guitarhabits

photo by Nicki Varkevisser
Most of us want to work less. We want a four day workweek, a three day workweek or a four hour workweek. We all want to have more time to play guitar and to enjoy life to the fullest, but when it comes down to it I often see that people resist and make excuses.

Why? Because they don’t want to compromise. They don’t want to give up their stuff, their luxurious lifestyle for freedom.

People have become addicts of a consumerist society and choose materialism over freedom, materialism over happiness, materialism over spending real time with their children, friends and family, materialism over doing what they love most, materialism over risking.

Risking? Risking what? A life where they can’t afford a second car, a bigger TV, a bigger house, more guitars, more expensive equipment, more stuff. That’s not a risk, that is salvation.

Release yourself from an addictive mind. Let’s choose freedom over materialism. Let’s choose to do real things. Not buy things, but do things.

So what are those real things? Read the rest of this entry »

photo by Ivan Zuber
A few days ago I saw a great singer songwriter on TV. He was playing his repertoire, talking about his life and all the songs he had written over the years.

I was all ears and loved every minute of it. While listening to his wisdom and beautiful melodies something struck me.

It was one of those wake up calls when suddenly you can see things very clearly. I had a strong urge to change some things in my life again. I needed to get my priorities straight and get back to what is most important in my life. I have done so.

Sometimes with everything that life has to offer, you get lost or off track. You are distracted or tempted by things that look interesting and sound amazing at first. Before you know it you are in over your head. You taste, but end up tasting too much of it. It does not fulfill you anymore.

It does no longer match your identity. Times are changing and so are you. You grow, experience, learn many different things that can change the course of your life. You might become confused about your current situation. You might doubt your job, your lifestyle, the way you play guitar, the band you play in, the music you play, your role as a musician, what you need to practice, how you spend and manage your time, what you want in your life and what you don’t want in your life.
Read the rest of this entry »

photo from Istockphoto
Web 2.0 and cloud computing are hot. It’s the future and it is rapidly evolving.

Whether you want to be a better guitar player, be more efficient or want to promote yourself as a musician, Internet is the place to be and it just keeps getting better.

These days you don’t need to spend a lot of money anymore to promote your band or to create a fan base. What you do need is hard work, dedication and persistence.

But what does “hard work” really mean when it is your passion, right? When you pursue your passion you don’t feel like you are working. You’re just having fun. So have as much fun as you can.

The more you connect and interact with your fans/potential customers on social media (see below), the bigger your fan base will become.

Social media works. Period! If you are willing to spend time and energy you can sell your music online or create a business using social media if you like. It’s all there!

If you want to be more efficient in learning, teaching, playing and communicating with your band members, students or colleague musicians there are a lot of productivity tools for you to benefit from. It can make life a whole lot easier.

Personally I strive to eliminate everything that causes work for work’s sake. Endless returning tasks, things that have to be done over and over again I try to automate or eliminate. This way I waste less time and can do more fun things like playing guitar, improving the quality and creativity of my business and spend more time with my wife and daughter. It’s all about being creative with the tools you’ve got. Read the rest of this entry »

photo from flickr
We have a new year ahead of us so this is a perfect time to set new goals. Goals will give you something great to look forward to. They give you a positive feeling, improve your skills and can change your life as long as you stick to ‘m.

There are a lot of people that fail to continue their new year’s resolutions whenever life gets in the way. And there are people who get obsessed by their goals. Neither ways are a good solution. You need to strike a balance to hold on to your dreams (see below in a minute).

My 4 resolutions for this year relating to the guitar lifestyle are:

1. Practicing on a regular basis every week. (Improving my improvisation skills)

2. Improving my guitar business offline and online. Read the rest of this entry »

photo from Istockphoto
Everybody needs to make a living and so do musicians.
For a lot of musicians the ultimate goal is to write and perform their own music and get paid for it.

This is an awesome goal, but success takes a while. In the meantime you need to pay the bills. Luckily as a musician there are a lot of creative ways to make good money.

We can’t live without music anymore. Music is needed everywhere and for everything. It’s a global language that we all understand and people all over the world come together to listen to it. We need music to feel good, get excited, be inspired, relieve stress, go crazy, to connect and to feel we belong to something or someone.

We are surrounded with music everywhere. Just to name a few: CDs, DVDs, Radio, TV programs, ads, movies, Internet, games, jingles, concerts, festivals, bars, coffee houses, restaurants, malls, weddings, ceremonies, etc. So there is a huge market for you as a musician to benefit from. You don’t need to be a professional. You become one while doing it. It’s possible for everyone. All you need is dedication, motivation and persistence to make it happen.

Here are 5 ways to make money while loving what you do:
Read the rest of this entry »

photo from Istockphoto
Many years ago I bought a guitar exercise book written by Al Di Meola. The first two things he pointed out in the book was the importance of creating good habits and taking care of your health. I never forgot those two golden rules, although taking care of my health was something I had to learn the hard way. It took me a while to learn the major benefits of living a healthy life.

Body work outs, healthy foods, stress release, finger warm up exercises, taking care of your hearing, stretching, relaxation, etcetera are all part of the journey in becoming and staying a good guitar player. I know we don’t always have the time to work out and we all get into a slump once in a while. That’s okay. It’s part of life and it’s good to have a break now and then, but that’s no excuse to ignore that little voice in the back of your mind who knows what is best for you when you haven’t taken care of yourself the last couple of months or worse. So let’s pick it up where you left of. You know you’ll be a lot happier once you start working out. We are talking about your health here. It’s the most important thing!

Being fit will make you feel good about yourself. It gives you a more overall positive attitude. You will be more motivated to practice and more focused to achieve your musical goals. A good physical condition will also improve your performance on stage and in the studio when you’re recording.

So here are some tips to get you in good shape and stay motivated at all times:
Read the rest of this entry »