The Steve Stine Podcast

10 Practical Steps to Maintain Guitar Practice Momentum

• Steve Stine

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Every guitarist knows the struggle of maintaining motivation when progress seems elusive. What starts as passion can easily transform into frustration when we hit plateaus or lose sight of why we picked up the instrument in the first place.

The secret to sustainable guitar practice lies in finding balance between technical growth and genuine enjoyment. Setting mini-goals gives you frequent wins to celebrate rather than always focusing on distant mountains to climb. As I often tell students, look back occasionally to see how many hills you've already conquered. Whether it's cleaning up a chorus, perfecting a difficult riff, or simply maintaining consistency, these small victories fuel your journey.

Tracking your progress creates accountability and clarity. Without some system to monitor your development, it's easy to feel like you're spinning your wheels. Equally important is reconnecting with your "why" – that initial spark that made you pick up the guitar. Most of us, myself included, didn't start playing to master music theory. I grabbed a guitar because I was enamored with Kiss and Ace Frehley! When practice becomes a chore, revisit those feelings of excitement when you first played along with your favorite records.

Remember that plateaus aren't failures – they're natural parts of learning. Progress isn't linear, and sometimes what feels like stagnation is actually your brain processing new information. Bar chords nearly made me quit guitar entirely, until one day they suddenly clicked. Had I given up during that plateau, I would have missed out on a lifetime of musical joy.

Connect with fellow guitarists who motivate rather than intimidate you. Make practice enjoyable by balancing the "work" aspects with songs that give you goosebumps. And above all, show up consistently – even if it's just for five minutes on busy days. I tell people: practice on the days that you eat.

Ready to transform your guitar journey with personalized guidance and accountability? The GuitarZoom Academy exists to help you progress from where you are to where you want to be, with a structured approach that keeps you motivated and moving forward. Your best playing is waiting!

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Check out the GuitarZoom Academy:
https://academy.guitarzoom.com/

Steve:

Hey, Steve Stine here and today we're going to be talking about 10 tips to stay motivated with your guitar practice, and I've got them written in front of me. We're going to go through these a little bit. It is very easy for guitar players to get frustrated and go off the rails, and so I thought it'd be really nice to just talk about a few things that you can do to try and keep yourself motivated. Okay, I want you to be the best you can be. There's no doubt about that. We want to work on elevating our skills to whatever degree, but sometimes what happens is we just get off in the weeds and we forget why we're doing this in the first place. So the first thing I want you to think about, number one, is set mini goals, not just big, big overarching ones. My dad always used to say and I'm sure you've heard this before too how do you eat an elephant? You eat an elephant one bite at a time. So the big thing is is just giving yourself small wins, recognizing the forward motion that you're actually making. I always tell students like you know you what happens often with students as they practice, and they're frustrated. They're doing all these things and they're always looking forward at the next bigger mountain that they've got to try and you know climb, and what they don't do is ever look back and see how many hills and mountains that they've already surpassed. So, you know, think about little things like learning the chorus to something cleaner, or learning a section of a song even better than what you've got right now. Or maybe you're writing things and instead of worrying about an entire song, you're just going to write some sort of riff. It doesn't matter what it is. Just learn to think about things as smaller segments of success and not always just these big picture ones.

Steve:

What I try and do is get people to think about both of those, and let me use maybe, maybe soloing or scales as a, as an example. So, over the longterm, what we want to learn how to do is visualize this concept on the fretboard pentatonic or a diatonic or a mode or a cage system or you know whatever it might be, memorizing all the notes on the fretboard. What I mean maybe it's multiples of those, right? So those are those big term things that we want to get to, not just in a state of acknowledgement I can see them but a state of absolution where I can actually use them comfortably and confidently in the real world. But while we're doing that, we want to work on in the real world. But while we're doing that, we want to work on smaller wins as well.

