FRUSTRATED!!!

I've been playing for a couple of months and I feel that I'm progressing at a decent rate, but for some reason the last couple of days it seems like I can't make anything sound good. Has anyone else had this problem, maybe another beginner like myself or anyone for that matter?

Well, I'm going through a phase where I'm just getting tired of my music. I suppose it's the same feeling, eh?

A couple days ago I just couldn't pick for a damn at all and right now I can't alternate pick but I think that's because I punched my wall 'til my knickles bled, but yeah I've had that before

@pusher

You were the sunny kid in class, weren't you?

@ Skold, Not really, I'm not tired of the music my problem is more mechanical. I just can't get my fingers to do what I want them to do. It's not so much my left hand, but my right (pick) hand. Almost like my left hand is moving to fast and my right hand can't keep up, (if that makes any sense). Hitting the wrong string and just having a sloppy sound to everything that sounded pretty good before.

Take a couple of days off and do something else. It'll make all the difference!

@lp

That's all? In that case, I would take deefa's advice. Just take a few days off. After that, your hands will be yearning to have a guitar in their hands. Should fix yer right up.

I get what Skold gets quite a bit.

I'm having trouble finding new things to play, like of my own, I could just go on UG.com and search a random tab. But I'm struggling to come up with my own stuff that is worth playing now, unless I pick up someone else's guitar..like today I picked up my mates acoustic and played 'The Cat's in the Cradle' by Johnny Cash almost perfectly just bit wrong on the strumming pattern came home and I just couldn't fret right on my guitars..

Taking a break is some times the best thing to do...let you mind settle down for a few days... I think that helps alot...
If your having picking technique problems
1. Dont punch walls :P
2. slow down then speed back up...don't play Yngwie Malmsteen solos for warm ups......Cuz I've totaly never tried that...
3. And different guitars can make a difference...

Also remeber that as you play fast or challenging lines for long periods of times you develop finger strength in both hands. Just like weight lifters and body builders you ahve to give you body a chance to recooperate after excersizing...

did u just learn somthing new, or get new things? sometimes those small things throw u off, if ur having probs heres some things to do:
1)b4 punching a wall wear a steel glove
acctually i was gona ask the same thing! lol i was gona say, my trilling is very fast, and my left hand is very fast, i have the same prob, my right hand wont coordinate with trilling notes ex. free bird trills. my right hand is just in a world by itself.help...

I got the tab for "you shook me all night long" last night but I don't think that is what's trowing me off. Even stuff I've been playing for a while like "sweet child of mine" on the intro I just can't get it together. I did stay up late last night and worked through some of my problem but still not %100. Maybe just something all beginners have to work through at one time or another.

how ling have u been playing, u shook me all nite long is easy song in my opinion, u shouldnt have much trouble with tht. my prob is with trilling, if its slower, i can do it, sweet child o mine doesnt give me trouble either. is it tht ur hand is just doing different things, or is it just slower then ur left?

I've been playing for a couple of months. Yea it's not a hard song, you asked if i had played anything new and that is the newest thing I have played that's why I don't think it's my problem. I don't know maybe just a break like everyone said. I play at least 2 hours a day and sometimes all night long so maybe I'm just overdoing it.

omg...holy...i just relized, im not picking with a pick!! im finger picking!! i tried picking with a pick, and i cant do it if som 1 had a gun to my head...help!!! need basics on pick. holding it, everything, is ther a lesson?

In my opinion there is no right or wrong way to hold pick, hold it so it's comfortable between the thumb and first finger on your strumming hand, then strum normally you might need to practice a bit to figure out the right angle so the sound of the pick is less prominent (this is all coming from a preferred finger picker, nice to know another one =D)

If finger picking works for you I say stick with it. I suck at finger picking.

well i just started, and idk but does every1 like finger picking when they start? my prob is tht i cant hit the right note, i have more control finger picking. the pick seems to have a mind of its own

Run through guitarslinger's finger workouts on the lessons section. Just start slow and speed up as you can, and don't forget to practice alternate picking.

its not the alternate picking relly, its the coordination between the two. i cant seem to make my right hand coordinaate with my left when going:
e--12h15p12-
b-----------15 and so on

i just cant get my hand to uppick the 15 on the b.

You're kidding, right?

err about wut the picking or the gun? yes, for about 2 months ive been finger picking lol. i know...

About the fact that you need help on how to hold a pick. I mean, I'm not trying to be mean or anything, but that's just sad.

I had a lot of trouble with that when I first started strumming an acoustic. I just couldn't hold on to the pick. And not being able to do something when you are learning how to play isn't sad. Someone asking for help on something they are having trouble with and someone else putting them down without offering help, now that is sad.

Sorry Skold, going to have to agree with LP here. If he's never done it before, how is he supposed to just feel comfortable straight away?

Maybe you should get some Gorilla snot from GC. If holding onto the pick is the problem, then that could help.

lol i just dont know how, i saw a vid on utube, tell me if this is right: you let a small tip of the pick out, ur thumb and pointer finger makes basicly an x shape, the thumb and the pointer finger both end at opposite sides of the pick, am i right? btw i had been alternate picking, just not tht way, i would flip the pick upsidedown, and point at like a 40 degree angle on the rounded side of the pick, its easier. heres my prob.i cant control where i pick. when i finger pick, my thumb rests on top of the low e string, just resting ther, unless i need it, it gives my hand stability, i cant do tht with a pick, since my thumb is holding it, is ther a "stability" position in which my hand is placed, so i dont hit random strings, thnx. also, the reason why i started placing my thumb on the e string is because it was giving me too much feedback. lol i even played chords with my fingers, lol....would tht be why i hit pinch pentonics a lot when i strum? i strum with my thumb and pointer kinda in a closed "claw" position if u understand. my pointer would hit the note, and my thumb would make the harmonic, am i right or is it 4 diff reasons?

On my les paul I put my pinky and ring finger on the pickguard for stability but it throws me on the strat because it's different from the les paul. Give that a try. Might work for you might not I think everyone is different, but give it a try.

Ahh, redeemed yourself there with a good suggestion, Skold ;).

Yeah, that or just use some prit stick to make it stay put. Or maybe you just need to try a load of different plectrums to see what suits you. I like to have texture on my plectrums because it sticks in my hand... and I prefer flexible (sturdy but flexible, that is... not just a thin nothingness) plectrums because the really thick ones aren't as comfortable for me.

Be careful how you get that gorilla snot.They are a protected species you know!

ah les paul, i dont got a pick guard, i just gotta practice maaybe

I think everyone is different anyway, just find a stable position that is most natural to you and practice. Soon you will start building finger memory in your pick hand just like you do in your left hand when you learn to change chords, and it will be easy to hit the right string.

I have to change the way I hold a pick when I'm playing thro the stlyes that im playing..my thought is play what comes easy to ya remember there are no rules .....thats what makes it your own

its not how i hold it, its tht i cant really rest my hand on anything like i kan with finger picking

idk, I've never tried to play without the pickguard.

I don't have a pickguard either... and I don't think to have control you need to rest on a pickguard. Infact, that's like to strain your picking hand unless your carefull. Try resting your wrist across the body above string level if you really need to rest your hand.

i usually grip the high e string with my pinky (a technique i picked up from dave mustaine) and sometimes rest my hand on the bridge.

Thats a cool idea GS when I can play again I'll give it a try

I thought about this while I was playing tonight and realized that my fingers do touch the pickguard but my hand is resting on the bridge. I know at one point I did use the pickguard for stability but with out thinking about it I guess I changed my technique and didn't even realize it.

trying not to sound stupid, whats the bridge?