🎸 How to Practise Guitar Effectively: The AGS Practice Method

How to practise guitar effectively with the AGS Practice Method. Build focus, improve faster, and stop wasting time with random practice routines

🎸 Practising Everything… But Not Getting Better?

Learning the guitar is a lot like learning to swim — you have to make time for it and actually do the work, otherwise you’re not going anywhere.

One of the most common questions I get from students is:

👉 “How long should I practise?”
👉 “What should I practise?”

And the honest answer is — it depends on the type of guitar player you want to become.

If you just want to play a few chords, that’s one path.

If you want to truly understand the instrument and move freely across it… that’s another.

But regardless of the goal, there’s one thing that applies to everyone:

👉 You need structure, and you need consistency.

🧠 The AGS Practice Method

At Alien Guitar Secrets, we don’t just practise.

We follow what I call:

⚡ The AGS Practice Method

Because:

👉 It’s not what you practise… it’s how you practise.

Most guitarists spend their time:

Jumping between random ideas
Practising what they’re already good at
Avoiding what’s difficult
Rushing through exercises

…and then wondering why nothing is improving.

The problem isn’t effort.

👉 It’s lack of direction and depth.

🎯 The Core Principle: Less… But Better

One of the biggest mistakes I see is trying to practise too many things in one session.

Instead, I want you to think like this:

👉 Focus on 2–3 elements only
👉 Spend at least 20 minutes on each

This creates something most players never experience:

👉 Immersion

When you stay with one idea long enough:

Your understanding deepens
Your hands begin to catch up
Your confidence starts to build

🧩 The 3 Elements of Effective Practice

Every session should include 2–3 of the following:

🎼 1. Musical Understanding

This is your map of the fretboard.

Scales
Intervals
Chord construction
Fretboard navigation

🎸 2. Technique

This is how you execute what you know.

Picking
Legato
Bending
Timing

🎧 3. Musical Application

This is where music actually happens.

Songs
Improvisation
Jamming
Creating your own ideas

👉 Most players spend all their time here… without building the other two.

That’s why they feel stuck.

⏱ Example Practice Session (60 Minutes)

Here’s how this might look in real time:

🔹 20 mins — Fretboard / Scales

Slow, controlled, with full awareness

🔹 20 mins — Technique

Work with a metronome, build control

🔹 20 mins — Application

Play music — jam, improvise, or work on a song

🧠 The Rules That Actually Move You Forward

These are simple… but they’re not always easy.

✅ Start Slow

It never ceases to amaze me how often students practise things too fast, gloss over them once or twice, and then wonder why they’re still struggling.

👉 Slow practice builds:

Accuracy
Awareness
Control

Speed comes later — and much easier when the foundation is right.

✅ Use a Metronome

If you don’t own one — get one.

Or download one.

Practising without time is a recipe for problems down the track.

Instead of just increasing speed, try:

Subdividing time (quarters → eighths → triplets → sixteenths)

This gives you a far better understanding of rhythm and feel.

✅ Stay Accountable

Don’t just run exercises.

Fix mistakes.

Refine what you’re doing in real time.

👉 Because:
Practice doesn’t make perfect — it makes permanent.

✅ Track Your Progress

Keep a simple log:

What you practised
Starting tempo
Ending tempo
Any insights

You’ll be surprised how motivating it is to see your progress build over time.

✅ Practise Regularly

20 minutes a day will always beat 2 hours once a week.

Consistency wins.

Every time.

✅ Visualise

Before you even pick up the guitar:

See yourself playing effortlessly
Hear the sound you want
Feel what it’s like to play with confidence

This isn’t fluff — it’s one of the fastest ways to improve your playing.

✅ Sing What You Play

Most students resist this.

But it’s one of the most powerful tools you have.

👉 If you can sing it… you can play it.

And more importantly:

👉 You begin to connect to the music, not just the mechanics.

⚠️ The Real Problem

Most players aren’t lacking information.

They’re overwhelmed by it.

Too many videos.
Too many ideas.
No system.

So they drift.

And when you drift…

👉 You don’t improve.

🚀 The Result of the AGS Practice Method

When you apply this consistently:

Your practice becomes focused
Your progress becomes measurable
Your playing becomes more confident

And most importantly:

👉 You stop feeling lost on the fretboard

🎯 Take This Further

This way of practising isn’t just theory — it’s built directly into how I teach inside the
Fretboard Mastery Course.

Over 12 weeks, you’ll learn how to:

See the entire fretboard as one connected map
Understand notes, intervals, scales and chords without confusion
Break free from position-based playing
Improvise with confidence instead of guesswork

👉 If you’re serious about progressing on the guitar, this is your next step:

https://www.alienguitarsecrets.com.au/courses/fretboard-mastery-course

🎸 Final Thought

Don’t try to do everything.

Do a few things…

👉 With focus, with intention, and with awareness

Because at the end of the day:

👉 It’s not what you practise… it’s how you practise.

Peace, Rob Lobasso 👽🎸🤘

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Categories: : Fretboard Mastery, Gear & Setup, Mindset & Performance, Musicianship, practice, Practice & Technique, Songwriting & Creativity, technique