Pushing your drumming up a notch takes time. There are several pitfalls we must face as we strive to improve as drummers. First and foremost is mental attitude. It’s important not to be overly critical of yourself. Give your best effort and know that the more difficult things in life to learn require more. Time should be allowed while in practice mode. In other words, understand ahead of time that difficult grooves or patterns may not click instantly. You may practice a challenging pattern over and over and over, and not quite get it right. No matter what you slip or loose the groove momentarily. Don’t give up! Take a break. Relax your body and mind and think about something else entirely. Have a snack or a glass of water. Breathe. Come back to the kit at a later time and give it a go. Majic? Or same old frustration. Sometimes if you stop trying with all your might and just let it come to you, things naturally fall in to place. Go figure. The moment you stopped straining and thinking, forcing your body to do something difficult, it all came in to place. Hmmm.
The Improvement Staircase theory is common in any walk of life. The better you get at something, the more effort required to continue improving! Sounds heavy. Ask any professional anything if this is true, and I guarantee they will say yes. This goes for drummers, athletes, and more. To get the basic skills together is often the first goal when trying a new task. You must walk before you can run. As you get the basics together, to keep improving, you must take things to the next level. This may mean refining other skills that may seem unrelated to the task at hand…as these skills are refined, even more potential improvements in other directions may be exposed. Now what? Keep pushing forward. As you progress forward, know that many never make it past this obstacle. Moving further forward is more difficult, but if you want it, the possibility is there for you…