May 2023 Guitar Newsletter: Visualize It!
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This month, I will be participating in my first 5K along side our 11-year-old daughter to celebrate the end of a season of a girls running club. My wife did it last year so it is only fair that it’s my turn despite the fact that I definetely do not consider myself a runner. I see a lot of parallels between preparing for this event and for a live music performance. Incorporating visualization techniques helped equip me for them and are worthwhile tools.
Having an event on the calendar is great but also a bit nerve wrecking if you don’t feel fully prepared. For both of these occasions, I need to bring my expectations way down and be perfectly content with simply saying yes and then trying my best. Of course, I also need to prepare and allow for practice times to learn the repertoire and get more serious about a workout routine. If there is one thing that sports and music have in common, it is that you have to practice to better your game and continue to practice to stay on top of it!
The 5K run has been in the books for a while but the uncomfortable cold, rainy, unusually windy and at times, even snowy April weather simply prevented me from getting any inertia moving. However, on a rare sunny Sunday afternoon a few weeks ago, I had an impulse to try visualizing myself jogging the path as I was going on a walk. I didn’t really make too much of a fuss about how to do it other than in my mind imagining the scenery passing by quicker as if jogging at a medium pace. Musicians of all kinds use this technique to improve their own playing and optimize their mindset. Formula One World champions and Olympic gold medalists alike have reported using visualization with great success.
A few days later I mustered up some willpower and rounded up my daughter and son on a friendly run. Much to my surprise, I did far better than expected and was not too short winded. My daughter had a frank and rather deflating kid logic explanation for this: “Papa, you have not been running in 30 years, so you have a lot of energy stored up in you” and informed me that by the time the actually race happens I will have used up all my energy and will not be able to run without taking breaks and walking!
Not afraid to seek advice from more experienced runners I now find myself asking family, friends and students for any advice on starting up jogging. The concept of rest days, giving your body a chance to recuperate and restore itself was a valuable tip and a good reminder to slow down and give yourself a break every once in a while. This is so true also in the field of learning how to play an instrument well. It’s always beneficial to inform yourself and not be afraid to ask questions from more experienced folks!
An upcoming music performance was also motivation to buckle down and get prepared. Bad weather is no excuse for musicians not to practice. These two happenings aligned perfectly, both low risk events and very welcomed. However, my personality, strengths and weaknesses became apparent in each. For one thing, I would rather overprepare to the point of detriment. I also tend to underestimate my abilities. Reminding myself what I am striving for, what my schedule enables in terms of practice, rehearsing or physical training and always seeing the bigger picture is essential for a healthy attitude.
I had initially intended to play this upcoming gig as a duo with another musician and spent a fair amount of time learning a new repertoire. Unfortunately, due to scheduling conflicts, there was a last minute change, and I was faced with doing the performance myself. Instead of mulling over the circumstances too much, I was able to view the situation as a growing opportunity. Anybody who is putting themselves into the world of performing, be it big or small, will come across the reality of things not going as planned and the necessity of quickly coming up with plan B. As with the running example, I also did a few improvised rehearsals. Without overthinking or evaluating it too much, I imagined playing in front of a crowd of mingling people. I am happy to report that the visualization worked and the gig went well. I greatly enjoyed playing my Fender Stratocaster and pedal board with my birthday present on it: a MXR reverb pedal whose atmospheric character I really dig!
The 5k is coming up, and I try to prepare for it daily. Whether it is going for a run, walking the set course while visualizing the race or making sure my shoes fit comfortably, I feel best knowing that I am doing something to prepare myself. That’s all I can do, and it puts me at ease. Oddly, I am losing my antipathy torwards jogging and confess that I may have found a new exercise habit! Wishing you some sunshine, the opportunity to try new things at your own pace and practice visualizing your success!
Chris
