Originally Posted by: newb1e

Thanks Carl, [br]I'll use these tips in the future for sure. [br]What I was looking for on the site is something like the "Guitar fundamentals" paths. [br]Something I can follow along but for more advanced topics or some built in routines that can be followed.

I started the blues and rock style paths but felt like I do not have strong enough fundamentals.

[br]As you said, it depends greatly on the person and tend to change with the mood an so on. [br]But an adviced practice routine from experianced teachers and players is better than no routine at all. This way I might start from something "built in" and move to routines suitable for my preferences, time and skill level. [br][br]

This would be very valuable, I agree! I am sure Christopher Schlegel would have some ideas for you, and maybe in the future we can come up with a hierarchical structure for practice routines.

My own suggestion off the top of my head is to divide your time between the major areas. For example, you could do:

1. Theory & Reading

2. Technique

3. Learning Popular Songs

4. Improvisation / Soloing

5. Creativity / Songwriting

If you've got 5 days a week or 5 hours a day, you can easily slot those in and focus intensely on each one at a time. During each time slot, just try to get super focused on getting into that uncomfortable zone where you're pushing yourself a little bit on each -- rather than just repeating things you already know. Have a clear goal to improve. Write it down. "Today I want to go from 80 bpm to 100 bpm today." Or "I want to memorize the 5 patterns of the Pentatonic scale." Whatever it is, just be clear so you're not noodling and wasting time. Clear goal: "I want to know these 3 songs and be able to play them at normal tempo in 3 months." Then you work backwards from the goal -- OK, I should master one of them per month, and each week I will have to learn a section of the song. Just break it down systematically, whatever you're trying to learn.

For the time being, I think you might benefit from taking a One-On-One with either Dave Celentano or Mike Olekshy, as they have a lot of experience in designing personalized practice routines for students, and they can assess where you are.

https://www.guitartricks.com/pro/

-Carl.