Define Your Own Success

This is a great question...I've been playing for about 10 years now, and I'm nowhere near I'd expected to be technically. I always felt I needed to be an advanced musician to feel ok about saying I played guitar. But never liking technical music + ineffective practice habits lead me to where I am now. I can play my own songs and learn songs ok, but I'm by no means a great player. However, I'm in a band I like, I'm happy with myself as a performer and song-writer. Isn't that what me ultimately are striving for as musicians? To create art we feel strongly about?

For whatever reason, I still don't feel fulfilled though, as though I'm a failure in some sense, because I've invested so much time and effort in practicing and still at an intermediate level.

We all certainly feel that way. I have close friends that play for some of the top artists in pop music, period. I can tell you from knowing them as well as my own experience, that you are never satisfied. You always want something better and want to achieve bigger things. You are a wheel, and their is nothing wrong with that at all. You don't want to beat yourself up, but keeping yourself mobile and creative will truly yield you a result in some way.

Keep up the good work and don't get too frustrated. Remember that no matter how good you are, you will always aspire to be better and that is simply part of being a musician. Welcome! ;)

I'll feel like a true guitarist the day I can make my girlfriends panties wet by playing a sick fast metal song, solo and all.

Seriously :D

impressing more ladies with my great guitar playin.

Well for me... i didnt do it for the ladies.. i did cause i loved to play this guitar and I only feel successfull when I start to inspire other people, like what Eddie Van Halen did to me, inspired me to play. Also.. is when I can start making songs that inspire people to play...

Setting goals and achieving them implies success for me. I set one year goals and one month goals with benchmarks related to techniques to learn and receiving constructive feedback on my latest performances. Music is so vast there's always more to learn.

I guess that I just want to make good music in a variety of styles like Acoustic,blues, rock and maybe even jazz. I think that if you can play well in a variety of styles than you know the guitar very well.

Originally Posted by: Douglas ShowalterGreat responses. Keep them coming.

My ultimate goal musicially...well...it sounds kind of strange but my goal is to become a rockstar and get my stuff out there. And thats almost it lol. I mean I have different goals like one day I want to know my entire neck more than any of the rockstars out there lol. And I want to be way better at guitar than I am right now haha. I have so many goals like these. But in the end I always strive to just be a rockstar. Cause my talent, and my lyrics will be heard. And I dunno, maybe it'll help somebody. Or maybe somebody will see me playing guitar and it will inspire them to play too. And once I succeed I'll have more goals, because I'll always have a goal of some sort...like having another successful album and stuff like that. But my one big goal/dream (they're kinda the same for me) is just to be a talented rockstar. :)

I have close friends that play for some of the top artists in pop music, period. I can tell you from knowing them as well as my own experience, that you are never satisfied. You always want something better and want to achieve bigger things. You are a wheel, and their is nothing wrong with that at all. You don't want to beat yourself up, but keeping yourself mobile and creative will truly yield you a result in some way.

Nice to hear that. This is happening to me all the time. I think some people think I have accieved pretty much but I still feel its not what I wanted or it could be better - and you are right you have to keep it up and go over the frustations which come back from time to time.

HP

I'm trying to build my guitar teaching up with a greater number of students to the point where I can quit my day job and just do the music thing for a living. Man, wouldn't that be a sweet life!

Difficult question Douglas,

For me it is simple though

23-01-2010: I bought A guitar
23-08-2010: I never realized 7 months have gone by
23-01-2011: I can play guitar well (target almost reached)
23-01-2012: I can solo / play lead that makes you feel happy / sad / etc
23-01-2013: I can make music (only true artist in my opinion is the singer/songwriter idea).

For me it's not a question whether I reach my goals. I simply will. A lot of effort involved, true, patience as well, and after that much, much more effort. But I will get there, because I want to and in the process I will do everything to keep guitar playing interesting.

The only thing you can't do alive, is not to breath,

But then again. That is just me

The one thing I never did while learning the guitar was spend time doing covers or trying to work out someone else's solos. Success to me is getting to a level where your fingers can play directly what is in your head at the speed of thought. No working things out, just pick up the guitar and play constructive solos without jamming too much. I play what I want to hear, I burn it to cd and listen to it in my car, in the gym wherever. It's the icing on the cake if other guitarists appreciate my music too but at the end of the day if I'm happy with what I record then that's enough for me.

Originally Posted by: Kathryn MMy ultimate goal musicially...well...it sounds kind of strange but my goal is to become a rockstar and get my stuff out there. And thats almost it lol. I mean I have different goals like one day I want to know my entire neck more than any of the rockstars out there lol. And I want to be way better at guitar than I am right now haha. I have so many goals like these. But in the end I always strive to just be a rockstar. Cause my talent, and my lyrics will be heard. And I dunno, maybe it'll help somebody. Or maybe somebody will see me playing guitar and it will inspire them to play too. And once I succeed I'll have more goals, because I'll always have a goal of some sort...like having another successful album and stuff like that. But my one big goal/dream (they're kinda the same for me) is just to be a talented rockstar. :)

I am intrigued by this response. What have you done so far to put this in motion? Nothing is out of reach, so let's see where your at starting...today!
:D

I started playing kind of late, I'd been a music fan since I was a youngster but couldn't afford a guitar until I got a job and bought a Memphis les paul when I was 17. I learned some chords and Jammed with my friends. I thought about the music lifestyle, but also had to work the Day job. Played in a few punk bands and played Drums in the last and most successful one. That whole chapter of my life ended in 1997 when that band broke up for all the good reasons. Needless to say, a lot of negative distractions come along and one can be easily distracted in so many ways. I was turned off to music especially the scene. The past Three years I have regained interest in the guitar and have been making some real progress, No pressures, just to please myself. I feel like I learned a lesson that could be considered a goal, That my desire to play music will always be with me, and The musical journey is always ongoing. I'm 45 now, work a full time job, but practice a few hours a day and enjoy it more than I enjoyed the whole rock band trip. But I do like to perform as well, Maybe I'll start Busking on the weekends. That could be my goal.

