When it’s easy – it’s easy, but when it’s hard… Options

[Gabriel Leopardi]

We have been talking with my friend Cosmin about how much our state of mind and spirit can affect and condition what we do and how we do it. This can be applied to everything in life, and as we are at the practice room now I would like to connect it with our guitar practice.

Sometimes playing guitar is so easy. You pick it up, it sounds good - and you rock for hours.
However the opposite can also true: some days you pick the guitar up and nothing works, and you just want to throw that piece of wood out of the window.

Has this happened to you? How do you deal with it?

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[Monica Gheorghev...]

I have a lot of days when nothing sounds good. When I realize that it's a bad day and I feel disapointed by me, I make a pause and I listen 2 of my favorite guitarists that I admire their playing style very much and I wish someday to play like them. This is like a boost for me, because my bad mood it's changing in a good mood and with a thirst for learning. This is how I work with mental part.

But a bad day for playing still remain a bad day and my hands not respond in a good way. So, it's the moment when I must work for this part. What I do it's simple:
- I try to play totally other style than usual
- I study a lesson that I like
- play something that I already made and sounds good
- I starting to polish something that it's in a working process

To be honest I never had the feeling to throw my guitar out of the window But.... I cry a lot when I try something for millions times and I can't do it

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[Cosmin Lupu]

Good point Gabi I will totally relate to what Victor Wooten mentioned in his video that I posted a few weeks ago in the forum:

'If you sit in a room and practice.. you have no life, which means you have nothing to talk about ' - from this I understand very important aspects of musical development:

- when you don't feel like picking it up, it means you are out of fuel, just like a vehicle
- get your fuel - go out in the nature, see your friends, read a book ... LIVE
- you will feel joy and you will want to pick it up

I think this is how it works.. at least for me Yes, it's good to push your boundaries and there are times when it's not up to you when you will pick it up or not, but stay away from that point in which you will begin to resent the guitar. That means that somewhere in your approach, there is a problem - take the time to figure it out, because it would be a shame to put it down for good.

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[Gabriel Leopardi]

Interesting posts Monica and Cosmin! You both shared different ways to feel motivated again when a bad day appears...


- Listening to music / artists that inspired us (Mónica)

- LIVE - going out with friends, reading a book, etc (Cosmin)

I really liked the comparison with a vehicle and the lack of fuel.


What other things keep you motivated or with the vehicle full of fuel?

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This post has been edited by Gabriel Leopardi: May 12 2014, 03:21 PM

[klasaine]

But a bad day for playing still remain a bad day and my hands not respond in a good way. So, it's the moment when I must work for this part. What I do it's simple:
- I try to play totally other style than usual
- I study a lesson that I like
- play something that I already made and sounds good
- I starting to polish something that it's in a working process

To be honest I never had the feeling to throw my guitar out of the window But.... I cry a lot when I try something for millions times and I can't do it

Everybody has days where the muse does not come.
I do what Monica does or I just put the thing down and do something else ... or do nothing.
No big deal. Tomorrow will be a good day.

*What keeps me motivated?
1) always having more than one project going at a time.
2) remembering that I LOVE guitar/music.
3) not worrying about it.

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This post has been edited by klasaine: May 12 2014, 03:42 PM

[Cosmin Lupu]

Everybody has days where the muse does not come.
I do what Monica does or I just put the thing down and do something else ... or do nothing.
No big deal. Tomorrow will be a good day.

*What keeps me motivated?
1) always having more than one project going at a time.
2) remembering that I LOVE guitar/music.
3) not worrying about it.

Great points here As long as folks don't make a drama out of a bad day, things can come back to a lovely state pretty fast. But the more you tell yourself - 'Ah, I suck' or stuff like that ... guess what, you might end up believing it too.

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[Ben Higgins]

Good point Gabi I will totally relate to what Victor Wooten mentioned in his video that I posted a few weeks ago in the forum:

'If you sit in a room and practice.. you have no life, which means you have nothing to talk about ' - from this I understand very important aspects of musical development:

- when you don't feel like picking it up, it means you are out of fuel, just like a vehicle
- get your fuel - go out in the nature, see your friends, read a book ... LIVE
- you will feel joy and you will want to pick it up

I think this is how it works.. at least for me Yes, it's good to push your boundaries and there are times when it's not up to you when you will pick it up or not, but stay away from that point in which you will begin to resent the guitar. That means that somewhere in your approach, there is a problem - take the time to figure it out, because it would be a shame to put it down for good.

This is pretty close to how I feel about it. If my mind isn't free, my guitar playing will just be autonomous and not inspired at all.

Getting away from things by going out and living life is one good way to recharge. If you can't physically get away then escaping in other forms of art is also a great way to inspire and get the cogs moving in your brain again

What I do it's simple:
- I try to play totally other style than usual
- I study a lesson that I like
- play something that I already made and sounds good
- I starting to polish something that it's in a working process

This is also good advice. I know of many times when I, or someone else, is trying to conquer the mountain in one whole step... this also leads to burnout.

Just reset and give yourself 1 small thing to work on. Or learn a piece of music. Playing music can remind us of how good the experience of playing guitar can be, which is something that can get lost when practising furiously.

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[Gabriel Leopardi]

Everybody has days where the muse does not come.
I do what Monica does or I just put the thing down and do something else ... or do nothing.
No big deal. Tomorrow will be a good day.

*What keeps me motivated?
1) always having more than one project going at a time.
2) remembering that I LOVE guitar/music.
3) not worrying about it.

These are good tips to keep motivation. I'm curious about the "more than one project thing". What projects are you currently working on? Does this apply to other GMC:ers here?

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[Marius Pop]

"When I find myself in times of trouble", musically speaking, it works best for me to focus on something different than the subject I was approaching.

