I think it goes in cycles.. at least it does for me.. I'll be cruising along happily for a month.. or a year.. or whatever.. and then I'll realise how uncreative I have become and that I have found myself going round and round in circles over the same material again and again.. Then I begin the battle against the tide again and learn some more stuff. This time around I needed some musical theory pumped into my head before I was able to break out of my cage. Now I have just gotten over the symptoms of theory overload.. and I can start being creative again... but there will be a time, not too far away where everything will be dull again and I will have to reinvent myself again...

Also.. yes.. if you want to learn new things, things that you couldn't do before.. you will need to practise, learn, and practise some more.. lots of hard work really.. I'd say it's like 90% hard work and the rest is the actual playing.. but whether the work is boring or exciting is really what matters.. to me, the practise and working on the music is not a chore.. well some days it does feel like that but for the most part it is not only enjoyable but also satisfying.