The reason i want to give up is because i cant seem to focus on anything and im always rushing into things like expecting to master difficult songs right off the bat like (examples-scream, and bonus songs like dancing dead, crossroads, girl i know, and lost it all) and not taking baby steps and doing exercises and like practicing is there anything i can do or any positive messages that can motivate me to want to keep playing because the thing is i dont want to stop playing syn is the reason i even picked up a guitar in the first place but another part is telling me i wanna give up sorry about this im not trying to be a downer i guess im just in a slump.
At the point of giving up.
- Thread starter Dk6661
- Start date
Hey Dk I know how you feel. I've felt that way a lot over the course my first year of playing so far. Pissed that I can't play that part that I really want to or feeling like I can't focus on any of the lessons, exercises, techniques, or licks in a song. I feel incredibly stupid some days. That's ok. We all have those days. Those days can turn into week and those weeks into longer periods of time. I am 99.999999995% Synyster "Shred God" Gates has had and probably still occasionally has these days now. It's nothing to feel ashamed of. Syn was absolutely nowhere near where he is now skill wise when he was within 6 months, a year, or 2. He's been playing for over 2 decades now. If you go through Syn's comments through just this site alone he recalls using a metronome and taking exercises slowly a key part of what helped him improve as a musician and is still a key part when practicing. I know you want to jump in and be able to play that second Scream solo impeccable rather quickly but that isn't going to happen quickly, efficiently, and without pissing yourself off because you aren't able to pick up and go quickly. You've got to give yourself some time to grow and to improve your skills or else you'll feel like you do now. In a slump. You'll get to the point where you can play Scream, Dancing Dead, or Girl I know someday only if you give yourself some slack, dedicate time to practice, and take things slowly. I know practicing scales or exercises gets boring as hell at times. I hate how slow I feel initially when working on say an economy picking exercise. But once I start grooving and pick up some speed I've found it's way more fun. One tip that I heard early on in a youtube video and I think Syn shared it here as well is to practice the excersise or scale initially until you've got a decent grasp of it then pop up a youtube video from one your favorite youtubers and watch that while practicing the lesson. I've found that if I really focus in on an exercise I tend to make more mistakes and it doesn't become muscle memory as quickly. If I pull up say an episode of Impractical jokers on tv and not zero in on the part I'm playing I get better faster since I'm not stressed out about messing up as much. If you need to take a break, take a break. Put it down for a couple days then try again. I hope this can help you because I don't want to see someone give up on such an incredible hobby. Wishing you the best man.
Ive felt this before. But, you just gotta keep at it! Like donovan said, Syn wasnt always the virtuoso that he is now. It took years of practice, years of doing the mind numbing practice to a metronome. Let me just say this, you dont wanna be that guy who plays for years and never gets to the level they want bc they didnt want to take the baby steps of practicing slowly and speeding it up. I was that guy, but im not anymore. Yes playing those wicked fast parts at a fraction of the true speed is disheartening but i promise its worth it. And when it finally clicks and you realize you have it nailed, it makes all the boring practice worth it. Just stick with it, i promise you’ll get to where you wanna be but you have to put the time in!
My man...I know how it feels believe me. But remember how far you've come since you started. Celebrate your victories. As big or as small they are. It took me 2 months to get a solo kinda right...2 months or daily practice for a damn solo. Was it discouraging...yeah. i though I was way better. Guess what? Im not. But I love the instrument and that love keeps me going. Maybe take a little break. Switch your practice routine. Make a little schedule and don't get so frustrated. Guitar gods have had years and years to get where they are now. We are just beginning our journeys. This is a lifelong commitment.
Please don't give up. Take a break and come back.
Well it seems like you have already identified what your problem is, that's a good start.
Wanting to play all your favourite songs as soon as you pick up the guitar is something I think everybody here can relate to, realising that it isn't that simple is something we work out very quickly also.
Playing excercises, while a key part of the learning process, is boring. We picked up the guitar to play songs right? I would suggest, alongside the boring excercises, pick a few EASY songs to learn (there are heaps out there, in all genres), the feeling of playing through a few songs in full is a great motivator and makes you realise 'holy shit, I can totally do this!.
By all means, have goal songs, take a look at what you need to get proficient with to play them and work on those techniques, but trying to play them right out of the gate will be spirit breaking.
Good luck and remember, you need to learn to crawl before you can walk, and walk before you can run (something even our heroes had to do!).
Wanting to play all your favourite songs as soon as you pick up the guitar is something I think everybody here can relate to, realising that it isn't that simple is something we work out very quickly also.
Playing excercises, while a key part of the learning process, is boring. We picked up the guitar to play songs right? I would suggest, alongside the boring excercises, pick a few EASY songs to learn (there are heaps out there, in all genres), the feeling of playing through a few songs in full is a great motivator and makes you realise 'holy shit, I can totally do this!.
By all means, have goal songs, take a look at what you need to get proficient with to play them and work on those techniques, but trying to play them right out of the gate will be spirit breaking.
Good luck and remember, you need to learn to crawl before you can walk, and walk before you can run (something even our heroes had to do!).
