And how can you get some of their mojo? 

Most likely, at some point, you’ve noticed a stark contrast between the skill of amateur guitarists and pro guitarists.  Frustratingly, you may have even noticed a more pronounced difference when comparing yourself to your favorite players. 

There are a lot of aspects to guitar skill that can contribute to this difference.  For example, you might see a YouTube guitarist who can pull off lightning fast shred or sweep patterns but with a noticeable sloppiness in their technique or an arbitrariness to the patterns themselves.  On the other hand, when listening to your favorite guitarists, the technique comes off as flawless and the patterns are musical and convey real emotion. 

Now, many guitarists just assume that this is simply a difference between players with “natural ability” and players without “natural ability.”  This is an easy cover story as it gives permission to stop trying so hard.  Essentially, this is one of the most common excuses guitarists have for effectively giving up on their quest for truly great playing.  

As I’ve talked about many times before, the real difference so-called “natural ability” has on a guitar player’s skill can be insignificant.  It’s true that a person with absolutely no sense or appreciation for music could practice for many hours a day and achieve perfect technique.  The only trouble is, they run into that area of arbitrariness in their playing.  Without a real ear for music and a genuine appreciation for music, guitar playing can be nothing more than technique.  

But the question we have to ask ourselves is how much does “natural ability” come into that equation? 

On one hand, a guitarist who refrains from immersing themselves in music will find themselves lacking in the department of expression regardless of who they are or what natural proclivities they have. 

When it comes to technique, optimized practice routines are the great equalizer.  Many studies have been done on this exact subject and the results are clear.  Any “natural ability” for technique becomes impossible to compare between players who have put in the master level of practice time in their lives. 

In fact, having a “talent” for guitar can actually lead many players to become lazy with their practice.  This leads to less “talented” players eventually surpassing them in every way. 

The reason?  They had to work harder from it right out of the gate. 

In that way, “talent” can be seen as more of a burden than an advantage.  

In short, talent is not what makes the difference between amateur and pro level guitar players.  

So what does make the difference?

A genuine love for music, unwavering resolve, determination, self-belief, a willingness to honestly compare themselves to better players, and proper practice are the real deciding factors.  

Let’s break that down…

A genuine love for music

The reality is that a desire to impress people with fancy guitar playing is not nearly enough for someone to become a truly great guitarist.  Real passion for music is critical.  If you aren’t spending time regularly getting lost in music, you are going to always struggle with hollowness in your playing.  

Genuine inspiration seems to come from the subconscious mind.  People who are inspired more often seem to have found a way to engage with their subconscious more easily.  When you really connect to music, your subconscious is analyzing and logging every detail of it.  The more you understand about music, the more effectively your subconscious can do this.  These include aspects of music that can be so subtle that they are almost impossible to talk about or understand consciously.  But you have to think of it in terms of music being a language of emotion and your subconscious becoming more fluent in that language the more music you engage with and analyze.  

This accounts for the part of guitar playing that is impossible to define.  If we don’t mind risking a little cheesiness, we could almost say that this is the “soul” of the music that someone plays on the guitar.  This is that difficult to describe difference between a player who “has it” and a player that doesn’t.  

If this is something you struggle with, chances are you haven’t found the right music to engage with yet.  If you’re not regularly listening to music that gives you an emotional ride then you will have difficulties with expression on the guitar and connecting to other people with the music you play on the guitar. 

The remedy?  Start hunting new music until you find something that really grabs you.  It should be music that, after listening to it, you can’t stop thinking about it.  And I don’t mean that it’s “catchy” or that it gets stuck in your head.  I mean that the experience of engaging with the music was so profound that you can’t wait to relive it again.  

Unwavering resolve, determination and self-belief

This one is a little more self-explanatory, but it’s one of the most important aspects of becoming a great guitar player.  

Let’s face it.  Most guitarists have a dream to become great one day but they get bogged down with self-doubt, difficulty with motivating themselves and, of course, other people constantly telling them that they don’t have what it takes.  

Everyone goes through this.  Even the greatest guitar players of all time were told that they would never make it by the people around them at some point or another. 

The difference between the greats and the amateurs is that the greats didn’t take the “advice” of the naysayers.

One thing that all great guitarists have in common is that they knew where they were going in absolute terms.  They might not have started out that way, but they got there at some point.  This means that their future success became an indisputable fact in their minds.  Even if their own guitar heroes had told them to give it up, they wouldn’t have listened.  

That’s not something you are born with but something you have to learn to develop.  Anyone can do it but it takes work.  If you are struggling from self-doubt in your own playing, then now you know at least one key area that is holding you back.  Find that resolve, find that future that is compelling enough and own it with every fiber of your being.  You will be amazed at how many things fall into place after you do. 

A willingness to honestly compare themselves to better players

The sheer fact that you’re here reading this e-mail makes it unlikely that you’re suffering from this problem to any great degree.  The fact that you’ve sought out instructional material and/or advice from other players pretty much takes you out of this category.  But I think it’s important to go over anyway.

One of the most destructive forces in the progress of a guitarist is the need to protect an ego.  Many guitarists find themselves in the unfortunate position of identifying so strongly with their label of “guitarist” that if they allow themselves to admit that someone is a better player it makes them feel as if they are an inferior human being.  

This can be a side effect of someone who struggles with low self-esteem using the guitar as a means of building themselves up.  Now, learning an instrument can be hugely helpful in building self-esteem but it’s critical that the person doesn’t identify too strongly with their label as a “guitarist” or their current abilities.  The reason that learning an instrument should help with self-esteem is that it’s a way to demonstrate and witness your potential.  

One of the best ways to get better at the guitar is to surround yourself with better players that you can learn from, have an openness to constructive criticism and be free to model the methods of better players.  All of the greats did this at some point and it shows. 

If you are driven by a “need to be the best” then it’s important to understand that this can only move you forward if you understand that you are currently not “the best” and that it will takes years of concentrated effort to get there. 

It’s also important to point out that you should never measure your self-worth on your abilities on the guitar.  You should strive to become a great player because you want it or because you believe it’s your destiny but never as a means to justify your ego. 

Proper Practice

This is a subject I’ve written and talked about to great lengths already.  But it’s always a good idea to get a reminder that your lack of results may boil down to poor practice methods and habits.  

One thing that can take a long time to learn is that just because you are putting the practice time in, it doesn’t mean you will see the progress you are looking for.  

Musicianship, technical proficiency, improvisation, memorization, theory, etc. are all interconnected but are effected differently by different types of practice.  

A well rounded practice routine will spend time on each of these aspects individually while also including exercises that bring them together.  This doesn’t have to be a daily thing, but it should all be taking place in relatively short spans of time.  

Setting clear and attainable short-term and long-term goals on the guitar are critical.  You should be able to measure your progress by whether or not you are hitting the goals you’ve set out for yourself in a reasonable time frame.  Sometimes you have to adjust your goals if you make them too easy or too difficult, but eventually you should be able to get into a solid routine where goals are being met around the times you expected. 

Recognizing and focusing on “trouble areas” is also critical.  If you’re not regularly spending focused practice time on your “weaknesses” you are missing out on one of the most effect ways of increasing your progress. 

Now, all of that might sound overwhelming but it’s actually nowhere near as difficult as it seems.  The key is to take things one step at a time and to layout a clear strategy.  It actually become very enjoyable and when you are regularly setting and hitting goals, extremely rewarding and even addictive. 

Dan Mumm

Would you like to be more competitive or increase your “vocabulary” for expression on the guitar?  Are you looking for that next challenge?  Check out my massive catalog of guitar products and see what’s on sale today: https://sellfy.com/danmumm