ContentLog.com

Your Prosperity and Your Trials

Brown Dan — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 18:19:12 +0000

Life happens to us all, and at some point in time we all experience a little displeasure now and then.

It doesn’t matter how long we’ve been a Christian, how much we do right, or how much we love the Lord. 1 Peter 4:12 says, "Do not be amazed and bewildered at the fiery ordeal which is taking place to test your quality as though something (unusual and alien) were befalling you (Amplified Bible Version)."

Just because we are Christians does not mean we should be exempt from trials. Remember, the One we follow has scars, and if we are gonna be his Disciples, we are gonna end up with scars too!

Just know that living an abundant and prosperous life is a choice we make regardless of the trials we must endure. Even though we cannot control what God chooses to test us, we can control how we react.

How we react to trials greatly affects our prosperity. For example, if you get all bent out of shape over something that tests your patience, you will lose your peace. Losing yourpeace then, results in losing your prosperity. Think about it,if you don’t have any peace, you don’t have much!

Tests, trials, and undesirable circumstances are all part of life. But, they are also temporary! Therefore, we should not allow them to continue in our lives… Particularly, as a child of God.

John 10:10 tells us that Jesus died that we may have life, and have life more abundantly. Trials and tests are only meant for a season, or for a short amount of time to make us better than what we were before.

If you’re like me you see many people who let their problems continue to run their lives. They live from paycheck to paycheck with bills that don’t get paid by their due dates. They may have a car in need of certain repairs or maintenance, but the zero in their savings account prevents them from getting the things done that they need. They may have problems in relationships, and they may even have health issues.

Prosperity feels so far away for these people… But they love the Lord! Why then, do they continue to struggle?

I believe it’s a combination of things, but I want to emphasize only one important point for now: The devil wants us to settle for the crumbs that fall from the table!

As born-again children of the Most High God, we are adopted into His family and become joint-heirs with Christ… What is His, is ours (Rom 8:17, Gal 3:29)!

Our attitude should be, "I am a child of the King, I deserve the best, and I decide right now to commit myself to a better quality life." Insist that you will not live like a dog settling for the crumbs that fall from the Master’s table. Pull up your chair, take your rightful place, and feast with the King!

After all, you are a child of the Most High God, set apart and made holy by the blood of the Lamb, and "greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world" (1 John 4:4)!

No longer accept what the enemy wants for you! Jesus said in Luke 10:19, "You have been given power and authority over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means harm you!"

Playing Drums - 6 Common Traits Among Great Drummers

Brown Dan — Sat, 17 Nov 2007 02:00:52 +0000

How does one become a truly great drummer? Even though drummers are as diverse as anyone else, the truly great ones share some things in common. Here are six common traits that all great people who play drums have…

1. Great drummers know themselves. They understand their talents and strengths, and they know how to use them to their advantage.

2. Great drummers are open to feedback. They learn from the opinions of other who play drums. Even the opinions of less accomplished drummers.

3. Great drummers are eager to learn and improve on the drums. They have a thirst for knowledge and ask questions. As they are lifelong students of the drums who continuously reinvent themselves, they adapt to the ideas they consistently learn. They know by acquiring new information they keeps themselves improving.

4. Great drummers are curious and not afraid to take risks on the drums. They push the envelope, looking for adventure. They explore new options, not fearing mistakes. They know that success depends upon pushing forward toward improvement. They embrace errors because they believe mistakes offer a valuable learning experience.

5. Great drummers learn from criticism. They are students of the drums, and adversity builds their character. Every great drummer can point to a significant critic that affected his or her development.

6. Great drummers serve as a role model or mentor for other people who play drums. They coach others, helping them focus on improvement, teaching, mentoring and empowering them.

Do you see yourself in any of these six points? If not, there is a quick fix… The answer lies in a simple change of attitude. An attitude that says, "I am confident!"

If you noticed, the six characteristics listed above have not even a hint of arrogance in them. Now, there is huge line dividing confidence and arrogance. How to distinguish between the two can be clarified in the following points…

~ A drummer of confidence says that he or she can play something on drums and others also can, whereas a drummer of arrogance says that he alone can do it and nobody else can.

~ A drummer of confidence always tries to encourage and help others in building their confidence on the drums, where as a drummer of arrogance tries to discourage other drummers.

~ A drummer of confidence attracts other drummers who feel confident and elevated in his or her presence and gets inspiration in his or her company, whereas an arrogant drummer creates repulsion in the mind of other drummers who try to avoid him or her because of his or her boastful nature.

~ A drummer of confidence appreciates the success of other people who play drums and shares his or her happiness with them, whereas a drummer of arrogance discourages and tries to humiliate other drummers and feels jealous of their success.