Part of learning guitar is learning patience of the process. You can compare it to body building. People can put on huge mass but that takes years and literally thousands of hours of working out. Those songs you named are hard as fuck for beginners because there are a lot of tiny things (mental muscles and habits) you must learn to a high level (grow in your fingers) in order to be able to pull the song off. Once you get to a certain point you CAN pull it off... but really you gotta ask yourself if you are willing to trade hundreds of hours in order to be able to do so. Only you can answer that for yourself, and no amount of motivation from random strangers on the internet will persuade you either way. TO BE PERFECTLY HONEST, the easiest song on your list will require AT LEAST 200 hours of practice by itself in a CONSISTENT practice (at least 2 hours a day 4 days a week MINIMUM) If you can't wrap your head around that, I'm sorry to tell you, it won't happen. BUT if you are okay with that, take a deep breath, and enjoy the grind 
It took me over 700 hours over 2 years to get Afterlife down to a performance level, and I wouldn't trade that experience for anything!
It took me over 700 hours over 2 years to get Afterlife down to a performance level, and I wouldn't trade that experience for anything!
I cant really help you a lot because Im in the begining...and I feel the same as you sometimes. Its a long journey takes a lot of hours and effort. I think is like that with any "art", takes a long long time to master and you learning always new until you die!
When I feel like I cant play sh*t I always try to remember or watch some videos of me playing 6 months ago and see how much ive improved.
Just keep practicing and make realistic goals and some not so realistic and you will get there! And you have all the people here in the school to keep you motivated too
When I feel like I cant play sh*t I always try to remember or watch some videos of me playing 6 months ago and see how much ive improved.
Just keep practicing and make realistic goals and some not so realistic and you will get there! And you have all the people here in the school to keep you motivated too
Exercises can be too boring. If there are easier songs that you would like to learn, that would probably be a 10x better use of your time than exercises.
From what I've seen the biggest key to long-term guitar success is the ability to have fun with your guitar at whatever your current skill level is. If this is just a hobby for you, as it is for me, don't try to have the attitude that you must suffer today so you can have fun tomorrow. Have fun today. Abandon the idea that you "should" devote time and effort into mastering some big arbitrary list of techniques and songs and such and instead lean hard into thing things that you for-real are most willing and happy to do. If I had more time I could go find a quote from Paul Gilbert (one of the biggest names in guitar instruction as well as guitar virtuosity) saying basically exactly this- that awesome guitar skills take time, and the key is to have fun during that time!
Attitude comes from expectations, so let me help you have correct expectations. Learning songs as a newer guitarist is typically very time consuming. That's normal. You will hear about pro guitarists being able to learn or write songs shockingly fast, but fuck 'em. You can beat a video game if you're willing to dump 40+ hours into it, but you will get nothing from it. You can watch a couple seasons of a tv show if you're willing to dump 40+ hours into it, but you will get nothing from it. A great guitarist is nothing other than an ordinary person who was willing to dump those 40+ hours into sounding good on guitar instead of staring at a lightbulb.
From what I've seen the biggest key to long-term guitar success is the ability to have fun with your guitar at whatever your current skill level is. If this is just a hobby for you, as it is for me, don't try to have the attitude that you must suffer today so you can have fun tomorrow. Have fun today. Abandon the idea that you "should" devote time and effort into mastering some big arbitrary list of techniques and songs and such and instead lean hard into thing things that you for-real are most willing and happy to do. If I had more time I could go find a quote from Paul Gilbert (one of the biggest names in guitar instruction as well as guitar virtuosity) saying basically exactly this- that awesome guitar skills take time, and the key is to have fun during that time!
Attitude comes from expectations, so let me help you have correct expectations. Learning songs as a newer guitarist is typically very time consuming. That's normal. You will hear about pro guitarists being able to learn or write songs shockingly fast, but fuck 'em. You can beat a video game if you're willing to dump 40+ hours into it, but you will get nothing from it. You can watch a couple seasons of a tv show if you're willing to dump 40+ hours into it, but you will get nothing from it. A great guitarist is nothing other than an ordinary person who was willing to dump those 40+ hours into sounding good on guitar instead of staring at a lightbulb.
J
Jak Angelescu
Guest
Here are some things...
1. Check your ego at the door. You can't play the songs you want to. That's not a bad thing. You can't expect yourself to be able to master those difficult songs in any length of time if you're not disciplined/willing to do the lame boring exercises
2. You have to take small and slow steps. Even Syn says to. No other way around it.
3. Stop competing with competition that isn't there. You're setting yourself up to competitive expectations and you just end up fighting yourself therefore not being able to
4. Enjoy playing guitar
5. Do these lessons regularly and ask questions for feedback. There are roughly 4 lessons here that would help you with Scream alone
6. Try the Andre Segovia method of practice. Practice ONE thing religiously for about fifteen minutes than take a break to get up, move around and clear your mind. Then sit down and either move on or continue to practice the same thing.
