5 Life Lessons I Learned From Playing Guitar

Back in high school I played guitar. That was my thing, my identity, I was the rock guitar guy. I had the long, greasy hair, the big baggy band tour shirts. I worshipped guys like Stevie Ray Vaughan and John Petrucci. It's how people viewed me and how I viewed myself. We all need a mold to fit to get us through high school and that was mine.

I was pretty good too. I practiced hours each day, knew all of the scales and runs, all of the techniques and tricks, could play fast and hard, slow and smooth, various styles of music, whatever. For a period of time I thought music was what I was going to do with my life. But then I went to music school and that dream quickly died.

What we choose to do with our time determines the lessons that inform our lives and values. For instance, if I had been a star high school quarterback, I'm sure I would have learned all sorts of interesting lessons about teamwork, enduring physical pain, trust in teammates, and blowjobs from semi-conscious cheerleaders.

But instead, I spent most of my time alone in my room, …

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