Originally Posted by: jtcomctagOnce again I am finding myself slipping out of touch with my guitar. I am one of those guys who has struggled staying with it over the last few years. I put in tons of time and money and am dedicated to learning for a stretch of time and then when I hit a rut or something else comes up that stalls my playing I end up just slipping away from it for a while. Does anyone else out there relate to this? What can I do to stay in touch even when things get a little stale?

Sometimes when I feel in a rut, I change the strings on my guitars. Whether they need them or not. Sometimes the brightness and newness of the new strings invigorates my playing. Treat yourself to some high end strings. For times like those I love Dean Markley Blue Steel. Even at double the price of the bread and butter strings like D'adds or Ernie Ball they don't break the bank.

Everyone has different motivations for playing the guitar. Some play in a band, some play in church, some play for friends, some play for themselves, some play because they think that they will be the next guitar hero.

There is one common denominator though. All play because they love it.

What do you love about it. The music it makes, the music you make? Do you love it because it is your way of 'getting away'.. your 30 minute vacation from the world?

I think you need some structure and now is probably a good time to invest in regular lessons. Multiple benefits, structured instruction, have someone else set a goal for you, have a trained professional critique your technique, and the instructor will most likely be able to set you up with other students in your area for jam sessions at a level you'll be comfortable with.

just some random thoughts rolling around my head.