Steve:

What I try and teach people is what I call real world approach. So in the real world, sure, we want to see the key of C major across the entire fretboard, in whatever capacity. And then we want to see the key of A major across the fretboard in the entire capacity, and we use phrases like well, you just move it up or down the fretboard the entire capacity. And you know we use, you know, phrases like well, you just move it up or down the fretboard. Well, that is true to a certain degree. But when you move it up or down the fretboard, the visualization changes and so you really need to spend some quality time trying to work on the visualization of that particular key, of that particular scale or that particular concept, to really, you know, get it in your brain to again an automated state. But while you're doing that, you should be working on some smaller wins as well, like learning how to take just one position or maybe two positions and learn how to play musically, not just learning the scales and things, but actually learning how to create something that sounds like music. You know just an example off the top of my head. If you were to take someone like Joe Walsh, for instance, from the Eagles, it's not like he's completely obsessed with just moving around the fretboard. Now, that might be your thing and that's great, but the point is is that he or Eric Clapton or you name it it doesn't matter who you put in there doesn't have to navigate across the fretboard to make music. They can stay in one place and create that music. So that's working on something that's a larger frame and then something that's a little bit smaller, okay.

Steve:

The second thing I would tell you is track your progress. Okay, even if it's just a little bit, don't just wing it. Keep track of what you're working on and how it's going and any frustrations that you're having, that sort of thing, so that way you can revisit it. Maybe you've got a practice log here in the Academy, in the Guitar Zoom Academy. We create a practice log for you and then we help monitor that practice log and work with you to make sure that everything's actually functioning the way it should be and you're moving the direction you should. If you're doing this on your own, you want to make sure that you've got some sort of system in place where you can go back and see am I making progress, am I working on the right things? Or if you just practice day to day and you don't really think about it, it's easy to kind of get off in the weeds again. Okay, the third thing I want you to think about, which I think is really important, is revisit the why.

Steve:

Why did you start playing guitar in the first place? Did you start playing for fun? Was it a stress relief thing? Most people, including me, didn't pick up the guitar because I wanted to learn music theory and go to college. I picked up the guitar because I was enamored with Kiss and Ace Frehley. So you know, it's easy for us to get on the journey and then get so obsessed with the technicality or the theory and again, there's nothing wrong with any of it. There's nothing wrong with any of it, okay. But if we forget why we started playing, sometimes we start forgetting the passion and the fun that we used to have.

Steve:

I remember sitting around this would have been 1983 when I started playing, so 1984, right around there, you know I was. I would pull out records and put them, you know, on my record player and try and learn stuff by ear, you know, off pyromania and off um diary of a madman, and you know, know, there was all kinds of different albums like that that I would work with. Back in Black was one right around that time too. That was really big for me, and I remember just loving the feeling of playing the songs that I listened to and, you know, inspired me, and you know I was a rock kid. That's what I was, not that I'm not now as well, but we forget that along the way. We get so obsessed with all these other things. Now again, if it's serving your purpose, that's great, but I want you to remember what it felt like to be a kid or to be when you first picked up that guitar, how you felt to play some of the things that you loved.

Steve:

So, number four, that's what it is. Play what you love, okay, technique and theory matter, but don't forget to play the stuff that gives you goosebumps, okay, whether it's a solo or a riff, or you know, for me, like I love the Beatles, don't get me wrong, but I don't sit and listen to the Beatles every single day. There's a million other things I listen to as well, but when I grab an acoustic guitar, one thing I love to play is Blackbird. There's just something about it that feels wonderful to me. Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac More Than Words by Extreme you know, there's Dust in the Wind, like. There's just certain things that I love to play that make me feel good. They're just. You know, it's not like I'm going to jam them in my car turned up or whatever, but they're things when I grab the acoustic guitar, they just. That's what inspires me to play. I enjoy that, so don't forget about that.

Steve:

Okay, number five embrace the plateau. Okay, progress is not linear. It doesn't do this all the time. Okay, there's going to be times that you get stuck, and that's normal. That's the way it is, and don't get frustrated about that. It's not like every single day. You're going to keep getting better. Okay, the goal is to maintain. Right, that's the initial goal.

