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"The Human Failure Trigger" by Jerry Wyatt
Read every word of this. It can either make you –or break you! It's up to you!
This article was written to (hopefully) bring an awareness to a trigger that exists in all of us. It often causes a person to stop short of their goals (or hopes). It's called "The Human Failure Trigger". To clarify... The Human Failure Trigger is a typical pattern we often follow as humans. Take the first letter of each of the words (The Human Failure Trigger) and it looks like the word "theft". Theft is really the perfect definition for "The Human Failure Trigger" due to the fact that it truly robs us of our dreams –more often than not. And yes... You can bet the farm this will also pertain to guitar –and about everything else you can think of – so listen up! In it's simplest form, "THFT" could be described as process we follow when desired outcome is NOT what we hope to see out of a task, hobby, or interest we may be pursuing. This is not always the case – but more often than not, it's the way many people are wired. It boils down to this... We may not like to admit it but, we all like immediate gratification (if we can have it). If we don't see (at least) a "little" gratification/results soon, we question whether we really want to do this (or that). We're tempted to stop. Being the "geniuses" we all are, our minds start triggering things like, "It's just not my cup of tea". Sound familiar? It looks like this...
The important thing to realize is that we may be "turning our back" or walking away too soon. I'm not going to sit here and give you some hyped up motivational talk about being a quitter. This isn't about that at all. It's about the fact that there's a real good chance we can all discover serious talents hidden within ourselves – if we can get desired outcome fast –before we become frustrated. You might just be a whole lot better at a whole lot more than you think!
A simple solution to this madness (and theft of our true potential) is sitting right in front of our noses. It is a simple formula for getting more results out of the things we have an interest in –faster and easier. This can be applied to many things. Today, we'll apply it to guitar. It's easy to put into action and it turns "The Human Failure Trigger" (THFT) on it's head while keeping us from sabotaging our efforts. I call it the "Bypass". Visually, it looks like this...
So... Let's talk guitar and how this applies... You've heard it a thousand times... "Just do this or just do that" and you'll play guitar solo's like a pro. The problem is, if you don't have the correct tools and approach, you can bank on it being much more difficult than it has to be! You'll fall into "THFT" faster than you can blink your eyes. I've seen people that have been playing for years that sound like they've only begun! And... I've seen just the opposite side of the spectrum. I've seen kids that have been playing a short time that sound like they've been at it for years. So what's with that? ANSWER: Short and sweet, the folks that sound like they've only begun have (in most cases) been taught in somewhat of a limited way that will surely leave them frustrated. They approach the guitar with a plan that sounds something like this... • I'm going to get me a chord book or take some lessons and learn all the chords. Uhhhh.... yeh, right! • I'm going to then take those chords and figure out some cool songs or heck, I might even get me another book that has the chords to those songs and learn them that way. Uhhhhhh.... maybe... • I'm going to get a book that shows how to play scales and then start learning leads and solo's.... I doubt it very seriously.
Here's the "Thingy"... We've established that (as humans) we lose interest in things that don't seem to bring results. The same goes for your guitar playing. The plan above will work for very few people because it is does not address the potential “human failure trigger”. Unless a person is very musically "gifted"... They will not tolerate the lack of results and continue on pursuing their attempts at playing guitar (or anything for that matter). They will often just set it down and assume the instrument is not for them. This is sad – because there may be some serious talent hidden within that person that will never surface because they approached things "backwards". Remember... we said results are the key. No results brings discouragement.
[SIDE NOTE:] I've worked with folks for over thirty years on playing guitar and this simple concept works for all ages and all levels. You'd be amazed at the number of players that are at an advanced level who have never had to deal with the frustration most players put themselves through!
You've seen the "THFT Bypass" illustration above. It truly holds the key to you becoming a great guitar player in record time. It's really not that difficult. It comes down this. We start off with an interest in playing the guitar because we have been moved by hearing it at some point in our life (whether in a song or seeing somebody else play). I mean think about it, if that weren't the case, we wouldn't even know what the thing was - for all we'd know, you'd use it to dig a ditch. So, we can establish, we were moved by it's sound and intrigued enough to want to play it. Next step... We Attempt to play. We go get a guitar and start our journey. This is where it can come to a screeching halt –or take off like a rocket. This is totally up to you!! We've already mentioned the physiological element that says if we don't see results, we tend to "bail out" (“The Human Failure Trigger”). We need an approach that avoids things that could frustrate us. As a beginner, this could be many things. As an advanced player, it could mean avoiding things that would over-complicate learning a cool guitar solo, scales, or chord a progression that seems like it ties your fingers in knots. Trust me when I say you can do these things (all of them) without getting frustrated!
Positive Results... If our attempts lead to a quick and positive result (in this case - hearing some really cool music come out of our guitar when we play it), things take a whole new route mentally and physically. Please keep in mind that I am not talking about playing a bunch of "bore you out of your head" open chords at that top of the guitar neck!!! I'm talking about playing some cool sounding things all over the guitar neck!! When we start doing this, we arrive at the next phase in the formula and that is... Enjoyment. This needs no lengthy explanation. We know (without doubt) we seldom abandon something we enjoy. Think about it. We don't take a bite of pizza and say, "man that tastes great that's all I want". No, instead we eat a piece or two until we are satisfied or full. And we come back and eat it again in the future. As crazy as the comparison is, it holds true with guitar as well. The minute we feel or hear music (not something boring) come out of our guitars, or hear a friend/spouse/boyfriend/girlfriend say "that sounds cool" or "that sounds great", we get perky and want to do more of the same and get the same results. Easy enough! We all know success breed success – if we are wise! It is at that point we become more committed and take ownership of the fact that we are a guitar player and then the cycle repeats itself taking us to higher and higher levels of learning and satisfaction. End result, we get better and better. IN A NUTSHELL... If we want to truly play the guitar, the single most important step we can take is to get results quick. This will cause us to come back time and time again and before you know it my friend, years will have passed and you'll realize that the instrument has become (nothing less and more like) a good friend throughout your life. I've seen many sunsets, campfires, and starry nights - and often shared them with a guitar in my hand and a friend by my side. Never give up. Instead, think about how you can reverse engineer your plan for playing and you'll get it down "in no time flat". Take it smooth. Jerry
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