My efforts to bear down and really focus on practicing on a daily basis have led to an approach that my wife and I find very entertaining.
Her goal is to exercise every day. We've combined our aspirations into a bet, which began Sunday (April 28). She exercises every day, and I practice my Stick every day, for a month. If one of us fails to do so on any given day, we are to put a paper "coin" with our name on it in the "Loser Jar." At the end of a month (30 days, really), whoever has the most coins is indeed the LOSER, and has to be the other person's slave for a day.
I love my wife, beyond all reckoning. But her sense of humor can be a little sadistic at times.
I MUST NOT LOSE this.

Great ideas

How about each put a real dollar in the jar and an the winner gets it all at the end of month.
(to avoid the slave thing )

We thought about that. But her money is my money, and vice versa; it doesn't have the "bite" that the "slave for a day" idea has with us.
Not being her slave motivates me more than money.

Luc,
Just as a thought, how about the "LOSER" ( I don't agree with that term - because if you are playing at all you are a WINNER and NOT a QUITTER!) do this

- - - she has to try to play the Stick and you have to exercise! This way you gain an appreciation for each other's interests.

Too King Solomon for you? well if you want to pursue this "slave" thing weigh out the cost of the rubber suit with a zippered mask? ( see American Horror TV show first season)

You don't have to go to this extreme to remain faithful to your Stick- I tell my students "just play" play what you like, explore a piece of sheet music -not even to play out but just for your own pleasure or to learn how a chord fits in or how the composer put the melody notes over those chords. Learn, on the Stick, a favorite riff from your other ( guitar, bass, udu) instrument. As long as you do something everyday, your fingers will be nimble, you won't have a growing insurmountable mental block and inertia won't set in.

Once in a while, it is good to have a structured goal- but define it in it's most easiest components, like try a simple motor ( repetitive bass line) could be two notes, and then try to play a scale in time over that motor. Once you get comfortable with that, start adding rests or pauses or vary the time (eighth note, whole note) on different notes. This now builds left and right hand independence and you are on your way to soloing.

Remember it's your Stick for your enjoyment first- then follow this advice....

Pinky: Gee, Brain, what do you want to do tonight?
Brain: The same thing we do every night, Pinky - try to take over the world!
hope this helps,
Dave Brosky

Thank you for chiming in, Dave. Perhaps, though, I ought to say that I wrote this post tongue in cheek; I didn't mean for it to be taken too seriously. I just hope someone gets a chuckle out of it, that's all.

In reality, I've been doing quite well at practicing, and last night felt like the first time in a while that I was able to come to some kind of measurable progress on a tune I've been working on forever. (Ok, for a year - but it feels like forever.) Onward...HOOOOOO!!!
(American Horror Story = fantastic show. Season 2...jury's kinda still out for me on that one.)

Hi Luc.

For me its.... Making sure my partner leaves for work in the morning, yep out the door = good.

Then for my part, I turn off the computer after each time I get on it, so it's not so easy just get back on FB or even stickiest.com .. yes it's true.

OK. Time to practice , see ya..

Damn it Luc!!! I've been a slave for 40 years this July! Never thought of making a competition out of it. Nah! I'd have lost anyway, she's from Halifax and as the saying goes (the guys in the UK will probably back me up on this one), "Yorkshire women, efficient but nasty".

At the moment practice is not a problem. On guitar, when I had periods of lethargy I'd pick a new song or technique to practice. This works fine for me (except when I found out about 'thumb independance' and spent the several years developing it).
Jamming with a freind or group on a regular basis is also great for inducing practice on your own, as you have a near goal to aim for. Especially after you've opened your big mouth and said "Yeah! I'll have that down by next week".

Eric

I cant practice everyday due to my job which takes me away from sticky time. I think it is hugely important to practice EVERYDAY if at all possible. When I am home, 15 days a month, I manage to practice usually 2 hrs a day, so I get in a fair bit per month. Not all quality practice, like scales and other heady stuff, but things that float my boat. Since I've purchased my stick, I have put in about 800 hrs. ( I keep track of these things, its weird). What keeps me going is the fact that I am still very enamoured with the sound of this instrument, and that keeps me moving forward.

I have no kids, pets, golf games, or gimps living in a box in my basement (they require so much attention dont they?) so all that is left when I get home is to kiss my sweet wife and head straight for the stick. She digs it too, so all the better....

lifes good right now,

cheers,
kev

On my side there is nothing better than to go in a nice park close to where I live. I bring my stick, a small amp (for the tone), something to eat and drink, my headphones and with this nice weather we have right now...wow...I don't disturb anyone (with my headphones) and they come at me rarely...sometimes to ask me the name of my instrument. I don't have a wife...so I also look at all of them ...the problem is that I play very often with my eyes closed...

Something else to consider (and this brings this conversation into the other thread where we talked about other instruments) ...

In my opinion, no time spent playing anything is wasted time. I've also found that, also in my opinion, piano and Stick have so many similarities that time spent on either of those helps the other.

So where am I going with this?

For me anyway ... if I find myself hitting a bit of a rut playing ... say ... the Stick, maybe I'll be more motivated if I spend some time focusing on the piano for a while. While I'm not focusing on Stick skills, I'm still exercising my musical brain and physical skills. Then when I'm feeling more "into it" I'll re-shift my focus back to Stick. Or maybe to guitar. Etc. Etc.

Side note: my wife and I make bets on things all the time. Since, like you, my money and her money is our money, our bets are always $1 and we always pay up. Essentially this makes the monetary part purely symbolic of the greater humiliation of losing