Steve:

The small term goal is to make sure you're not slipping backwards, but the reality is that sometimes you have to. You might be learning some concept or working on some technical aspect of something, and something about it keeps failing on you. Up a little bit and figure out the cogs that make up what it is that you're trying to do and then refine what's happening there, like is it a picking thing or a direction thing or a finger thing or what's going on there, and so it feels like you're kind of taking you know backward progress, but you're really not. You're just deconstructing what you're trying to do to figure out where the problem is. And once you figure out that problem, you can start pushing forward again. And the benefit of that, of course, is that in doing that, once you've thought about that and you've analyzed it and you've figured out how it works inside your head and your fingers, oftentimes that same thing will present itself in different forms, different songs, different scenarios that you're in, and you might not even realize it. But because you've already kind of you know micro, broken down this concept, now that you've got it figured out, it'll make things more efficient in the long run, and that's a lot of times what happens with your practice. So it'll feel like you're plateaued and you are until you develop something.

Steve:

Okay, I always think about practice like working along with a metronome is a great example. I would practice certain things and sit at the same frigging speed, you know tempo, over and over and over and over and it never felt like it was getting anywhere was sitting on that plateau and then all of a sudden it would. It would get better Bar chords for me, for whatever reason. When I was a kid I could not play bar chords and just about stopped playing guitar because of it. I hated, hated bar chords and then one day it took me way longer than it's taken any of my students. Of course, I was trying to do this on my own, which probably didn't help either, but one day I woke up and I could do them and thank God I didn't stop playing, because I've I've played my whole life and I love it. But that's what plateaus do for us.

Steve:

Okay, the other thing is just interacting interacting with other musicians, finding other like-minded people, not always looking at everything as a contest, but finding other people that motivate you and are on the same. You know interest, maybe, as you and things like that. Here in the Guitar Zoom Academy we have a community. It's a very small community. Our intention is not to have a large academy, it's to keep it relatively small and personable, and so what's really fun for me is when people will post in the academy. They'll post their progress or post a success or even post a frustration and ask for assistance from other fellow academy members and just to have conversations. We forget that, living in this social media world where everybody's trying to one-up everybody else, it's really nice to just be able to find somebody out there that goes dude, I've been where you are, you'll get through this, it's okay. Let's figure out what we're doing so find people out there that can help you and can motivate you in a positive way. Next thing I've got number seven is switch it up.

Steve:

Sometimes If you get really frustrated with something or something doesn't feel like it's working or you're stuck on a plateau again. I'm not saying you have to necessarily abandon it, although you do have to ask yourself whether now is the right time to be trying to develop that Again. In the academy, our goal is to figure out what is it that you want to be able to do and what does it take for you to be able to get there. And in that process of analysis, oftentimes we'll find other things that you're working on. Because, listen, people go on YouTube and just you know, watch God knows what and there'll be all over the place and the trick is to figure out what it is that you really need to be able to get to where you want to go, and what stuff are you working on that maybe is bloating what you're trying to get to and it's kind of getting in the way. You know, if we could trim that fat and streamline that process, you'd get there quicker. You'd be able to focus more intently on what that is. You know what I mean If you want to be an auto mechanic and you're working on this thing and then all of a sudden you're working on like I don't know. I mean something that's completely non-related, but you're not really aware of it, but it has to do with automobiles. You know what I mean, or whatever it might be.

Steve:

Sometimes you have to take a look and go what am I actually doing? And again, that's half the battle for us in the academy is just figuring out. What is it that you need? How do we get you there? And let's try and stay focused, okay, so switching it up sometimes means this technique isn't working. So what is there something else compatible that I could do? Or I'm really bored with the song I've been working on for a long, long time. Maybe switch it up, try something else, try a different routine, you know, something fresh. It doesn't make any difference. But there's lots of things that you can do to reignite that motivation instead of just being stale and stagnant with things.

Steve:

Okay, number eight the whole point of really all of this is trying to make practice enjoyable. Okay, I really try and avoid words like fun, although sometimes things really can be fun on the guitar. Okay, if you feel like you're making progress that motivates you, if you feel like you're connecting to something that tends to get you excited and motivates you. And motivation is half the battle. So, you know, make practice enjoyable.