I’m not really sure how I would define musical success anymore. It’s something that I have been thinking about recently but haven’t yet tried to articulate.

I suppose when I was 17 and in a band I would have defined it as having gold/platinum records, living in a mansion, riding in limousines and the like but isn’t that just being successful at playing the capitalist game and shifting units? This is a business like view of art. When you filter art threw this business model (to which everything is subjected) you get shallow crap such as Brittney Spears . I think if anything, that stuff obscures what being a musician is about (to me at least, now as a slightly more mature 24 year old).

Asking “what is musical success?” is like asking “what is the meaning of life?” completely subjective, shifting and maybe even abstract. Perhaps I can obtain musical success right now if I put on a Beethoven or Hendrix CD and am genuinely moved by it? Or if I pick up a guitar and express myself?

The responses keep getting better and better. I am so thankful people have taken the time to respond very thoughtfully (and honestly) on this matter. The idea of success differs from person to person, and quite honestly for me the direction I want to go and road I want to take my career down is always, always evolving.

The best advice I can give everyone in the simplest way possible is to always revert back to where you started. Think back to the very thing that made you start playing music in the first place and I feel you will always work your way back to that. I started playing guitar because I wanted to write music, and express whatever ideas I had running around in my head. Nearly 2 decades later, that is still very much the case as I feel I still approach music the same way. My life has changed, and while I have had a wealth of great experiences and met some amazing musicians and humans; the fact still remains my greatest joy comes from writing and creating music from the ground up.

The guitar has been my vehicle for that and I hope it serves all of you in the same way it has me. Best of luck and keep the responses coming!
:D

Douglas Showalter said,

Nearly 2 decades later, that is still very much the case as I feel I still approach music the same way. My life has changed, and while I have had a wealth of great experiences and met some amazing musicians and humans; the fact still remains my greatest joy comes from writing and creating music from the ground up.

There is so much of an individual that goes into a song, that I have to agree with you. There aren't too many things in life that can compare to writing and creating music (with a few exceptions). Music takes your raw emotion and transforms it into art. The only other things capable of such a great experience are those things that you can build with your hands, or filter out of your brain and heart onto a medium of some sort, like a tapestry on a canvas.

I've enjoyed the pleasure of completing the process of writing lyrics, adding a melody, and in the recent past, having someone else put instrumentals to my base result. The product(s) have been interesting and exhilarating. To have any part of that process is an opportunity to express and explore (not always in this order).

As an artist, just beginning to be recognized (not for my songs necessarily, but for my voice) I have discovered that there is an attitude of awe in some individuals for those of us who are able to articulate and then set a melody to expressions that come from deep within. I consider this must be the same type of awe I feel for those who can take an instrument and bring it to life right before my very eyes, the same awe I feel when a little tune can be established as a major piece of music, with chords, harmonies and counter harmonies, background sounds that accentuate and compliment and more. How I've dreamed of doing all of it, but I don't know that I'll be able to accomplish such a feat at this point in my life; and I am very much aware that no one person can be good at everything.

Musical success for me is the pleasure of having someone say, "I could listen to you all day". It's dressed in the twinkle of the eyes on a person who comes to shake your hand and say, "I truly enjoyed your performance". It's draped in the encouragement that asks, "Why aren't you doing this for a living?" It's disguised in the embrace that pats you on the shoulders and wants to know, "Where can I buy your CD?"

I am imprisoned by my musical limitations therefore I will never be a "Star" as per the definition our society has placed on this idiom, but I think I have achieved personal success, because as musically ignorant as I am I have enjoyed these aspects of the industry. I have also been used and taken for granted, but the shadows are outweighed by the rush you experience during a stunning performance, and/or the sense of euphoria that comes afterward.

To me success is defined in believing you've climbed another step in the ladder of personal fulfillment and all the voices of affirmation that support your efforts are like the rays of the sun, they don't necessarily create the light, but they help spread the warmth everywhere!

V.

Well said my friend! Best of luck and please post links where we can hear your music. ;)

I really do admire all you guys and gals who make the instrument look so simple but you know what just learning to master that "B" chord is going to be a big moment of success for me,I've just begun to play,sorry, learn to play and what a joy it is,thanks for the inspiration.

Although I still have a long way to really making my hands shining in playing guitar . My ultimate goal is to become a guitarist and join a band . While I have thought about becoming a song writer I have found it easier said then done and it requires lots of patience and knowing how compose each word to each chord .

I kinda wish that I started learning how to play guitar back when I was a kid for music and guitars became my passion when I first a gypsy kings song at the age of 14 and music really took off on me .

But I've also learned not to put all your eggs in one basket because I hear the money isn't great and may not be enough to make a living . My good friend Mike a Musician told me to consider a musician as a career is not looking at your goals realistically simply because of the amount of experience and competition other musicians have and face .

And he also told me that there's always the chance that what you consider your passion and fun could also become not fun if you get so consumed and frustrated in not becoming a successful musician .

But Anyways those are my goals . Hope to join a band make a decent living but I'll settle guitar playing as a hobby :)