"I suck"
"I suck!" - something I hear more and more from people. Fortunately I have trained the Total Training customers and my own private students to a certain degree to not say such negative things about their own playing. But still, I get a butt-load of messages from various aficionados expressing their belief that they are "not worthy!"
There may be two reason why a person publicly admits they are bad at something:
1- To seek approval and pleasant disagreement from people
2- They genuinely believe they are unsuccessful and express their anguish to the whole world.
The first category is irrelevant for this email. We all do that from time to time.
I'd like to address the second group.
I am not saying you should think that you are the next great and you play better than everybody else. However, if the only feeling you have about your playing is a negative one, then you have a problem. Don't you think? You have a hobby and you hate the way you do it. Then should you not simply stop doing it and take up something else?
In one interview Paco de Lucia recounts his experience of hearing an alegria
on the radio and thinking "Wow, the guy plays well!" Then he realizes that it was himself playing. He immediately stops liking it and finds mistakes and such. Funny, no? He allows himself to enjoy a performance only if the player is someone other than himself.
Yeah, sure, it is perfectionism and having really high standards for oneself, blah blah… Paco himself also says after telling the above story that it is "a pain in the ass really."
Ok, we all strive for perfection, good tone, good agility, etc. and more often than not we focus on the negative aspects of our performance to eliminate them. However, at the end of the day what really counts is the degree of happiness you derive from the activity of playing guitar. Remember why you started to play in the first place. Because you like it!
So, my advice to you is find a balance between self-criticism VS self-praise. Dislike your playing so long as it helps you to improve it and get results in a reasonably short time (meaning, set achievable goals). Like your playing so you cherish every single good note you produce and be happy about it.
I've started to sound like a self-help guru. Time to end this email with some tabs and video:
download tabs for Arpeggio Exercise - 12 - Cuando Canta El Gallo by Paco de Lucia:
There may be two reason why a person publicly admits they are bad at something:
1- To seek approval and pleasant disagreement from people
2- They genuinely believe they are unsuccessful and express their anguish to the whole world.
The first category is irrelevant for this email. We all do that from time to time.
I'd like to address the second group.
I am not saying you should think that you are the next great and you play better than everybody else. However, if the only feeling you have about your playing is a negative one, then you have a problem. Don't you think? You have a hobby and you hate the way you do it. Then should you not simply stop doing it and take up something else?
In one interview Paco de Lucia recounts his experience of hearing an alegria
on the radio and thinking "Wow, the guy plays well!" Then he realizes that it was himself playing. He immediately stops liking it and finds mistakes and such. Funny, no? He allows himself to enjoy a performance only if the player is someone other than himself.
Yeah, sure, it is perfectionism and having really high standards for oneself, blah blah… Paco himself also says after telling the above story that it is "a pain in the ass really."
Ok, we all strive for perfection, good tone, good agility, etc. and more often than not we focus on the negative aspects of our performance to eliminate them. However, at the end of the day what really counts is the degree of happiness you derive from the activity of playing guitar. Remember why you started to play in the first place. Because you like it!
So, my advice to you is find a balance between self-criticism VS self-praise. Dislike your playing so long as it helps you to improve it and get results in a reasonably short time (meaning, set achievable goals). Like your playing so you cherish every single good note you produce and be happy about it.
I've started to sound like a self-help guru. Time to end this email with some tabs and video:
download tabs for Arpeggio Exercise - 12 - Cuando Canta El Gallo by Paco de Lucia:
| arpeggioex-12-cuanopdl.pdf |
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