10 Things Every Guitarist Should Have!
With their multi-dimensional freedoms, the application of these 10 skills will allow a player to consider many different concepts behind the range of guitar development and they will offer a guitarist a great deal of stability to be able to begin use of them properly.
That said, choosing the best course of action as a guitarist can be quite a challenge since there are so many options to choose from. In this video, I picked the 10 best things to know and I also give you a reason why each one has earned its spot on the list.
10x BETTER:
We’re continuing with our 10x Better Series (check out the play-list on the channel), with a new video here today talking about 10 things that every guitarist should have and should know.
In this list we’ll cover ideas that will help you produce more as a guitar player, we’ll discuss playing confidence and how you can start working on your playing with more energy and more focus.
I also have a small favor to ask of you, and that is if you have some of your own tips that you can add, please leave them in the comments. Share anything that you think would be helpful to those who are watching this!
1). INVEST IN YOURSELF:
The first thing I want to talk about is the most important and it has to do with YOU investing in your skills (invest in yourself w/education). Make that your TOP priority because the more you that you know, the more that you'll be able to produce as a guitarist and as a musician.
The results will come a lot faster if your general understanding of music is at a higher level and if your technical ability is more skillful. Think about it this way, if you are not a highly skilled guitar player and if you are not proficient with the theory of music then the ease at which you approach playing music will not be the same.
Make your first priority, your TOP priority in the important musical areas of; music theory and technical skill for playing the guitar and mastering the art of musicianship!
Coming up next, I’ll have the remaining nine ideas for you... But before we head into that, I want to tell you about a special promotional offer that’s related to my; Handouts Collection eBook…
I wanted to take a minute to let you know, that if you want to learn even more about scales and theory I have a great offer for you.
With any donation over $5, or any merchandise purchase from my Tee-Spring store, I’ll send you free copies of THREE of my most popular digital handouts.
One is called, “Harmonized Arpeggio Drills” (it’ll train you on developing your diatonic arpeggios).
Another one is my “Barre Chord” Handout which includes a page showing all the key signatures along with a chord progression that applies barre chords.
Plus, you’ll get my Notation Pack! It has 8 pages of important guitar worksheets for notating anything related to; music charts, guitar chord diagrams, and TAB.
As a BONUS, (from my "Over 40 and Still Can't Play a Scale" video), I'll also throw in a breakdown of all of the chords that are diatonic to the "F Major" scale.
As an EXTRA BONUS for my Phrygian Dominant video, I'll also throw in a breakdown featuring all of the chords that are diatonic to the Phrygian Dominant scale.
Just send me an email off of the contact page of CreativeGuitarStudio.com to let me know about either your donation or your Merchandise purchase and I’ll email you those digital handouts within 24 hrs.
____________________________________________________
2). ALWAYS PUT HEALTH FIRST:
The 2nd area that I want to focus on is the area of health. And, what I want to tell you is this; all of us want to be able to stay better focused on our music! And, to accomplish that, you have got to LIVE well to be able to Play well.
If you feel terrible all the time, if you eat garbage food, if you never exercise, if you can’t get a good night’s sleep – then you need to start working on these areas. For starters, invest in a good bed - sleep better – start there!
And, stop eating junk food, eat healthy, eat from the food groups and stop over-eating. Also, do something every day to get your heart pumping, (exercise). Even if it’s just nothing more than a brisk walk, or perhaps do 50 jumping jacks in your living room, 50 knee taps, anything. Seriously people, LIVE BETTER. If you do, you WILL play music better.
3). MAINTAIN YOUR GEAR:
The third thing has to do with taking the time to maintain all of your musical equipment so that EVERYTHING you own is always in top working condition. All of your equipment should always be totally dependable. Everything you have should be reliable, and that includes your; amps, your main guitars, and really any and all of your other equipment.
Also buy quality, if you stick to buying and owning top quality musical items, it really doesn’t take a lot of work to maintain them. So the real idea here is that of not to neglect the little things, with your equipment. The small things (when ignored) can - over time - work their way into becoming bigger problems. So, maintain your equipment, that way when you want to play or record, everything is always ready to go and will be in top working order.
4). PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR CONFIDENCE:
The fourth thing is to never stop working on improving your confidence as a musician - which translates out to the crowd as your “playing energy.” All too often, there are way too many musicians that I meet who just don’t remember that as a musician you are an entertainer.