~ There is joy in being around drummers of confidence because they are cheerful and can mix freely with everyone else. In the presence of arrogant drummers, even confident drummers may tend to feel a bit inferior on the drum kit.

Conclusion

Truly great drummers share common traits… traits such as a high degree of confidence, an openness to criticism, a willingness to teach, a great desire to expand their playing skills, and the ability to remain humble.

How to Create Your Own Good Luck

Brown Dan — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 19:44:59 +0000

I believe we create our own luck, whether it’s good or bad. Consciously, or unconsciously, we may have ourselves at some time or another, produced our current conditions, either in our bodily health or other circumstances.

Because not much happens by chance, most things, good or bad, comes into our lives as a result of the thoughts we engage in, or by what God ordains to get our attention.

It’s easy to blame someone, or something outside of ourselves, and make excuses as to why we may be experiencing certain unpleasant situations. But, we must be mature enough to take full responsibility for our own lives and quit playing the part of the victim. It’s liberating when you can say, “I got myself into this, and with God’s help, I can get out.” There is no power in acting like a victim.

There is no easy way out of trouble, but there is a simple way. Think rightly instead of wrongly, and conditions will begin to improve.

What is thinking rightly? It’s what the bible says about you, your circumstances, and God. It is the truth. Thinking wrongly has to do with our emotions. Since emotions are inconsistent, they cannot be trusted. Unfortunately, this is where most people make major choices in life, during an emotional high or low. It’s a recipe for disaster! A person should never make a decision based on emotion.

As long as we go on thinking wrongly about ourselves and our lives, the same sort of difficulties will continue to harass us. Every seed must inevitably bring forth after its own kind, and thought is the seed of destiny.

When we think rightly, by doing and saying what God’s Word says about our situations, sooner or later, all ill health, poverty, loneliness, and inharmony must disappear. Proverbs 23:07 says, “As a man thinks, so is he.”

John 10:10 says since Christ died, we may have life and have it to it’s full, but also in this same Scripture, it says the devil comes only to steal, kill, and destroy.

Life is a battle. As long as there is a devil out there we must constantly be aware that he is always trying to influence our thinking in one way or another. He wants us to agree with him so he can control us. If you’re speaking garbage out of your mouth, then the devil’s got you right where he wants you. That’s why we must speak God’s Word in faith concerning every aspect of our lives. We need to agree with God!

Even though life is a battle, it’s also a glorious adventure, full of choices. There used to be a bumper sticker that read, “God is my co-pilot.” Later, someone created another one that read, “If God is your co-pilot, switch seats.” No, it was right the first time. God has put you in the drivers seat. He said, “I set before you life and death, blessing and cursing, therefore, choose life” (Deut 30:19).

My Top 10 Health Recommendations

Brown Dan — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 19:39:43 +0000

These 10 health recommendations will help secure your health, and help you to live your life abundantly!

1. The most important thing that you can do to keep from getting sick is to wash your hands…

By frequently washing your hands you wash away germs that you have picked up from other people, from contaminated surfaces, or from animals. We pick up germs everywhere on a regular basis, so if you do not wash your hands frequently you will infect yourself when you touch your eyes, your nose, or your mouth.

One of the most common ways people catch colds is by rubbing their nose or their eyes after their hands have been contaminated with the cold virus.

Wash your hands frequently! Introduce the rule of every family member washing their hands when they get home. It is a quick and easy way to reduce the spreading of germs.

2. Put meals in a crock pot before you leave in the morning…

When you come home from a long day from where ever, the last thing you probably feel like doing is cooking dinner. So, we just throw together something quick and simple, therefore sacrificing our nutritional needs.

The real beauty of slow cooking is that a healthy, complete meal can be tossed in the crock in the morning and then ignored until dinnertime. This is a real plus for working families but also convenient for stay-at-home parents who may have enough to do without stirring and stewing over a more complex dish throughout the day.

3. Get unhealthy junk food out of the house…

You are most likely going to eat some regular junk food outside of your house, like at grandma’s, or at some party somewhere. Given that fact, why keep junk food in your house? You can’t eat what is not there, so set yourself up to succeed. Store healthy snacks instead.

Since we often eat without hunger (purely out of boredom or other emotional reason), we should have some healthy snacks in the house instead. You can go to any health food store and buy snacks that are made with natural ingredients, and that are low in fat and sugar.

4. Make exercise motivating by choosing an activity you enjoy….

Physical activity is a cornerstone of a healthy lifestyle. Not only does physical activity make you look and feel better, but it is also critical for improving your health and extending your life. Being active significantly lowers your chances of developing potentially fatal illnesses, including heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

In addition, remaining active throughout your life can help you stay healthy and disability-free as you age.

The real key is finding a physical activity that you enjoy and that you can do at least 3-4 times per week. If you are exercising out of necessity it will be short lived. Don’t fake yourself out. The best form of exercise is one that you will stick with.

