honesty...

what do you do :?

I don't exaggerate. That may be because all the players I know, I've known for years, and they all know exactly how long I've been playing! So, it would only make me look pretty silly if I did try to exaggerate!

Never had a problem telling it like it is. It's a requirement when you work in customer service.

Regardless of what I tell 'em, they're gonna make their own judgements once they hear me play anyway, so I don't remember ever exaggerating, nor do I really remember hearing others doing so by the method you describe, come to think of it. What I've seen more often is teenage boys - and sometimes old barflys - trying to show off with how much they know or how much better their guitar is than yours. Eventually the truth will reveal itself.

do us novice guitarists exaggerate too?....you know....telling friends/aquaintances that we've only been playing weeks when we produce a supercool riff...but in reality its taken months of hard graft and frustration :lol:

i'm sure its this kind of thing that deflates and frustrates many of us :twisted:
I'll admit it--I downplay how long I've been playing, but it never has anything to do with a supercool riff, because I've not yet pulled one of those out of the hat. :oops: It has to do with the fact that I'm insecure about my sloooooow progress, and I feel embarrassed for not being more advanced in the time I've been playing.

I believe that once (if someday) I have more skills, I won't feel such a need to minimize how long I've been at it. I mean, after you can actually play something worth listening to, what's the diff whether it's been five years or six? Not nearly as much as the difference between one year and two, in the perception of an apologetic noob anyway.

And I think you're right, BB, that when others minimize how long they've been playing, it makes us novices feel even more inadequate when we compare our progress to someone of supposedly the same length of experience. It has that effect on me, anyhoo.

Margaret

Tell it like it is every time. Honesty is the best policy. You'll only look silly when you're found out.

The thing is I'm not out to impress anybody else. I'm in this for myself. I enjoy the guitar and the learning experience. If in the (hopefully near) future I do happen to bring pleasure to people through my playing, whether through a gig or just sat in the garden at a BBQ then that will bean added bonus. That outlook may change after my first "public performance" but in the meantime to hell with what anyone else thinks - I'm having a whale of a time.

8)

good on ya Margeret :D you knew exactly where i was with this.....

i feel its a lack of self confidence that holds many of us back and something Chris C wrote on here ages ago has stuck hard in my brain...

'CONFIDENCE HAS A SOUND'

I'll admit it--I downplay how long I've been playing, but it never has anything to do with a supercool riff, because I've not yet pulled one of those out of the hat. :oops: It has to do with the fact that I'm insecure about my sloooooow progress, and I feel embarrassed for not being more advanced in the time I've been playing.

+1 to what Margaret and Ballybiker said.... :oops:

I've not really thought about it much before, but you're exactly right. I've subtly been trying to paint myself as pretty good for a beginner, when in fact I've been plugging away for quite a while, albeit in a pretty slack and disorganised manner.

Not that anybody ever actually asks, but if the topic comes up on a forum I tend to say that I've been playing for two years - (deducting about six months time off to learn the clarinet).

I just hunted out the receipt for the guitar that I bought when I had a few lessons...............

............ oh dear.......

..... August 2003......

That's not two years is it, even allowing 6 months for the clarinet???... :roll:

No wonder I reckon I sound confident now. :wink:

Ah well, at least I started describing myself as Beginner to Intermediate a couple of months ago. I'd better upgrade that to Lazy Intermediate and drop the beginner thing.... nobody else cares anyway so why be shy or vain about it.

Cheers,

Chris
Proudly InterMediocrate Guitarist.
Hugely talented in short patches. Reliably dire in large chunks.

Proudly InterMediocrate Guitarist.
Hugely talented in short patches. Reliably dire in large chunks.
:lol:

I never blatantly lie about how long I've been playing. There's an art to using vague phrases, like, "I'm just a beginner" or " taking a few lessons to get started." :wink:

The real truth is, I've conveniently lost track myself and couldn't pinpoint a beginning date if I had to. (Getting old is hell--I had to confirm my kid's own birthdate with her the other day when filling out a form. :shock: )

I just avoid the subject entirely. I'm a closet player still.

No one but my family really even knows I take lessons (oh, except everyone here in cyberspace :D ), because I just don't talk about it. Not ready to be asked to play anything for anybody. :oops:

Margaret

I don't need to exaggerate as I truly did learn the entire Steve Vai repetoire in my first month. Blindfolded. Using only my toes.

Something I noticed over here: girls tend to 'downplay' things or even hide they play an instrument. Getting a girl to play a little bit at a party is hard. Guys exaggerate like hell and you can't get them to stop playing at parties without using small firearms.

The real truth is, I've conveniently lost track myself and couldn't pinpoint a beginning date if I had to. (Getting old is hell--I had to confirm my kid's own birthdate with her the other day when filling out a form. :shock: )

:)

I know what you mean. The only reason that I was able to pinpoint a starting date for myself was finding the receipt for the guitar. I had suspected that a slight elasticity was starting to creep in, but not that much! I have discovered a great remedy for the feeling old thing though - hang out with even older people. :wink: The last couple of weeks I've been helping out at a local Support Centre driving old folks to appointment with doctors, etc. Most have been 90+ and it's been a surprisingly interesting experience. Makes me feel like a mere spring lamb at only 60.......

I don't need to exaggerate as I truly did learn the entire Steve Vai repetoire in my first month. Blindfolded. Using only my toes.

Hmmm... not bad... not bad. There's no denying your talent. But I always felt that toes was cheating a little. So I did it with my teeth.

Guys exaggerate like hell and you can't get them to stop playing at parties without using small firearms.

:lol: :lol:

I never had any talent to talk about. I started playing and not knowing much didn't understand the teeth thing. I didn't even know it was teeth these guitarists were using. I thought it was their moustaches or beards they were using to pick the guitar when it was close to their faces.

Sadly, I took that approach. Learned to play with my moustache. Now the real epiphany came when I shaved it off. I could no longer play guitar. :shock:

I've never exaggerated my playing, I try to tell the truth so if I do play with someone they won't get their hopes up. I do have friends though that will tell me that they have learned all these songs and when they show me they will barely be able to play the first chord.