You cannot be a musician and forget the fact that you have a job to entertain people. So, make sure that you realize this and that you are always developing a mental clarity for this - because it’s a huge factor of who we are as musicians.
Of course we all need to study our craft (to be more confident when we compose and perform music). But, never forget that we are entertainers above all else, so our confidence is paramount if we are going to be able to deliver the music to others in the best possible way - so that the audience is always entertained.
5). MUSIC IS A BUSINESS:
The fifth thing is - no matter where you are in the scope of being a guitar player keep an interest level going for always understanding how the music business works. This will allow you insight on so many levels, from music styles all the way to what type of songs to include in your rehearsal and your set-list.
Plus, paying attention to the business of music will help us keep in mind for how the music industry changes year over year. The music business isn't the same as it was in 2000 or how it was in 2010.
Now, in 2020 (that we’re having to deal with the restrictions of Covid 19), the industry has gone more online than it ever was before. So, always keep yourself tuned into how the music business works, and where it is headed at all times.
6). RE-INVEST IN YOURSELF:
The sixth idea is all about being and working smarter by investing in yourself. And, while it could be more directed toward those guitar players who are professionals, it does have room to apply to all of us.
As you get better, (or for professionals, as you earn more income), be sure to re-invest in yourself and in your gear, in your guitars, your computers and all of your equipment.
Take online courses and educate yourself. Always continue to expand your knowledge for anything related to guitar and to music! This will include continuing to keep trying new things in your musical directions.
Talk to, play with and record with other musicians as much as you can. Build up a collection of good recording equipment, learn how to keep it all clean, learn how to fix it, and if you can even how to repair your own music equipment (as much as you can repair it yourself is dependent upon the tools that you own). Also, learn ways for doing different things that allow you to lower your overall musical expenses and keep more money in your pocket.
7). DISCOVER YOUR OWN PLAYING STYLE:
The seventh idea has to do with coming to terms and realizing – fully and completely - what style of playing that it is that YOU feel is your most NATURAL music style to play - for YOU!
Every one of us has our own style of playing music that just feels the most natural to us. And, if you’ve never tapped into this before, (as many guitar players haven’t), or even if you’ve never thought about this before, (again as most musicians don’t), then you need to start.
The faster that you can get your musical thoughts and your technical side of playing wrapped around what music style is the most natural feeling to you, the quicker and easier it will be for you to start shaping your approach to playing music.
Your natural playing approach isn't hard to discover. It will always be the one that just seems to come across to you as being the easiest path into the creation of music. And, from that point of playing everything you perform just feels easier once you discover this. Including how you compose and how you improvise.
8). FOCUS ON MASTERING YOUR STYLE:
The eighth idea is connected to the seventh. And, it involves learning to master your style in as much depth as possible. The three main areas that you need to focus on in this department are; Melody, Harmony and Rhythm.
To accomplish this you need to learn music that you really enjoy listening to. And, the music needs to be composed by musicians that you admire.
Now, this is important stuff - even though it might seem kind of superficial (in a way) it’s very important because if you start down the path of learning the music that is composed by the songwriters who you admire, it will help you to gain THE BEST perspective for that music style and the musical direction that is ultimately the best direction for you personally as a musician.
9). KEEP IT SIMPLE:
The ninth thing that every guitarist should have is a mind-set of always keeping it simple. Avoid too much complexity and never go too fast too soon. The reason for this is that the more complex you get when you’re making music, the more likely it will be for you to get lost in the music that you’re either trying to play or compose.
If you work your way through ideas that are simple and manageable yet keep learning new material at a very steady pace, you’ll get your musical ideas organized in a very solid way. In fact, they’ll be so well memorized (and so well committed to your physical ability to perform them), the music you play will become firmly integrated into your guitar playing.
10). ALWAYS REMAIN RELAXED:
The tenth idea is one of the most important ones. And, this idea centers around that you have got to make your number one priority that of staying as relaxed as you possibly can when you are playing anything.
Pay attention for any muscle tightness in your body, be very conscious about remaining loose, and when you play music verbally say to yourself “relax.” What can be helpful is to make a mantra of speaking calmly to yourself when you play.
This relaxed nature will go a long way to keeping your mind balanced and at ease when you perform music. Most of all, make sure that you are relaxed enough to be able to always hold your thoughts upon the music, and never allow your thoughts to wander off someplace else.
