GUITAR
WHEN YOU MAKE A MISTAKE ONSTAGE | David Harsh
Have you ever made a mistake onstage while playing your guitar ? What ’ s the best thing to do in the moment , and afterwards ?
I encourage you to catch the video version of this article while it ’ s available . It takes our discussion to the next level . You can find the video right here : www . GuitarSuccess4U . com / Fail .
It ’ s happened to all of us . We ’ re playing our guitar in a worship or performance setting , and somehow , we play something differently from how we ’ ve rehearsed it . And by differently , I mean wrong . It ’ s clearly not what we planned to play .
So , what do we do ? I ’ ll offer several options for what we can do , and then I ’ ll let you decide which option is the best course of action . I can ’ t promise not to “ lead the witness ,” but I think it ’ s important to see what the options are . These are six options I can choose when I make a mistake .
1 . VISIBLY EXPRESS MY DISAPPOINTMENT . Body language is the most powerful form of communication .
So , if I make a mistake and then I … shake my head , frown , smile awkwardly , roll my eyes , or simply look surprised , I ’ ve just nonverbally communicated to the people I ’ m serving that I ’ ve made a mistake .
2 . IGNORE THE MISTAKE AND NEVER SPEAK OF IT . This is the extreme opposite . If I know I ’ ve made a mistake but I not only ignore it , I actually never take time to think through what happened , this doesn ’ t allow me to benefit from the experience .
And if I try to convince myself that I haven ’ t actually made a mistake , I just might be avoiding reality .
3 . VISIBLY SHOW NO RESPONSE , BUT INTERNALLY COMBUST . Some of us wear our emotions on our sleeves , but others keep them all inside .
If I ’ m visibly displaying that I ’ m doing fine , but inwardly , I ’ m having a conniption because of a mistake I just made , it just might not be the healthiest choice for my emotional or mental state .
4 . KEEP THINKING ABOUT THE MISTAKE EVEN WHILE PLAYING THE SONG . Once a mistake has happened , there can be a temptation to look back at the spot in the chart , or think back to the spot in the song , even as we ’ re trying to complete the song .
But to use an analogy , if I drive over a bump in the road and I look back at that bump while I keep driving forward , I may encounter even bigger “ bumps ” ahead , if you know what I mean .
5 . MOVE ON , BUT BEAT MYSELF UP FOR WEEKS OR MONTHS AFTERWARDS . If I make a mistake , but finish the service or the concert on a strong note , that can be good .
But what if I focus on my mistake , hold it over my head , maybe even apologizing profusely when I talk to my collaborators , the congregation , or members of the audience afterwards ?
What if , for weeks or months at a time , I belabor the mistake and keep reminding myself of what happened , speaking self-critically the whole
70 March 2024 Subscribe for Free ...