've found it usually has more to do with exactly how the student is spending that practice time. Specifically, increasing the efficiency of your practice is what will allow you to master a new technique faster.
Let's face it - there's only so much time in a day you can devote to practicing. No matter the technique - whether it's bends, trills, hammer-ons, pull-offs, sliding, tapping, chucking, or some other technique - there's going to be some time and effort required to master it. The key is reducing that time and effort as much as possible. To do that, you need to implement efficiencies into your practice routine which speed up the learning curve while also eliminating anything that derails your focus.
There can be a number of factors contributing to this phenomena including, but not limited to: distractions while practicing (psychological and environmental), not using a training log (or not using it properly), lack of proper warm-ups, improper technique, lack of a mentor, and not following a structured training program.
Here's 7 ways you can increase the efficiency of your practice. Implementing these proven learning skills into your practice routine will enable you to learn any technique quicker so you can get on with cranking out your favorite tunes.
First, It's been shown that we learn new things faster when devoting small chunks of time to it. So practice your guitar technique in small blocks of time rather than attempting to master it over a few marathon sessions. You'll find yourself making faster progress, as well as staying more enthusiastic and energetic when practicing.
Second, eliminate distractions before you begin to practice. Before you even pick up your guitar, turn off your TV, computer, cell phone, etc. Trying to master a difficult technique during commercial breaks of a favorite TV show is only going to hinder your progress. Likewise, answering phone calls or checking emails and text messages when they come in interferes with the memory patterns you're trying to establish in your brain.
Third, maintain an uncluttered practice area. Try to keep a designated area for your practice and keep it uncluttered as much as possible. Sure, there may be guitar cables on the floor and other things in the room that you need for your playing, but try to have all non-essentials unrelated to your practice out of the way and in their place.
Fourth, pay special attention when you practice the technique so that you are actually practicing it correctly! I really can't stress this one enough. This is huge because if you are practicing a technique incorrectly, you are actually burning into your memory an incorrect version of it! This only takes you further away from your goal of mastering the technique fast.
Fifth, have a guitar mentor and take advantage of the expertise they can offer. A mentor is an invaluable aid to making faster progress in your guitar journey. This is usually your guitar teacher, but in any case you need access to someone who is well-versed in guitar and has already been where you are now in your journey. This allows them to help you overcome obstacles that come up as you progress from one skill to the next. Your mentor will be familiar with the technique which you are struggling with and can give specific instructions to help you master it.
Sixth, keep a training log and use it the right way. Many keep a log of only what they practiced and when. That's not good enough if you want to master a challenging technique. You need to be making note also of the specific issues you are encountering when performing the technique. You can then provide this information to your mentor so he/she can give you the specific help you need so you can quickly overcome that issue.
Seventh, be sure you are learning techniques as part of a structured plan which leads you down a progressive path that logically builds upon itself. Attempting to master a technique before you have laid the proper foundation for it will not only add to your learning time, but the frustration it leads to can further hinder progress in your guitar journey. It's therefore crucial you are learning techniques according to a well-crafted program that teaches them in a logical sequence. Attempting to master new skills in a random, haphazard order is a sure-fire path to frustration and delayed progress.
It is imperative you learn how to master each new technique fast for several reasons. Foremost, you'll be able to begin using it proficiently in your own playing. Doing so will not only improve your competence as a guitarist, but you'll also rapidly expand your song repertoire. You'll find yourself performing songs that were previously beyond your skill level faster than ever. And it's this success that will keep you motivated to practice.
It's important to remember that learning guitar is a building process. Each new technique you learn builds a new level to your existing foundation, allowing you to reach greater heights with greater ease as you progress further. So with each mastery of a new skill, you'll be able to tackle more of them with greater confidence, allowing you to learn new techniques even faster.
Of course, it goes without saying that one of the major benefits you will reap is the personal satisfaction you will feel as you impress people each time you pick up the guitar. Whether your goal is to play for family and friends, impress a love interest, or play to an arena of raving fans, having an array of techniques at your disposal will help you become the guitar hero you've always wanted to be.
If you're feeling overwhelmed and are not sure which of these tips you should focus on first, let me suggest something you can implement right away into your practice routine that can help you learn challenging skills faster than ever. Practice the technique as the first and last thing you do every day until you've mastered it. That is, practice it at least a few minutes right before going to bed and again first thing in the morning upon waking (yes, that means even before breakfast!). This is in addition to your regular practice sessions.
This little bonus tip goes along with what I said earlier about breaking your practice sessions down into smaller blocks of time throughout the day. In this case, what we're doing is adding a small chunk of laser-focused practice on the one technique just as our mind is winding down for the night and again just as it's winding up the next morning. Many have found this trick works great for learning anything - and it works wonders on guitar whether it's a challenging chord change or an advanced technique. Try it yourself and I think you just might be amazed at how much it reduced your learning time. So now you have some concrete action steps you can use to learn and master any technique faster.
Of course, it's not enough to just know what to do - you must actually take action and implement these ideas into your practice sessions. But if you do, you'll find yourself nailing down those techniques in much less time and your playing will quickly reach a whole new level!
Learn how to find the right guitar for you at ShopGuitarsForSale.com/blog.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Daniel_Wright
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