Now this is not only something to be considered while glowstringing. This is something that can be applied to life itself. You all will learn at some point that there are principles in life that apply to all situations once broken down to their basic elements.
Firstly, I'd like to discuss fear. Now when I say fear, I'm speaking of anything that YOU personally form in your mind that acts as an obstacle that gets in the way to your success. The first rule is to abolish this concept. Fear is something that can stop you in your tracks, and well, it's not entirely healthy. Fear is necessary to a point, and when it exists CAN be applied to positively reinforce your goals and state of mind. For instance, instead of fearing that you might hit yourself REALLY hard with a stick in some...less than preferred places, you should use that fear to condition your mind and body to prevent this. It's a bit difficult to grasp this because the possibility is always there. BUT, once you conquer the thought that it might happen, and realize that the ONLY way to prevent it is to keep going and to get better, then your already miles ahead of many others in terms of determination and your state of mind to progress.
Secondly, Visualize. Imagine to yourself the movements. Think of exactly what you want to do. Plan out every single motion that you will execute. Continue to visualize this with your eyes closed to the point where you might actually notice that your arms move slightly or that you feel a sensation to move your arms with what you visualized. Then go ahead and do it. Slowly. Rushing into it can lead to broken noses, frustration, and sloppiness, as well as bad habits. Focus more on getting the motions down. You want everything to flow well. Think of yourself as if you're in slow motion and break down every single movement and let it become a part of you. The biggest reason for mistakes is the fact that things seem to be foreign. Once you learn and accept the concepts and processes behind these things, you will find that it is no longer an obstacle, but an extension to your skill set. Something to place in your bag of tricks.
You know how sometimes you'll day dream in a boring class, and just sorta loose your place in reality and drift off into another world or place entirely? This is what you want to achieve while stringing. Place yourself in a world completely your own. Unicorns, butterflies, satan. Whatever makes you happy
Just go there. This is YOUR space. This is your concentration center. Your kingdom. Simply disassociate yourself from any outside influences. No relationships, no schoolwork, no bills. This time is YOU time. Once you're fully relaxed and comfortable, you are ready to devote your full attention to your craft. Believe it or not, this is when things come more naturally. At this point it's almost your trance state. It's a point where you are hypnotized by the effort and skills it takes to get yourself to a higher level.
Now this is something that I'd like to stress that goes along with the above paragraph. Do NOT think too much. I know it sorta contradicts what I just said, but DON'T. The goal is to get yourself into a state of free thought. But afterwards, you want to remain there, so don't focus on the trivializations that apply. Instead focus on this one line "I HAVE to do this". It's corny I know. But tell yourself that, and the more you do the more you will subconsciously focus on simply getting it done. Not so much the process on how to get there. Let your mind and body do that work. The human body is more complex than any one person can comprehend. It's amazing how it will adjust automatically for you. So let it.
Last thing is DON'T look at the work. Look straight ahead at the goal. The work is actually fun believe it or not. What I mean is this. Don't think about "Damn, now I gotta spend like, a week to perfect these things". Instead think to yourself about how awesome it will feel once you've accomplished it and can do it with ease. You'll come to realize that after making so much progress, the best part isn't actually the ability to do it, but the struggle to get there. The constant trial and error. The disappointments. You'll see that they are totally worth it, and actually make for the entire glowstringing progression's experience.
I know that my views here are sort of, well, not stable, but these are the things that work for me. No I don't follow this for every single thing I do, but the very basic principles are what I follow. I hope that this comes of help to many of you. Amateurs and professionals alike.
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Edit:
Thanks to DjSickness for reminding me.
MUSIC. Holy crap, music. This very thing is SO powerful. You'll be astonished at how music can effect and just enhance the learning curve to all new heights. So CRANK it up. Whatever it is that you like to string to. Whatever touches you deep inside. And let'er riiiiipppp!
Earth.Child's Approach to GlowStringing -
08-13-07, 12:14 AM
I wasn't sure if anyone would actually read that whole thing. But I definitely think that it helps out a LOT. And yea, I forgot about that part. I'll add it in now.
But at least it summarizes the mental concepts; niceeee 
08-13-07, 04:25 PM
Linear Mode
