In a rut

[Doctor Jeff]

I’m in a bunch of ruts. Won’t go into all of them.

Worst rut…I gotta keep working. My financial guy says I need to work at least another 3 years, otherwise I might run out of money. Oh well.

Musically, I didn’t even pick up a guitar for a month. I was too busy woodworking. Then I picked up the guitar and got the old calluses built up again.

I find that with any craft, especially guitar, as was said above, sometimes a rut means you’re about to break through in a new direction. Nothing dramatic, just able to run in a different way. What I really need is for someone to ask me to play with them. That gets the juices really flowing.

Slight tangent—I follow Mark O’Connor on FB—he is a renowned bluegrass fiddle player, and also a great guitarist. He said recently that he hadn’t played guitar for about TEN YEARS. Then a project came up requiring him to play guitar. He had to get those guitar calluses built up again!

It does come back, just like riding a bicycle, which I set aside every November or so and pick up again in April.

[alltunes]

Agree…..just put it down for a while. I remember reading some Carlos Santana advice…along those lines….just take a break. I used to always bring an instrument on vacation but now embrace the break.

I like the idea of sight reading through some Bach to gain new perspective.

Being a flatpicking enthusiast I followed that Mark O’Connor story. If I remember his guitar even had the old strings still on it. Interesting cat Mark is…certainly not lacking in self esteem is he.

[emanresu]

Interesting.

Being in a rut can be good and productive but also can cause trouble.

[Bill C]

IMO this is a good response …

On Organization and Creativity - Work, with Miles Okazaki | Podcast on Spotify

[DawgBone]

Agree…..just put it down for a while. I remember reading some Carlos Santana advice…along those lines….just take a break. I used to always bring an instrument on vacation but now embrace the break.

I put in a ton of time practicing from October '24-Nov '25 and didn't realize my full gains until I went on light duty for a few months. That's going to be my new routine. 3-5 hours daily for 9 months, then light daily practice, about an hour, with some days off over the winter.

[AllanAllen]

I put in a ton of time practicing from October '24-Nov '25 and didn't realize my full gains until I went on light duty for a few months. That's going to be my new routine. 3-5 hours daily for 9 months, then light daily practice, about an hour, with some days off over the winter.

The brain needs time to digest what you learn.

[pauln]

I've known this phrase for ages. It is so common.
But I never bothered to check the meaning until yesterday.

Ok. I checked it out yesterday and oh.
Are you in it? Jazz-wise?

Never been in a rut since beginning the guitar almost six decades ago. I'll never learn enough, but the show must go on. You didn't mention the definition you found for being in a rut... I found this one interesting:

"The closest disorder to a rut in the DSM is dysthymia—the mild, chronic cousin of depression, the symptoms of which are low energy, low mood, loss of interest, and general anhedonia (loss of pleasure). Dysthymia can last years and often goes undiagnosed because life still goes on, although it feels like the colors are muted. That faded-color feeling is likely a result of reduced activation in the reward centers of the brain. For example, in a study of how people's brains react to their favorite music, researchers found that healthy participants' brains got excited, while the brains of depressed participants hardly seemed to notice the music was playing. That's what it's like to be stuck in a rut: you just stop hearing the music."


Tania Luna (2016)

[GuyBoden]

The brain needs time to digest what you learn.

This ^

Hence the cliche phrase: "I'll have to sleep on it"

The Subconscious mind will work things out over night, it's better at somethings than the Conscious mind.

[benhatchins]

Getting stuck in a rut happens more often than people admit. It doesn’t always mean something is wrong, sometimes it’s just part of the process. Stepping away for a bit or trying something different can help reset things. A lot of creativity comes back once you stop forcing it. Everyone has their own way of breaking out of it. It’s kind of like reaching out for something like the Varsity Tutors customer service number—you’re just looking for a bit of guidance to get moving again.