Steve Vai's advice on How to Become Successful

Steve Vai is one of my master idol in playing guitar. For those who know me during my Uni time, I am so much crazy about Vai. Why I like Steve compared to others such as Joe Satriani, Yngwie Malmsteen or John Petrucci? Owh... maybe about his Green Brained is more compatible with my Green Processor and the melody match. To me, his music has a story-line behind it and he is a great story teller. Not the technical part of playing the music or how structured the music should be.

Steve talks about Success

It's like the Law of Attraction - like-attract-like - Steve is now talking about success. He really sounds like a success guru motivating people to become successful - in his area. This video shows his advice on how you can become successful. Not only you can apply in playing guitar, but also in your life.

"Because the only thing that holding you back is the way you're thinking"

- Steve Vai

The summary of the video:

With the background song 'Whispering a Prayer', there are 5 things that I identified lessons that we can share together:

1. Identify What You Really Want - Like any successful people, Steve started with "We need to identify what it is that we really want! Because what ever it is we really want, that's gonna come out!" "Because that what you gonna do the best!" Do what you enjoy to do and you'll be doing the best!

2. Before you start to anything, imagine the end result.

Ask yourself, what you are going to achieve? Set the end goal and imagine that you are going to achieve it! "Imagine the song that you are going to play. Picture yourself playing - and as you picture yourself playing, imagine what it sounds like, perfectly. See yourself playing elegantly, beautifully." He added, "The more you are able to crystallize your vision, the more you are going to become a self-fulfilled prophecy."

You can also put an actual picture, or a list of goals. Start to believe that you are going to achieve it. Look at it everyday. Believe in it!

3. Whenever you face challenges, go back to the picture that you have initially created. "Whenever you feel discourage, go back to the big picture! Go back to the place of excitement! Because it's so crystallize in your head - you can see yourself doing it!"It is important for you to have a crystal clear step no. 2 because, what ever you do, you will be facing challenges. It is so hard that anybody will quit! And if you have some crystal clear vision in your mind, that is what going to make you move. Keep on moving!

4. If you have fun in what you do, there is no work. It's all fun! 

"It's no work in life. It's all the joy! - I never work a day in life. I never struggle. I have a lot of challenges, I've been through a lot. But when it came to what I do, I never struggle a day in my life!" Everybody enjoys doing different thing, not only playing the guitar. If you can really identify step no. 1, you don't have to work a day in your life.

5. Break the bigger goals to a smaller chunk. If you were to do a big thing, you will see it is difficult to do everything! Break the bigger thing in smaller piece. "You break the song piece by piece by piece. Eventually you be able to play the piece of the music." This process in NLP we call it chunking! Once you complete a small piece, celebrate your success!

Hope you learn some lesson today. The first thing you need to do is to identify your identity? How?
1. Know your Colored Brain - the way you naturally process things in you brain. Your strength and weaknesses.
2. Know your Emotional Drivers - what makes you do what you do. What makes you feel fulfilled when you did something. Your emotional gratification.
3. Match your core identity with you value. And you will be able to make it!

p/s: Oh ya, I just want to share a song - a Steve Vai Song - Tender Surrender. When I think back, I did everything that he advised in the video and I managed to play his song. While not as perfect as he played it, but it is a complete song and I played it live!