The ideal exercise regimen should suit your lifestyle, schedule, and present fitness level. Think about what forms of exercise you enjoy. You may love biking but hate swimming, for example. Also consider other factors. For example, do you prefer to exercise indoors or outdoors? Do you prefer exercising by yourself, or do you find that exercising with others is more motivating? Make it fun!

5. Use natural vitamin and mineral supplements…

Like the names imply, natural vitamins are in a form that occurs in nature while synthetic vitamins are manufactured in a laboratory. The only benefit of synthetic vitamins is that they are cheaper to make, therefore less expensive for the consumer. Natural vitamins are worth the few extra dollars they command.

Vitamins in nature occur within a family of micro-nutrients, trace elements, enzymes, co-factors and other unknown factors, that help them absorb into the human body and function to their full potential.

Natural vitamin supplements extracted from whole food sources maintain this delicate balance of complementary co-nutrients and are more biologically active.

Synthetic vitamins are usually isolated into that one pure chemical, thereby missing out on some of the additional benefits that nature intended. These man-made vitamin formulas often contain fillers, stabilizers and/or salts that decrease the content of what you want to ingest, may inhibit absorption and can actually deplete the body of other nutrients. Dollar for dollar, you may be absorbing more vitamins and getting more benefits from a natural supplement than the seemingly cheaper synthetic version.

Read supplement labels carefully to distinguish the natural from the synthetic. Some products marketed as “natural” only contain 10% natural ingredients. You’re best bet is to look for food sources on the labels - things like citrus, yeast, fish or vegetable names. If there is a chemical-sounding name or no source listed, it is most likely a synthetic vitamin.

6 Drink plenty of water…

Water is excellent and necessary for the body and overall good health. Every part of your body needs water to work properly, and it needs a lot of water, so give in to it.

If you give yourself more water you will generally feel healthier and more fit because it flushes out toxins and other unwanted things lingering in your body. Water also replenishes fluids that help lubricate the internal components of your body, keeps you hydrated, reduces hunger (which helps with weight loss), helps to make skin look smooth and young, plus a load of many other benefits, probably even some yet to be discovered.

If you are not used to drinking water, it may seem hard at first. But, very quickly, you will enjoy the clean, refreshing way it makes you feel!

7. Get your hormones checked…

Low thyroid, low progesterone, and low testosterone are all very common and usually result in excessive weight gain, low energy, low libido, fatigue, muscle weakness, headaches, irritability, and a host of other symptoms.

Getting your hormones tested is very simple… All you need to do is order a saliva test kit, spit into a tube, send your tube to a doctor who understands bio-identical hormones, have him/her write you a prescription, and then have your prescription filled at a compound pharmacy.

I recommend everyone have their hormone levels checked once every year, especially if you are over 30 years old!

If you have any of the above listed symptoms, your hormone levels could have dropped off considerably over the years leaving you feeling like your half dead. I know, I’ve been there. It’s worth doing!

8. Get regular physical check ups…

This includes the regular medical routine all men and women should have, plus regular dental cleanings, eye exams, and chiropractic adjustments. Don’t wait until your sick. An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure.

9. Search for natural remedies to what ails you…

Most people will let their doctor tell them what they need, or do not need. If you have a great amount of faith in your doctor, then that’s good. But, most people will go along with whatever the doctor tells them without researching the facts on their own. It’s your body and your health on the line.

Be open minded! There are a lot of natural products that can alleviate a lot of specific symptoms that you may be taking medications for. Medications can be very helpful in some cases but they are extremely toxic to the body. If you can find a natural replacement, or better yet, a natural cure for your health situation instead of a drug, then you’ll be better off. Be proactive! It’s your health and no one should care more about that than you.

10. Keep the stress away as much as possible…

It has been found that most illness is related to unrelieved stress. If you are experiencing stress symptoms, you have gone beyond your optimal stress level! You need to reduce the stress in your life and/or improve your ability to manage it.

First of all, determine what events distress you and determine how your body is responding to the stress.

Second, see if you can change your stressors by avoiding or eliminating them completely. Is there any way you can shorten your exposure?

And third, reduce the intensity of your emotional reactions. This is simply attitude. 10% of life is what happens to you, and 90% is how you react to it.

Some additional tips to help combat stress include; Exercise three to four times a week, eat well-balanced meals, maintain your ideal weight, avoid nicotine and excessive caffeine, mix leisure with work, take breaks and get away when you can, get enough sleep and be as consistent with your sleep schedule as possible.

Again, these 10 health recommendations will help secure your health, and help you to live your life abundantly!

Should You Get Your Health Supplements From a Store, or From a Distributor?

