Here’s something I hear more and more from students: “I was going to practice last night, but I went down a YouTube rabbit hole and never even touched my guitar.”
It happens the same way every time. They sit down after dinner. They’re going to practice. But first, they’ll just watch this one video — maybe a clip of someone playing a song they love. Just one.
An hour and a half later, they’ve watched six videos. They’ve saved three tabs they’ll never go back to. And they’re out of time. The guitar never came out of the case.
This is a new problem. Even a few years ago, this wasn’t something students dealt with. But now, the phone is the single biggest competitor for practice time — and it’s winning.
The Irony of Watching Guitar Instead of Playing Guitar
Here’s what makes this so frustrating: most of the time, the videos they’re watching are about guitar. They’re not wasting time on something random They’re watching gear reviews, performances, reaction videos, interviews. It feels productive. It feels like they’re learning.feels productive. It feels like they’re learning.
But watching someone else play guitar is not the same as playing guitar. Not even close.
You can’t build muscle memory from a video. You can’t develop timing by watching someone else keep time. You can’t train your ear by listening to someone explain what to listen to. Those things only happen when the guitar is in your hands and your fingers are on the strings.
Every minute spent watching is a minute not spent playing. And over weeks and months, those minutes add up to a lot of lost progress.
What Ten Minutes of Playing Actually Does
Here’s the thing — you don’t need an hour. You don’t even need thirty minutes. Ten minutes with the guitar in your hands is worth more than an hour of watching videos about guitar.
In ten minutes you can run through a chord progression and actually feel it get smoother. You can work on a tricky transition that’s been giving you trouble. You can play through a song you love and enjoy the fact that you can play it.
And something interesting happens when you start with just ten minutes — most of the time, you don’t stop at ten. You pick up the guitar thinking you’ll do a quick run-through and twenty minutes later you’re still playing. Not because you forced yourself, but because once you start, it feels good.
Playing guitar gives you energy. Scrolling takes it. That’s not a slogan — it’s something you’ll notice the first time you put the phone down and pick up the guitar instead.
Why This Trap Is So Hard to Break on Your Own
There’s a reason the scroll wins so often: when you don’t have a clear plan for what to practice, the phone fills the gap. You sit down, guitar in hand, and think “what should I work on?” And because you don’t have a clear answer, you reach for the phone to find one. And then you’re gone.
That’s where working with a teacher changes the equation completely. When you walk out of a lesson, you know exactly what to practice and why. There’s no guessing, no searching, no “let me just find a video on this first.” You sit down, you know what to work on, and you play.
That structure takes away the opening the phone needs to hijack your practice time. You’re not wondering what to do — you’re doing it. And because the material is matched to where you actually are instead of whatever a random video covers, every minute you spend practicing actually moves you forward.
The Challenge
Next time you feel the pull to scroll — whether it’s YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, whatever — try this instead. Set the phone down, pick up the guitar, and play for ten minutes. Anything. A song you know, an exercise, a riff you love. Don’t worry about whether it’s the most productive use of your time. Just play.
If you do this a few times, you’ll start to notice something. You feel better after playing than you do after scrolling. You’re calmer. You’re more satisfied. And you actually accomplished something — even if it was small.
Those ten-minute sessions add up. And one day you’ll realize the guitar isn’t gathering dust anymore, your phone is getting less of your time, and you’re actually getting better without it feeling like a chore.
Final Thought
The phone will always be there. It’s designed to pull you in and keep you there. It’s very good at its job.
But the guitar is sitting right there too. And unlike the phone, it gives back more than it takes. Every time you choose to play instead of scroll, you’re not just making progress on guitar — you’re building a habit that feeds you instead of draining you.
So next time your brain says “let me just watch this one video first” — skip it. Pick up the guitar. And if you don’t know what to work on — that’s the first thing to fix. Because once you have a clear plan, the phone stops winning.
If you’re in Northeast Ohio and you’re ready to stop watching and start playing, click the FREE trial lesson button below this article. I’ll give you a plan and a reason to pick up the guitar instead of the phone.
About The Author
Brian Fish is a professional guitarist who has been dedicated to helping other guitar players in Northeast Ohio pursue their musical dreams since 1994. He’s passionate about guiding others on their musical journey! He is the Guitar Playing Transformation Specialist, instructor, mentor, trainer, and coach at
Guitar Lessons Geauga.
Brian has also assisted people from around the globe in developing a solid sense of timing and enhancing their creativity through the fantastic rhythm course, “Ultimate Rhythm Mastery,” available at MusicTheoryForGuitar.com.
If you live in Geauga County / North East Ohio, Guitar Lessons Geauga can help you become the player you’ve always wanted to be.