Motivation, do I wanna play anymore?

Dramelot

Power User
Wah wah hear me cry,,,, lol

Havent picked up the guitar in 2 weeks, no gigs lately. Have some coming up and im not excited like i used to get.

what do you guys do to get the fire back?

I can play a little, and used to get paid decent for a show.

Now they want to pay me 50.00 for 4 hours. Really!! 2 places so far

Ok do it for the love and your lucky you can play a little and a few people who enjoy it.

wheres that fire... watched a few EJ, Metheny and Timmons clips, ok better
Holdsworth and Carlton, yeah i got work to do,, to be any thing close to these artists

All the time and effort put in, and a Fractal, vG99,Gr33,Gr300 ready to go and i'm not,,,,

Sonar 10 studio with all the inputs i need!! But no dude to fill em,,

Is it forget the hassle of live shows? ( nothing like feedback from a crowd)
and just write, write, youtube, write.....

Hell why not give it away for free, no ones ever gonna pay you.. ever...

and face it, music is free now like uuh.. woodstock...

Yeah bitch bitch.... get off your ass and play, to anybody...looking for that energy


What do you guys do when this happens to your head?

Maybe its low T, lol
 
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Walk away. You sound burnt out.

Stay off forums. Stay away from your guitar. Enjoy the rest of your life outside music for a spell. When the itch to play comes back, then it'll be fresh and fun again.

I end up doing this once or twice a year.
 
Well Scott your batting 1000 in my book on guidance here.

I kinda been feeling that as well
thanks!
Duane
 
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If your doing covers thats probably why do something original try to something outside the box. I seen many players burn out on cover bands its work and its not creativity. Best thing I found is to set aside writing or learning covers and start learning new skills on the guitar to make it interesting. I been going through Michael Angelo Bation Speed Kills series and it keeps me motivated and improved my playing alot. I am 35 years old been playing since I was 9 years old but between 24 and 29 years old I hung it up only touched my guitar maybe once every 6 months. I just got sick of the so many douchebags in the bands I had been in. I have learned now get over the douchebags i had to deal with in bands and play guitar for your self because its not a contest with anyone else but a chalenge to yourself to be become a better player. A guitarist even the greatest are never done learning.

By the way douchebags I mean Flakes, alcoholics, Errogant asses etc.
 
I’ve been there too – I think most people have felt like that at some stage. I strongly agree with Zman i.e. ‘..do something outside the box’.
 
I think you need to be your own shrink and ask yourself why you play guitar in the first place. F.ex. I simply love music and I'm still young so I'm trying to do my everything to work in some field of music and there are many fields. I've learned to sing during the past two years and also mix/master/produce music because sometimes just playing guitar is lame and boring. It's like "I PLAY GUITAR" and the general opinion is "WHO DOESN'T?". Music is supposed to be my strength so if I do nothing special with it doesn't that make me "nothing special"? Do you want to be special? That's what motivates me most of the time. Making an impression with a perfect mix or writing a catchy song. Pretty conceited... I know but that's the real world. You either have it or not and you better show what you have or no one will believe you have it. (wow that's great poetry... got to use that in a song :D )

The reason I'm saying this is that I've lost my motivation in the things I do many times. My simple answer is that if you want music to be a part of your life then you should change things. Start playing an acoustic? Start a new band? (I've done this too many times and now I have 4-5 active bands) If you haven't already done so, make your OWN MUSIC. I lost my interest in playing covers after 2 years of playing guitar.

Sure internet changes things. Artists don't need record labels because people don't listen to CDs, they listen to MP3s. So what to do? YouTube, forums, free mp3s, more forums... that's how you get big. F.ex. Periphery.

What is your aspiration?
 
I sympathise, it does happen. Plenty of successful commercial players (Mark Knopfler and Rick Parfitt are good examples) have to have time away from the guitar in order to re-charge their batteries and love of playing particularly after lengthy touring. Whilst I think Scott's advice is spot on ('walk away'), what I did recently is take some guitar exams to improve my understanding of music theory. I did this because I wanted to, and that's the key. I think you need some 'you' time too, guitar related or not, so maybe have a think about courses, hobbies, activities that you might like to spend some time on and apply yourself to that. Don't worry about the lack of current motivation to play guitar today, that will cure itself I suspect.
 
Walk away. You sound burnt out.

Stay off forums. Stay away from your guitar. Enjoy the rest of your life outside music for a spell. When the itch to play comes back, then it'll be fresh and fun again.

I end up doing this once or twice a year.

Agreed...it usually only takes me about a week before I'm ready to go again.
 
I get burned out once in a while too. Like the others have said, that's the time to put it down until the urge comes back. Unless it's your full-time job, you're not obligated to play. Usually when I start feeling that way, I buy gear. Looking at the music toys sitting all around my room, I guess I get bored a lot. :)
 
Fresh air, sunshine, exercise and an ipod does me wonders. As the others have said...take a break. Absence makes the heart grow stronger.
 