Steve:

Again, don't just do theory and scales and drills and all this kind of stuff and again, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that. Yeah, you want all that stuff, but play a song you enjoy. Play a song that your spouse enjoys or your kids enjoy or your best buddy enjoys, you know, do something fun, you know. Play at a campfire or have a background, you know. Or a backyard jam with some of your buddies or jam along with a backing track. Or, you know, write a song, even if you're not. You don't feel like you're very good at it. The rest of the world doesn't? It doesn't matter. Enjoy yourself a little bit, make it enjoyable. Okay, maybe you make a video of you playing something and you send it to somebody that you care about and you know it's meaningful or it's fun and silly, or you know you're a human being.

Steve:

You have X amount of time on this planet. Try and enjoy some element of what it is. And, yeah, be like most guitar players and have some element of you know obsessive, compulsive nature and you're trying to get so good at this and learning this. You want to do all that, but don't forget all the stuff in the middle. Okay, number nine don't compare, connect. Okay, it's easy to compare yourself to other people and get discouraged. Your journey is your journey. Your life is not exactly the same as anybody else's. Your interests are not exactly the same as anybody else's.

Steve:

You get people that will say I want to be able to play like Eddie Van Halen. To be able to play like Eddie Van Halen, you have to have gone through all of the experiences that Eddie Van Halen had. You have to mirror the brain of someone like Eddie. We can't do any of those things we could learn from Eddie Van Halen. There are things that we could replicate from Eddie Van Halen to a certain degree, but we cannot, obviously. We can't be anybody but us. So, instead of comparing yourself to other people, connect. Look at these people. See what it is that you can do with information and how you can absorb it and make it something of your own. Don't just make your worth as a guitar player based on how fast you are or how smart you are or how often play live or all of these different kinds of things. They're useless comparisons. Figure out what you really want to be able to do and who you really want to be able to be, and compare that to how much time you're actually putting into whatever it is.

Steve:

I find it interesting. I do tell this story quite a bit, but a couple of years ago my family and I went to this like street fair in Fargo, north Dakota, where I live, and there was a gentleman playing guitar and there was a girl singing and my daughter and I do this on a regular basis as well and there was a bunch of people sitting around watching them play and, you know, clapping after the songs and they're telling some jokes and doing their thing and it was really interesting to me because in that moment I have no idea how talented they are, other than what they're presenting songs. And he's playing these songs and there you go. Right, he might be a closet metalhead and does all these other things, but what you're seeing at that moment in time is them doing this thing. So when I see that it's not my job to sit and, you know, compare whether they're good or not good, or he should be faster, or he should know more music theory, no, at that moment in time he's playing songs and she's singing songs and people are enjoying the songs and most likely, they're probably making some sort of you know income from what they're doing. You know, whatever it might be, but they're making music. They're making real music in front of real people and having a real experience, real experience. And you know, sometimes we get locked up in our you know practice room and we're just doing all this stuff and we forget about that real experience.

Steve:

Okay, it doesn't always have to be this. It again. Maybe for you it does. I'm just saying are you happy? And if you are, god bless you. But if you're not happy, you got to rethink this thing a little bit, okay? So, uh, number 10, show up, even for five minutes.

Steve:

Okay, I tell people practice on the days that you eat. Okay, if you got 20 minutes, give it all you got for 20 minutes. If you've got an hour, that's great. If you got three hours, heck, that's wonderful. Okay, everybody's lives are different, but you have to be realistic about the amount of time you're putting in and what you're going to be able to get out of that, okay.

Steve:

So again, balance the obsessive, compulsive nature of your practice with something that reminds you that it should be enjoyable All the fruits of your labor. You could make your family really happy by doing something fun, right, or getting together with your neighbors and doing something right. It doesn't have to be at this level all the time. So I just wanted to remind you of that, all right. So again, if you're interested, check out the Guitar Zoom Academy. This is the whole point is to get you from where you are to where you want to go, but to be able to do it in a meaningful, motivational, encouraging way. But yet keep you moving forward, keep you accountable, give you assessments of your plan, all of that kind of stuff to get you where you want to be. That's the whole point. So, take care, stay positive and I'll talk to you soon, okay.

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