I wish I could play better

To elaborate:

A dude I worked with for years quit tonight to go work for a different company. I considered applying for this same company but didn't. There are some professional ethics issues involved that hold me back.

This comes after a series of incredibly long days that will almost certainly go unrecognized by my current employer.

Even if I was taking lessons, it wouldn't matter. After a 12-hour day and 2 hours in fucking constant-construction Dallas traffic, I have no time to practice. Thus I can't play for shit right now.

I could go on but you get the idea.
 
Tip for instantly playing better: play in a band with me. My chops make your chops seem like filet mignon.
 
Mojo. I'm right there with you on the wishing I could play better. I've been playing for years, and I'm little more than a glorified beginner.
 
I've heard you play. I'd say you're being too hard on yourself. :thu: I can vouch that day jobs totally screw with mojo though.
 
Mojo, USP.

If I were clocking those hours, I'd be fantasizing about snapping too.

But there's no need to create extreme scenarios for yourself. If you're not playing as much as you feel you should, that doesn't mean that you should quit. The guitar isn't going anywhere. You may not be betting better, but you won't be getting worse, either.

My advice for you is to start job-hunting. Given the depression that you're experiencing and articulating, then that should be a major priority. It may take a long time to find something that fits, but it'd be worth it.

Not that that's your only option. You could speak to a career counsellor or speak to a shrink. You could try massage therapy or yoga. Hell, you could even get in contact with Jammity. Regardless of how you feel about the man, I'm certain that he'd be happy to see you, and that he could show you all the hot spots for hookers and blow pretty much anywhere in the country.

Hang in there. And hold on to your instruments for now.
 
I told myself for a few years that music didn't matter and that I did not have time to play or practice.

After about 6 months of me telling myself this I no longer cared if I played. After a year I rarely thought about playing. After two years my guitars were all unused.

After four years I was miserable and music fixed my mindset. I now play every day that I can and I am back to playing professionally and live. Even though it is not how I make my living I can't hide the fact that I am ultimately an artist / musician type. I have to answer to another power ultimately and that is music.

You can either make 15-30 minutes a day or let it go for a while. Making the time is good for your soul and your well being. This I know.
 
oneofthosedays.jpg
 
Another thing about this... As was reading what I wrote just now I realized that what I wrote is even more relevant today as one of the bands that I am playing with just released their new single this morning.

As my Grandfather used to say "Stop being such a Momma's boy and make time for the important things in life. All that work will still be there tomorrow"
 
USian Pie, I feel your pain. I picked up the guitar at a more advanced age (I was 44, and I'm 60 now). Initially, I only wanted to play certain things, so I learned only the chords I "needed." That has held me back more than I knew, but I am gradually moving forward. As with you, my time is limited, so I can't practice as much as I would like. With that said, even though I have no plans to become a great guitarist, I plan to just keep moving forward until the day this old dog shuffles off his mortal coil. I think of my improvement not as a race, but a marathon. I may not be as good as I want to be, but I am getting better than I was before.
 
@USian Pie ... it's never too late to change your style or relearn your instrument.

A couple years ago when I picked up my first acoustic I thought "Shit, I'm worse at this than I am the electric. :( "

I concentrated on rhythm playing and singing at the same time... and a few years later, I'm actually worse at soloing and rock playing than I was a few years ago.... but I can sing and play guitar at the same time. I've played probably 100 gigs in the past two and a half years which is probably more than I did in all the years of rock playing. So in some aspects, that would make me "better at playing music" even though I'm not the guitarist I set out to be in the beginning.

My new focus over the next couple years is going to be adding tasty electric guitar solos into my singer/songwriter/frontman thing. I may never reach guitar god status, but it's going to be a journey that I'm interested in finding out where it goes.

I may even practice bass. Gibby McFender picked up a cheap bass and ended up touring around the US with Fools for Rowan.

The point is, embrace wherever you're at with your playing right now... don't be afraid to try something new... and enjoy where ever it takes you, even if it wasn't your originally intended destination.
 
When I was working those kind of hours I tried to make room for some guitar as a stress relief. It was effective for me. As some others have said I have no chance to become a good guitarist, I started too late and I simply don't possess the natural talent to make up for those lost years. But a few minutes strumming the guitar was still therapeutic
 
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