Jeez, I'm going through this too... My 3 projects dissolved down to one. The last gig on Saturday was a let down for me. My slamming original project fell apart when the bassist left to play with a working cover/dance that actually makes money, and no viable substitute would even remotely fill his energy and vibe. My cover band fell apart after the chick singer and the other chick keys player left for work and school reasons (leaving behind the 2 old guys).. No searching for a new groove is just a major pain in the ass of auditions and auditionees..

Time to follow Scott's advise and take a break and let it come back to me instead of pushing it to 'happen'.

And on top if it I injured my playing hand in a sports accident - maybe the Guitar gods are telling me something?
 
2 weeks isn't a long time. I have 2 week breaks all the time.

Sounds like you've had musical goals that you haven't reached and you don't believe you ever will so you are giving up.

I took theory lessons for 7 years back in the day and was sick of it all and it took me two years to play with motivation again.

It's just hard to justify owning 30 000€ worth of music gear if you don't play. So give me your Axe-Fx.
 
My sympathy goes to those losing motivation, but in the end it's only music. I'd suggest taking a break and finding another creative outlet, try something new. It's not like music will get mad at you, slam the door and never let you back into it's life again. When the urge returns, dust off your chops and pick up where you left off. Music will shake your hand and welcome you back home.

That said it's interesting to read this thread from my own headspace. I've been playing guitar, writing and recording for well over 20 years and in mostly steady-gigging weekend cover bands for the last 15. I still love it and my only problem is I can't get enough. Is this a blessing or a curse? (ask my wife.. haha). There is never enough time to do everything I want to do musically. I've had periods of stagnation with specific band lineups, setlists, times of low/no output with my own writing, but that basic animal urge to play music is always there for me, every single day. Even if it only means picking up the guitar to noodle for a bit. Every day. I'm not bragging.. it's more like "What's wrong with me? Shouldn't I be growing out of this by now?"

I'm sure part of this is because I'm not a career musician. Despite my passion for it I've never been seriously tempted to quit my job, go on the road or whatever. I've never seen realistic potential for big income (I'm just not that good.. lol) and the lifestyle never really fit me even when I was young. Now I have a family and my top priority is to support and give them a good life. I can imagine getting burnt when you're thousands of miles from home playing the same tunes 6 nights a week for months on end. Very different from the weekend warrior scene.
 
I recently read these two books whilst on holiday in Thailand. Really puts a perspective on both motivation and talent:

Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else by Geoff Colvin

Amazon.com: Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else (9781591842941): Geoff Colvin: Books

... interesting discussion about the so-called geniuses of the world such as Mozart and Tiger Woods, etc.

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink

Amazon.com: Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us (9781594488849): Daniel H. Pink: Books

But I think it was the relaxing holiday that inspired me the most :)

Anyway, I think it's very healthy (mentally and physically) to walk away from your guitar and music for a while.


Cheers
 
I guess we all agree. Personally, I play better when a few weeks go by without my "mistresses" :lol

I play for myself because it makes me feel good. I work through my stress by cranking the volume and feeling the thump on my chest! If I had to do it as a job I would be burnt out too. I found that out with cooking, and it is true for just about anything.

Like all the guys have been saying - take a break until you get the urge again. I have a PRS wooing me at the moment :lol
 
Yeah... you might want to try PRS guitars. They always get my motivation running. ;)

I also agree with it's just music. We're artists like painters. What kind of advice would you give to a hobby painter losing his motivation? Maybe you just don't want to play guitar anymore and there's nothing wrong with it. If it's your profession then it's more complicated.
 
I recently read these two books whilst on holiday in Thailand. Really puts a perspective on both motivation and talent:

Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else by Geoff Colvin

Amazon.com: Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers from Everybody Else (9781591842941): Geoff Colvin: Books

... interesting discussion about the so-called geniuses of the world such as Mozart and Tiger Woods, etc.

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel H. Pink

Amazon.com: Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us (9781594488849): Daniel H. Pink: Books

But I think it was the relaxing holiday that inspired me the most :)

Anyway, I think it's very healthy (mentally and physically) to walk away from your guitar and music for a while.


Cheers

I'm interested in the Talent is overrated book. Think I'll take a break and read this.

thanks for the suggestion

And thanks to all the rest for giving me hope lol. I'm not alone!
I just figured by now I would have been compensated for all my hard work, Instead of being paid less.
Update:
Just landed a solo gig for 200... thats more like it!
 
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We've all given a lot of support, idea's & options....motivation seems to be the main thing.
Find out/write out a list, what gets ya motivated.
 
Yeah... you might want to try PRS guitars. They always get my motivation running. ;)

I have a particular emerald PRS that haunts my dreams. As soon as I can free $3,500 I'll pay a visit to Guitar Center ::( In the meantime I'll visit it every now and then.

I also agree with it's just music. We're artists like painters. What kind of advice would you give to a hobby painter losing his motivation?
As for the advice, how about "Don't quit your day job". Peace!
 
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