The biggest guitar practice mistake guitarists make

I have noticed many mistakes and bad habits in over twenty years of teaching guitar players. But this one is right on top. It’s a common mistake among beginners and advanced players alike, affecting their sound, progress, and creativity.

What do you think it is? My answer:
Playing too fast!!!

In this article, I’ll talk about:

• Why does it happen?
• How does it affect us?
• A simple solution to this issue.

You can watch my deep dive into this topic of guitar practice with examples in this YouTube video I made about it.

Why do you play too fast?

1. Impatience

We want things to happen fast, to play perfectly right now. This is true for this information age where everything is so immediate. But the reality is that we don’t have the capability to learn things so quickly and flawlessly. It just doesn’t work, and that’s why impatience is a reason for this mistake.

2. Anxiety

When we feel under pressure, especially when playing in front of others, we tend to get into the “fight or flight” mode, which means we want to get over it as quickly as possible and run away. Have you noticed that you play faster when you know someone else is listening or watching?

3. Lack of Confidence

We don’t want people to think we’re too slow, because we associate slowness with being a beginner. (and we associate fast playing with being pro). No one likes to feel left behind! Instead, we want to impress others with our fast techniques, like all the other guitar shredders. This comes from a lack of confidence, by comparing ourselves to others in an unhealthy way.

Why is it a problem?

Flaws

If we play too fast, we can’t know if we played well and cleanly, as we don’t have enough time to process and correct what we just played. For example, is your transition between two notes clear and clean enough? Or do you hear some unnecessary noises, or are the notes too short? It’s almost impossible to do so when playing fast, and it can make our playing sound sloppy.

Frustration

If you try to learn something new, especially something technically challenging, and play it too fast, you set yourself up for failure. You won’t enjoy the process as you’ll find it hard to get it right. Then you’ll feel frustrated that you’re not making enough progress. Then you try again too fast… It’s a sad loop of frustration you want to avoid getting into.

But you need more time to coordinate your finger movements with your brain. It’s like trying to speak too fast – you’ll likely make mistakes and stutter.

Forgetfulness

Do you know when you play something that sounds great but find it difficult to remember what you just played? It’s probably because you played too many notes and played them too fast. Think about it: is it easier to remember a lick with more or fewer notes? When we play fast, we can squeeze in many notes that will make it hard to remember.

The simple solution?

One solution is to record or film yourself and listen back. But would you really listen back? Even so, a better way is to hear and spot it in the moment, which means that the best solution to this mistake is:
Slow down!

Sounds pretty simple, but it’s a bit trickier than that. Even if you think you’re playing slowly, you’re probably not. You need to do it slower. Work with a metronome if you need to, and set it to around 70 BPM.

Then, when you have more time to listen carefully, you can finally:

• Focus on every little detail of your playing.
• Turn your guitar time into an immersive experience.
• Treat it like a guitar meditation (slow = calm).
• Enjoy your guitar practice more.
• Be mindful of every note you play.
• Feel in sync with the guitar.
• Better remember the great music you just created.
• Listen to the potential of your music.

Slow is the fastest way forward on the guitar!

If you liked this article and video, I invite you to book a guitar chat with me to get a personalised guitar practice plan that will ensure you avoid all mistakes and correct bad habits.