If it's note choice that works bad that day, I focus on technique or try recording some lines to my pop project, if it's technique I try to focus on something creative. (Note: if something gives me trouble for a long time, it means it shouldn't be ignored and it's not just a phaze)

You get the point. I think we should always finish our practice session by doing something creative and exciting so that it leaves us wanting for more, getting back to it with excitement

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This post has been edited by Marius Pop: May 13 2014, 02:09 PM

[klasaine]

These are good tips to keep motivation. I'm curious about the "more than one project thing". What projects are you currently working on? Does this apply to other GMC:ers here?

- Currently, I work with three bands. All 3 have gigs this month. In one of them I only play baritone guitar.
- I have a gig coming up at the end of the month that is just a duo with a singer. We need to find common material.
- I will be doing someone's EP also at the end of the month. The producer said he's sending me demo mp3s and chord charts by the end of this week.
- I'm sure something else will come up. For example, last Tuesday I got a call asking if I could do a session on the following Friday afternoon. It didn't get finalized until thursday afternoon so I had no idea what it would be other than 'pop' and 'electric' guitar.

In other words ... I've always got something to do.

I've been a little musically OCD since I first started playing. I truly believe that has helped me stay both interested and motivated. It may not be for every player but it works for me.

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[Cosmin Lupu]

"When I find myself in times of trouble", musically speaking, it works best for me to focus on something different than the subject I was approaching.

If it's note choice that works bad that day, I focus on technique or try recording some lines to my pop project, if it's technique I try to focus on something creative. (Note: if something gives me trouble for a long time, it means it shouldn't be ignored and it's not just a phaze)

You get the point. I think we should always finish our practice session by doing something creative and exciting so that it leaves us wanting for more, getting back to it with excitement

Very good point here At the end of the day, you should be able to note your progress and what better way to do it than shaping something creative with what you learned that day? It doesn't have to be a symphony, but a nice lick with a personal touch, implemented in a musical context - that can be definitely called progress

How do you guys like to measure your progress?

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[Gabriel Leopardi]

- Currently, I work with three bands. All 3 have gigs this month. In one of them I only play baritone guitar.
- I have a gig coming up at the end of the month that is just a duo with a singer. We need to find common material.
- I will be doing someone's EP also at the end of the month. The producer said he's sending me demo mp3s and chord charts by the end of this week.
- I'm sure something else will come up. For example, last Tuesday I got a call asking if I could do a session on the following Friday afternoon. It didn't get finalized until thursday afternoon so I had no idea what it would be other than 'pop' and 'electric' guitar.

In other words ... I've always got something to do.

I've been a little musically OCD since I first started playing. I truly believe that has helped me stay both interested and motivated. It may not be for every player but it works for me.

Very interesting man! There are always new exciting things coming. That sounds great.

I wonder what OCD mean.. I have no idea..

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[klasaine]

I wonder what OCD mean.. I have no idea..

Sorry Gab (I thought about that when I wrote it).
Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.

I can't just play one kind of music or be in one (or even two) bands.

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[Cosmin Lupu]

I too have that feeling sometimes - but the lack of time doesn't allow me to handle more than 2 bands - Days of Confusion and Domination. Although, they are both metal at the roots

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[Gabriel Leopardi]

The same here, I would love to play on more than 1 band but nowadays Cirse occupies a lot of my time, we have shows every weekend, rehearsals and many other things that make it difficult. The extra projects that I have use to be temporary. I think that the main reason is that Cirse is not my main job so I have to do other works to pay the bills and those things. This obviously reduces my time.

Does this happen to anybody else here? Do you have multiple projects?

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[Cosmin Lupu]

The same here, I would love to play on more than 1 band but nowadays Cirse occupies a lot of my time, we have shows every weekend, rehearsals and many other things that make it difficult. The extra projects that I have use to be temporary. I think that the main reason is that Cirse is not my main job so I have to do other works to pay the bills and those things. This obviously reduces my time.

Does this happen to anybody else here? Do you have multiple projects?

Trust me bro - Cirse has a lot of activity, which is something that is incredibly amazing! I wish we were able to have as many gigs as you guys do, with Days of Confusion!

In respect to the time battle, well, I understand you all too well

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[Gabriel Leopardi]

Trust me bro - Cirse has a lot of activity, which is something that is incredibly amazing! I wish we were able to have as many gigs as you guys do, with Days of Confusion!

This will surely happen with Days of confusion! You are doing the things professionally, I'm sure that great things are coming.

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[Cosmin Lupu]

This will surely happen with Days of confusion! You are doing the things professionally, I'm sure that great things are coming.

Thanks man! Your words mean a lot! We are currently in a big competition for our first international festival taking place in Bulgaria - here are some details: http://www.kavarna-rock.com/index.php/en/n...ntest-is-coming

Until now, we are the favorites in the competition based on the public votes and next weekend we will be playing in front of a jury What's more interesting, is that this will be my first gig in which I play the guitar as well

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[Gabriel Leopardi]

Thanks man! Your words mean a lot! We are currently in a big competition for our first international festival taking place in Bulgaria - here are some details: http://www.kavarna-rock.com/index.php/en/n...ntest-is-coming

Until now, we are the favorites in the competition based on the public votes and next weekend we will be playing in front of a jury What's more interesting, is that this will be my first gig in which I play the guitar as well

wou! that's awesome mate! the list of artist.. Europe, Helloween, Sabbathon, Gus G.. are you going to play with them??

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[Cosmin Lupu]

wou! that's awesome mate! the list of artist.. Europe, Helloween, Sabbathon, Gus G.. are you going to play with them??

I have absolutely no clue in which day we would perform, but tomorrow they will announce some news in respect to what's happening, so I'll keep you guys posted

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