I’ve been teaching classical and flamenco guitar for over 22 years, and if there’s one thing I see constantly holding students back, it’s mindless practice. You know what I’m talking about – sitting down with your guitar and just going through the motions without really concentrating on what you’re doing?
Yeah, I used to do that when I started (and yes, it totally backfired on me 🙄). I thought I could treat guitar like running or lifting weights and just accumulate reps. But, my lack of good concentration resulted in bad habits that took me a LONG time to fix. 😩 So, I put this blog post tether for you to help you understand why mindless practice is sabotaging your progress and what you should do instead.
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Is Your “Practice” Making You Worse?
I need to call out something I see happening all the time (and honestly, I used to do this too 🙄).
Way too many students I meet keep messing up their gains by practicing mindlessly.
I know – that sounds harsh! But hear me out.
What Is Mindless Practice?
It’s when you sit down with your guitar and just… play through stuff. A bunch of repetitions without really concentrating or having a strategic game plan. Just accumulating hours and reps, hoping that somehow all those reps will equal improvement.
Sound familiar? 😵💫
Look, I get it. A lot of us think, “If I just practice more, I’ll get better!” And sure, mindless practice does have some benefits – you might build some speed or stamina.
But here’s the thing: the negatives completely outweigh any positives.
The Problems With Mindless Practice
When you’re not fully concentrated, here’s what happens:
- Mistakes go totally unnoticed (yikes!)
- Your rhythm gets uneven
- Your tone suffers
- You build up unnecessary tension
- You actually repeat mistakes you thought you fixed before 🤦♂️
Plus, without a clear strategy for problem-solving, you’re basically running in circles. Like, maybe you want to increase tempo – awesome goal! But how are you going to do that?
Are you creating tempo variations? Using speed bursts? Making a bell curve shape with the tempo? And when you hit mistakes at faster speeds (because you will), are you even noticing them? How are you planning to address them?
The Solution: Conscious, Strategic Practice
Here’s what I want you to do instead:
Never repeat anything without a game plan. Ever! (Yes, I’m raising my voice…a little)
Always be highly concentrated on what you’re doing. Set super clear goals before you even pick up your guitar.
For example, if you want to increase tempo:
- Decide you’ll go up in increments of 3, 5, or 10 BPM
- Plan what you’ll do when you make mistakes (slow down to correct them? Try to fix them at tempo?)
- Know exactly which practice strategies you’ll use for each mistake.
My Challenge to You
This week, before every single practice session, ask yourself:
- What exactly am I trying to accomplish today?
- How am I going to work on that?
- What’s my plan if I run into problems?
Trust me, when your practice becomes this conscious and mindful, your progress will absolutely skyrocket! 🚀
Need Help Creating Your Practice Strategy?
If you’re tired of spinning your wheels in practice and want to learn how to create a strategic, focused approach that actually gets results, I’d love to help you out personally. If you want to jump on a free 15-minute call with me, click here to book a free consultation with me and learn how you can work with me in Spanish Guitar Mastery for faster and better improvement.
Happy practicing (mindfully! 😉),
— Diego Alonso
