how to practice? plus other quetsions

Well, when it comes to practicing efficiently, there are a few things you should keep in mind, and these come from the great mind of jazz guitar legend Jack Grassel, whom of which I have learned these tips and have put them to use myself:

-Is your practice area well lit? Is there anything wrong with it? What can be improved?

-Practice in the same position that you perform. If you sit while you perform, sit while practicing. Same goes for standing as well. It’s important to be comfortable so that you don’t become fatigued and can enjoy yourself.

-Practice everything, even improvising, with a metronome at all different tempos.

-The practice area should be secluded and quiet, away from any distractions.

-Set up a schedule for yourself. Some things to work on when practicing are: Improvising, Chords (melody and rhythm), sight reading, technique, listening, transcribing, theory, scales.

Another thing is to space out your practice time. If you have for example, 3 hours a day to practice, try to have each hour at a different part of the day. Three hours in a row can make you dull and productive. Practice approx. one hour at a time, unless you feel like going longer. Obviously, the longer you practice, the better off you will be. Practice the things you like least first when have more tolerance. Do the things you like most later on in the day. also, by varying the schedule as much as possible, you will stay alert and interested most of the time.If you practice sight reading and lose interest after a half hour, go on to something else. When you think you’ve had enough, take a break and do something non-musical.

Hopefully that helps.

I think I must add I need to make a better practice routine also. Maybe this will help me.

Your routine seems pretty solid. Considering you dont have alot of time to work with. Dont feel obliged to move on to the next topic every 10-15 mins though.

If something is starting to make sense, best to stick with it and keep working on that area. Often I will sit and just comp over a backing for a good 25 minutes and just listen to what is going on, then all of a sudden something clicks. So yea, as long as your enjoying what your doing dont feel you need to hold yourself hostage to set time frames.

If doing this means you have to overlook something because you wont have time to get through everything else. Make sure the remainder of your time is focused toward areas you have been previously struggling with. Dont set the bar too high though.

For example; I can think of half a dozen things that I struggle with. But I will only pick one or two that I want to improve on. Those will be my focus points for the short term. All the other stuff, assuming its not required for my current repotire, can wait untill im happy with what I’m still working on.

Good Luck. And remember, if the fun stops. Take a walk or read a book. Often this can be just as rewarding.