I need some motivation!!

[SyXified]

I used to practice my ass off all day getting things clean and and fluid, but recently I've been really tapped out. I can tell I am getting sloppy but I just can't motivate myself to take the time to slow down and clean it up. What's worse is I mostly just noodle around, playing blues licks and I want my abilities to be higher than that. Whenever it comes to settling down and playing somthing slow and building up the speed I just have no motivation to stick with it. When I was in bands that were active there was plenty of motivation, but I am having a lot of trouble self motivating. The question I ask is what do you guys do to self motivate? Should I start recording things and submiting them around for critique or is there just a good mindset to get in that makes you yearn to play somthing really well?

 

[Odysseus]

I dont really have much experience in this area, but I have noticed some ways in which i worked through a period when I was playing really poorly and getting frustrated or just getting bored and noodling around mindlessly with no intent of improving at anything. Although it may seem like the worst approach ever, simply taking a break from playing music (sometimes even listening to music) and coming back a day to a week later can make all the difference in the world. Also, in the case of getting bored and lacking motivation to practice stuff really heavily, maybe you need to learn something new that really challenges you. I know that I feel like I'm improving most when I'm trying to learn some new song/solo/riff or whatever so long as it challenges me. And if something seems simply waaaay to tough for you to play, then what the hell, if you were just gonna pointlessly noodle around anyway, why not see how capable you actually are of learning it. And maybe simply working on technique in any way still bores you, then maybe you could work on something entirely different such as composition, ear training, and maybe learning some theory. There are many different things to work on and I'm just naming a few, but what will probably benefit you the most is working on what you wanna work on when you wanna work on it. If you're forcing yourself to do something you'll get far less out of it than if you have a desire to work on it. So if you hear some cool new song and you want to learn how to play it, then go for it, if a need to learn some theory haunts you, then work on that, etc..... I hope this helps.

 

[v01c354nd51gn5]

im right with Odysseus on this. taking a little break will really do some good. a few days can make a difference. setting some goals is good also. "imma learn this technique/song by ::insert reasonable date here::" thats happened to me before, and changing things up for a few days is pretty effective. Learning theory can only help you once you get back into playing. hang in there.

 

[OfSinsAndShred]

Stop for 2 days, like Odysseus said. It always helped me.

 

[SyXified]

Thanks guys, sounds like a plan! I've actually found that technique to work in the past, it's just so hard to stop listening to music .

 

[Serge...]

I went to Europe for 2 weeks last summer and I didn't play guitar the whole time. When I got back, my technique sucked ass but I was more creative than I've ever been before. Works like a charm.

Also, don't get so into heavy practicing. Have some fun with playing. Get a backing track and try to play along. Write some music. Quit tremolo picking for a while and enjoy yourself. Also, to get something clean, use a metronome and force yourself to play something at slow tempos and slowly build up speed. That's the only way to do it.

 

[RobbM]

Thanks guys, sounds like a plan! I've actually found that technique to work in the past, it's just so hard to stop listening to music .

yeah, the only thing that sucks is the constant whining from your guitar "play me, play me, just pick me up and strum me once" oh, wait, that didnt actually sound very good, lol...

hey man, where in Mass are you?

 

[anonymousnick2001]

Maybe he needs me to stick it in his pooper. That'll motivate him.

Trust me, you'll like it. I'm well-equipped. When I go skinny dipping, you hear TWO splashes, baby. All natural.

 

[SyXified]

Nice fish, compensating for somthing? Doesn't it strike you as really sad that you'd feel the need to waste your own and everyone elses time posting shit like that? If you're so desperate to pick up guys, please restrict it to your gay fishing/ass raming club or whatever the hell it is you do with your time.