We can't have good practice unless our heads are clear and calm. I was there like you but I didn't give up and I got better. It's a long road so grab some highway snacks, buckle up and enjoy the ride
1. Check your ego at the door. You can't play the songs you want to. That's not a bad thing. You can't expect yourself to be able to master those difficult songs in any length of time if you're not disciplined/willing to do the lame boring exercises
2. You have to take small and slow steps. Even Syn says to. No other way around it.
3. Stop competing with competition that isn't there. You're setting yourself up to competitive expectations and you just end up fighting yourself therefore not being able to
4. Enjoy playing guitar
5. Do these lessons regularly and ask questions for feedback. There are roughly 4 lessons here that would help you with Scream alone
6. Try the Andre Segovia method of practice. Practice ONE thing religiously for about fifteen minutes than take a break to get up, move around and clear your mind. Then sit down and either move on or continue to practice the same thing.
We can't have good practice unless our heads are clear and calm. I was there like you but I didn't give up and I got better. It's a long road so grab some highway snacks, buckle up and enjoy the ride
I'm with @carlosmqr here, I'm new to this too man so I can't tell you anything about the long term because I'm not there YET. That's something an old teacher of mine said; "of course you can't do it YET. That's why you're in school, to get to the YET". It's all about a shift in mental attitude. Be positive about what you're doing even if the day sucks. Log down and/or record what you're doing so you can see the progress. Like Jak said, lose the ego at the door. Learn to love the journey, not the destination. After all everyone has the same destination and that's back in the Earth so live the journey. What that means is building the fundamentals in order to play those wicked songs that motivate you. Several times I've felt like I'm too junior to talk with the awesome people here or post videos. Not only have Syn and PG told me this, but so have the other students like Calvin or IDs: that I'm in a unique position where I get to log what I'm doing and record my eureka moments and progress where literally everyone is watching. Syn has said he doesn't really recall his "aha" moments to share so we have to be the ones to do it. I'm extending that to you brother, go out there and fuck up as royally as you can and get better. You got this.
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a myself, but today is a gift. That's why it's called present." -Master Oogway, Kung Fu Panda
"Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a myself, but today is a gift. That's why it's called present." -Master Oogway, Kung Fu Panda
Thank you for all the responses they got me thinking about what im doing and they really helped me all of you guys are so helpful and had such nice things to say i decided im not gonna quit cause this is something that i wanna do
What I usually do is trying to learn songs I like and enjoy playing. And always keep a consistent practice and your expectations high but always realistic.I never spend much time on exercises or complicated techniques, I will have to someday, but over time... don't put much pressure on yourself, just have fun and you'll see your progress.
I think I'm not saying anything new, but just think about it in case it can help you.
I think I'm not saying anything new, but just think about it in case it can help you.
I'm not sure this helps but remember you're a human and so is Syn and anyone else really. If they can do it you can do it to if you're willing to put the time in and practice everything in the right way. Taking baby steps is the best thing to do. No one really is incredible from the beginning(except maybe Lionel Messi but he doesn't really count). Just try to remember that when you want to walk a 100 kilometres you start by walking the first 10 metres. Learning guitar works exactly the same way.
I'm sure you can do it!
I'm sure you can do it!
I was at this point a few months ago it really helps when the entire school has your back including Syn and Papa gates we all care for each other here and want to see and help everyone succeed. goodluck
try breaking down the expected progress level. instead of thinking " i will master this solo in 1 week", try " i will master 1st 5 seconds of this solo in 7 days" , then next 5 sec and so on. Be patient chief. without patience and consistency, everything will seem difficult
I quit twice this week. Not being a smart-ass. I literally set my guitar down and said what's the point - TWICE. Picked it back up this morning and was quite pleased.
This is the life we've chosen.
This is the life we've chosen.
J
Jak Angelescu
Guest
"What's the point?"
That's actually a good question. I believe most people feel the urge to quit because they don't know what their point IS. Or they forget it or they feel hopeless with it.
I'm proud to say I've never thought about quitting guitar once, but I have thought about quitting my dream with it.
I'm glad you didn't quit. I love your music and your playing
A lot of great advice people have shared. I've gotten in and out of guitar playing for years but I always come back to it. Recently I wasn't having anymore fun on guitar/music so I set aside a bunch of time on a weekend and wrote down some goals that were both fun and reasonable for my skill level. I was working on hard songs before and was getting discouraged so took a break and learned Breaking the Law by Judas Priest. It wasn't the most challenging song but it still challenged me AND I had fun and was a confidence booster.
Taking time to reflect on what's not working, what is working and what you can do differently going forward to get better while enjoying the progress is a fantastic thing to do for your guitar playing and is also great for any other area of life. You can do this once a week like 30 minutes or so and it will help keep you motivated and keep tabs on what you've done for the week. This helps prevent you from burnout and makes things more exciting as you're working on things. If you're struggling, know that everyone else is too, it's part of the journey sometimes. Best of luck!
Taking time to reflect on what's not working, what is working and what you can do differently going forward to get better while enjoying the progress is a fantastic thing to do for your guitar playing and is also great for any other area of life. You can do this once a week like 30 minutes or so and it will help keep you motivated and keep tabs on what you've done for the week. This helps prevent you from burnout and makes things more exciting as you're working on things. If you're struggling, know that everyone else is too, it's part of the journey sometimes. Best of luck!
