Question: How do make guitar practice fun while practicing with very intense discipline? I practice 6 hours a day which I don't mind very much, but doing exercises and working on technique for me is boring. I still do it for 6 hours, and then I get depressed because I'm not having fun. I have a practice schedule and a log book and lots of drills and exercises for every technique, however even listening to guitar virtuoso music is nowhere near as fun for me as listening to something simpler like 80s metal, for instance. I think that one of the reasons why I don't have fun with very intensive practice and discipline is because I don't get much inspiration to play guitar by listening to musicians such as Yngwie, Gilbert and even Becker. How do I overcome this?

Tom Hess's Answer: What you are experiencing is common for most guitar players. In order to make guitar practice fun and enjoyable, it is important to approach practicing in a way that will leave you feeling fulfilled. If listening to virtuoso guitarists does not give you inspiration to play guitar, listen to that which DOES inspire you. Listening to music that you enjoy will likely remind you of the reasons why you wanted to play guitar in the first place. This will make it much easier for you to enjoy guitar practice, since you won’t be ‘forcing’ yourself to do something you don’t want to do.

Additionally, most guitar players who want to know how to make guitar practice fun believe that their guitar practice must be either intense and serious (with no fun) or laid back and enjoyable (with no discipline). This approach will significantly slow down your guitar progress and leave you unmotivated! Find out how to enjoy your guitar practice AND make a lot of progress in this article on the best way to practice guitar.

Make more progress in your guitar practice by using interactive guitar lessons.