Practice for busy adults

I'm always asking people how they practice. I like to see what works and what doesn't. It can be a very personal thing so I used to not tell my adult students how to practice. Especially the ones that used to play clarinet or oboe! But I've had a few instances where the student wasn't progressing and not having fun learning to play the guitar. We say we are going to practice for 1/2 hour each and every day. When we miss a practice because our lives are busy, we say "Oh, I'll practice twice as much tomorrow". Before long we don't practice at all out of guilt. Then you're sitting in front of me making me listen to the violins as you sing me a sad song how you didn't have time to practice!

After finding out that they set aside 1/2 an hour at a specific time each day to practice, I suggested a change in that routine. I've always believed that a little practice once, twice or three times a day or so on a consistent basis can be much better than the rigid routine.You will think to yourself that , hey, 5 or 10 minutes isn't too bad. If you keep the guitar accessible in a place in the home where you tend to spend a lot of time, you will find yourself grabbing it and "trying" something. And, heaven forbid , you might miss a day or two of practice, you get right back to it as soon as you can. It's OK to miss once in awhile. It's like that horse I fell off once a long time ago and ran like the west wind to get away from; I still don't know how to ride a horse.

Have one or two techniques like a strum pattern or bass run that you want to work on for 5 or 10 minutes. Then, if it goes well have a song ready to play just for the fun of it.

So, the key factors for success, as I have seen in actual use are as follows:

1. Keep your guitar accessable and ready to play
2. Play a little bit but often. Try for 20 minutes or so a day spread out in 5-10 minute chuncks.
3. Focus on one thing at a time, but also set aside some time to play and have fun.

I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any other ideas or practice techiniques that work for you.