How To Practice?

Making the most of your time with the guitar and, fundamentally, enjoying yourself in the process can be easier said than done. You’ll often hear players talking of ‘being stuck in a rut’ or feeling that they are not progressing as quickly as they’d like.

One of the key pearls of wisdom shared by all accomplished players is that in the case of your guitar practise, quality is preferential to quantity.

Let’s explore some healthy approaches to practise which are relevant to every level, style and aspiration.

Simple enough, right? But it is amazing how easy it is to cut your practice short or lose yourself in extended, noodle-based playing.

This is an entirely personal and individual thing - you may agree to give yourself 15 minutes of practice per day or it may be 2 hours. Whatever the time is; stick to it. The premise here is that a predetermined time slot is more likely to be productive, focused and easier to break up into smaller sessions.

On the same topic - make this work for you; it might be that spreading your 30 minutes over the course of the day in focused 10-minute chunks is easier than escaping from the world for a single chunk of time.

This is a little like having a varied diet, the musical equivalent of eating your greens! This approach is not only good for your development but, more importantly, it prevents you from getting bored and distracted. Giving an hour over to master that one solo or song is full of great intentions but, even the most dedicated of us lose focus after twenty minutes or so.

Think of splitting your time between the following:

- Repertoire - Songs, riffs, licks, chord progressions. Whatever you are adding to your overall playing library.

- Creative - Improvising, song/riff writing. Anything that harnesses that creative part of your brain and has you playing things which are essentially ‘you’ and original.

- Skills - Technique, scales, chord and arpeggio knowledge, ear training etc. Any skill with which you need to be the player you’re aiming to be.

This, of course, is very dependent on level - if you’re a relatively new player; then repertoire should take priority with learning and playing songs making the bulk of your time. Advancing players are going to gain more from creative and skill-based practice. There is no fun or musical reward in playing scales and exercises all day too, so keep the balance right and you’ll avoid the ruts!

This is also largely reliant on your own guitar goals. Which brings us to the following point.

Once again, this is completely personal to you and is dependent on where you would like to take your playing. There is nothing wrong with setting a long term goal of being able to busk your way through the back catalogue of your favourite band or aiming to be a virtuoso. The unifying fact is they both need specific short term goals to get you there.

If you’ve set your sights on being able to play every Hendrix solo as a long term goal then you’ll need to look at slotting this into some short term plan. Maybe you’ll master a solo every two weeks? But you’ll also need to diversify your practice to include some non-Hendrix based ’skill’ lessons so you can get all those string bends and double stops sounding authentic! Equally, if your goal is to write catchy pop songs, you’ll need to balance your time between writing, learning about chords and harmony, being creative and learning as many pop songs as you can.

For advancing players, the exercise of defining where you are taking your playing and visualising your future self is a very select way of refining and focusing your energy. After some careful deliberation, it may be that all that Blues stuff you’ve been working on doesn’t add anything to your future long term goal. In turn, you may find that chasing the technique and shred dragon doesn’t add to your master plan either!

The simple approach is to decide where you would like to be one year from now, break it down into monthly goals, and decide how you will take steps to get you there, each time you practise.

Again, goals are entirely unique to you - if your goal is not to strive for uncompromising excellence and perfection but simply keep a smile on your face every time you pick up your guitar then that is where you apply your focus.

This is a big one! And will be (without apology) reiterated in many of these blogs.

The idea is simply this - ensure that you are learning something new every time you practise. So many guitarists become locked in the purgatory-like existence of playing the same things over and over each time they sit down with their guitar. It is amazing how much motivation we can gain from learning a new song, lick or skill. With this comes the very real feeling of progress and something new for our ears too! Think about it like this; you wouldn’t listen to the same songs every day.

Taking this approach is one of the key motivators to keep you playing!

Take the pressure off yourself by realising that your achievements don’t have to come all at once. Tackle things in small, digestible segments. If you’re learning a solo or song, then nailing that tricky intro or first two licks is enough for today. Move on to something else.

This is crucial for retaining your love of the guitar and, more specifically, the song or subject you are practising - you may love that Steve Vai lick now, but after an extended time it will become your nemesis! Portion things out and know when to stop.

After each small section of your practice leave the room, make a drink, go for a walk. Even a few seconds will help recharge you and keep your guitar brain firing on all cylinders.

The myth of guitar players locking themselves in a room for 8 hours a day and never seeing sunlight is debatable and not recommended.

If you are feeling overwhelmed or frustrated - don’t be afraid of taking a few days or a week away from the guitar either. The fact is you will rekindle your love for playing along with your motivation, returning to your practice with new enthusiasm. There are no prizes for first place here, so look after your mental well-being too!

Here’s a fact which will instantly take the pressure off - our improvements happen whilst we are not playing! That’s right, much like athletes who get fitter whilst they are recovering from training and exercise, our fingers and brains are using our ‘downtime’ to assimilate all the information and movements we’ve been practising. Rests are not just recommended, they’re essential!

So there we have it. A quick round-up of some tips to ensure your guitar time works for you and, perhaps, a different take on the old advise ‘practice makes perfect’.