Practice Tips and Thoughts

Hello, guitar fans, today the topic is daily practice.
I am often asked, "How often should I practice?" The best response I have is simply this, "How good do you want to get?". This is not sarcastic thinking it's simply a fact, if you want to get good at doing something then you have to make it a regular part of your life... as in every day. For example, some of the incredible musicians I have had the opportunity to work with and learn from over the years are practice monsters. Practice is not a once a week thing, it's a daily thing for those that want to improve. My friend Tony Smotherman was recently signed to Steve Vai's record label (Favored Nations). I can assure you that Tony practices the guitar for hours every day and he works hard on his career every day.

Here are some ways to consider the 'how good do I want to get' mentality:
if you want to get good at playing football then you... go to football practice every day,
if you want to get good at riding a motorcycle then you.... ride a motorcycle very often,
if you want to get good at video games then you... play video games very often,
if you want to get good at playing a musical instrument then you... (shocking) .... (wait for it)..practice very often.

Along with practicing daily here are few other recommendations:
1. use a metronome - there is no better way to improve your timing then to utilize a time keeping device whose meter (tempo) does not move.

2. sing - a very good way to learn songs or write your own is memorize words and melodies and then accompany with your instrument; your notes, chords and timing will support the melody much better. This will help to develop your "ear".

3. jam - practice and perform songs with other musicians, going through the effort of trying to perform songs together is a great way to improve your timing and develop a better "ear".

thanks, and until next time... keep jamming,
JayBone