Congratulations!
You'd started to learn the guitar early and you'd been casually playing for 2 years. At 10 years of age you showed some natural ability in playing the instrument. Mum and Dad enrolled you to receive professional, one on one lessons, twice a week totalling 3 hours of tuition per week. You were an
enthusiastic and committed student and you religiously attended your lessons without missing a single session and you made very good progress. You also did your own private practice at home, in your room. And you practiced playing your guitar an additional 5 hours per week.
enthusiastic and committed student and you religiously attended your lessons without missing a single session and you made very good progress. You also did your own private practice at home, in your room. And you practiced playing your guitar an additional 5 hours per week. At 15 years of age you were enrolled in a prestigious guitar school where you received 4 hours of specialist lessons per day (as well as other academic studies) for the next 3 years till you were 18 years old, where a selection was made to determine the elite guitarist's at your school, who would receive a full scholarship for continued higher guitar instruction and a guaranteed professional guitar career is a near certainty.
Let's have a look at some of your figures:
- You've been playing seriously since the age of 10 and had committed 8 years in total to playing your guitar so far.
- Over that 8 year period, you had spent a total of 2,080 hours of additional private self- directed practice, aside from your formal classes and lessons. Congratulations!
Did you make the selection to secure that much admired scholarship? - No, you did not!
Why?
The difference between you and those guitarists who reached the elitest level and selection for the scholarship you sought, was not in the years you spent practicing, nor was it in your consistent attendance to your regular, frequent lessons. As all your other class mates did just the same as you in that respect. The difference that made the difference was in the total hours you spent in your own self-directed practice versus the hours they committed to practicing, outside of the usual required lessons.
The specific difference is they spent as much as 100% more time practicing the guitar than you did! That's right, they accumulated more than 4,000 hours than you. Even if you wanted to catch up to those elite students you couldn't. They are now too far ahead of you, based on the time they have accummulated. It's just too hard for you to close the gap on them now.
This is a consistent indicator that separates the elite student and the above average student. Both are gifted and show a natural affinity to playing the guitar (or any other pursuit i.e. sport or business etc). Both are passionate about what they are learning. Both commit to their scheduled lessons. They do not however, do the same amount of additional practice, over and above what is required of them.
Do More - Get More!
So there it is - if you want to be great at anything - you must do more than attend the required classes or lessons expected of you. Also, you must commit additional time and effort to practice, over and above your scheduled practice sessions with your teachers, instructors o
r coaches etc... The amount of additional self-directed practice you are able to commit to, is entirely up to you.
r coaches etc... The amount of additional self-directed practice you are able to commit to, is entirely up to you. Be very aware, that it is this component, that will ultimately determine your level of success. Even if you show you have natural talent. Natural talent will get you recognised but will not ensure your long term success. Your natural god-given talent, will amount to nothing, when compared with an equally talented student (in fact, a student with less natural talent than you, will achieve more) who is willing to put in the "extra" hours of practice. It appears the more time you spend in self-directed practice the better.
This may, depending on the activity, require you to spend time researching, physically training, watching recordings, reading, evaluating your technique and developing mental toughness training or receiving feedback etc...
Effort & Time Required
It's totally up to you. As I mentioned in a previous blog. Mediocre effort will never result in maximum results. Going to your scheduled weekly practices will never be enough for you to realise your potential. The difference that makes the difference is the "extra" self-directed practice you do.
How much you do - is up to you! It will ultimately determine the level of expertise you attain.
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