The general attitude is, “I want it, and I want it now!” But it really takes years if you’re going to do it right, and a lot of kids just don’t want to take the time to work on it and see where it’s all going, and what it means, and where it comes from, and how they should apply it and use it in playing their songs. It doesn’t make any difference how technically good you are or fast you are or how many notes you know; you just can’t do it in two years.
-Johnny Winter

Sorry that this post is a little later than usual. Been tied up in the studio doing some production and consulting work here in Dallas with this new band, Spirits of Music. Glad to say that we got 3 songs mixed, but still have more work to do. As usual, the time frame we planned was a little unrealistic. We planned originally to record and mix in 3 days; however, it has taken us five with at least two more to go to get everything as we sonically envisioned it. Sure, it would have been nice and saved the Spirits of Music a good deal of money if their EP was finished in three days. But the quality would have definitely suffered, and in the long run, their whole career would not be as effective if they settled for a complete EP in that amount of time.

Ok, Ok, enough about that. “I want to hear the lesson of the article, and I want to hear it NOW!”

Patience my friend. Patience.

We will get to the point of this lesson soon enough. We live in such a fast-paced world today, where too many of us just want instant gratification. We want the reward and benefits without putting in the necessary work; without persevering through hard times and obstacles. We want things to magically happen to us while we sit on the couch and watch TV. We look for shortcuts to everything.

Do any of these BullS**t slogans sound familiar to you?

• “Learn to Play Guitar in Just 24 Hours!”
• “Learn Everything You Need to Know About Theory in 30 Minutes!”
• “Master the Fretboard While You Sleep: No Guitar Experience Necessary!”
• “Play Guitar Like Steve Vai by ordering our Deluxe Fairy Godmother!”

Well, I’m a slight insomniac and my damn Fairy Godmother got lost in the mail, so I can’t play guitar like Steve Vai quite yet.

Obsessing over Instant Gratification is a little bit immature. It’s time for some to grow up. Maturity means learning the value of that which is hard-earned. It also means being proud of yourself for all the struggles you have gone through to get where you want to be.

There is nothing more rewarding in life than setting a compelling goal and finally achieving it.

The Rule of 4

One insightful piece of advice that I received from my Entrepreneurship professor in my college days was that when you are planning to setup an entrepreneurial venture, always multiply your estimated costs and estimated time to see your project come to fruition by 4. Why is this?

Shit Happens.
-Forrest Gump

You can only plan for so much. The unexpected will happen. You are going to make a few mistakes. Don’t get discouraged because this is just how reality works. It’s important to go in with an optimistic mindset. Just also realize that obstacles can and do pop up outta nowhere.

Just Remember the 3 P’s of Success:

1. Patience
2. Persistence
3. Perseverance

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