Brown Dan — Wed, 13 Jun 2007 17:47:14 +0000

I believe a deficiency in proper nutrition is extremely common today, which is exactly what is leading us into all sorts of physical problems.

It seems no matter how hard any of us try to eat right, the fact is, our foods today do not contain the nutrition they once did. In an ideal world we would get the proper vitamins and minerals necessary for healthy living through eating “so called” nutritious foods.

But, in the real world, it is truly difficult to maintain proper nutrition. Therefore, it is vital to supplement our bodies with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, polyphenols, amino acids, and glyconutrients.

Some may say, “I’m taking a nutritional supplement I purchased down at my local retail store. “Well, the fact is, not all supplements are created equal! For example, a natural vitamin is always a far healthier, and safer choice, than a synthetic one.

It would be so simple to get a good, high quality nutritional supplement that is really effective by just simply running down to our local retail store.

But, because the Food and Drug Administration does not regulate the quality of supplements sold in the United States, it can be rather difficult to know what we are actually using. Therefore, it is safer, and more wise, to use a supplement that we can get from a natural health food store.

A natural health food store is a great source of products and information! Owners, managers, and employees of natural health food stores should be very knowledgeable about what they sell, since these type of stores are committed to promoting natural health products.

An even safer bet for getting the best natural food supplements for our buck is getting them from a distributor!

Distributors for natural health products are by far the most knowledgeable, and the most committed, to offering their best advice on what they promote! You can really learn quite a bit about the efficiency, and safety, of a nutritional supplement by the distributor who stands behind the manufacturer that makes their products.

So, before you rush off to your local retail store, or even your local health food store to purchase your nutritional supplements, consider your nearest natural health product distributor! These folks definitely know what they are talking about!

You may say, “Well, they’re only in it for the money.” What do you think your local retail store is in it for? Would you rather put your faith in a “paid by the hour” employee, or a natural health product distributor who’s livelihood depends on satisfied customers?

A Christian Perspective on “The Secret”

Brown Dan — Tue, 15 May 2007 02:34:53 +0000

By now, you’ve probably heard about the best-selling book called “The Secret.” This book is also in a DVD and Audio CD format… It’s huge right now!

The concept is, by using this “secret,” which is “The Law of Attraction,” you can create anything you want in your life: more money, a bigger house, more business, a new mate, literally anything you want!

While “The Secret” has many truths in it, I personally disagree with the notion that a person can have just anything. The reason is… because we were born with different strengths skills, talents, and abilities.

God made us all unique, with a purpose, and with a certain mission. It really isn’t “all about us!”

There are a few major things I certainly disagree with concerning “The Secret” but, I do believe in the “Law of Attraction!” Here’s why… Jesus said, “All things are possible to him who believes” (Mark 9:23)!

What is “believing?” It’s a manner of thought!

The “Law of Attraction” basically says, “What you think about the most becomes your reality” or, “Thoughts become things!”

Here is another biblical reference pointing to this fact: “As a man Thinks, so is he” (Proverbs 23:7)!

If you read my newsletter every week (and I’m sure you do, right?), you know that I write a lot about how important our thinking is!

What we think about most flows out of our lives! Proverbs 4:23 says, “Guard your heart with all diligence for out of it flow the issues of life.”

While the teachers of “The Secret” have some contradictory ideas to the Word of God, there is some good that can be used. It’s just like life, there’s good and bad. We must guard our hearts and choose the GOOD!

The Law of Attraction is good and bad! It depends on how we use it. But, how can we use it unless we know how it works?

This universal law is one of the laws we really need to understand!

Scientists have proven over and over that universal laws are always working!

For example, the universal Law of Gravity is always working. You drop a brick… It hits the ground very quickly (watch out for your foot)! It doesn’t matter if you believe in the Law of Gravity, it still applies!

Just like the Law of Gravity is always working, so is the Law of Attraction! The Law of Attraction largely determines what we get out of life. It has been working for, or against us since we were born.

If you are, or are not getting the things you really and truly desire out of life, I challenge you to consider what you are thinking about most of the time!

Expecting From God is the Key to Abundance and Prosperity

Brown Dan — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 15:45:22 +0000

The Bible says, Without faith, it is impossible to please God, for he who comes to God must believe that He is God, and a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6).

Therefore, expectation is the key to receiving from God when you pray. Jesus said in Mark 11:24, Whatsoever things you desire when you pray, believe you receive them and you shall have them.

Believe you receive when you pray! What good does it do to pray without expecting to receive? You might as well not pray at all, for faith is required to receiving what you desire.

Surely, God will do His part when we pray, but we must also do our part. Our part is simply to believe. So many people are busy asking God, but never really believing what they are praying for will come to pass. You can tell by the way they talk, or act.

Most people have been raised to not believe in a positive outcome concerning anything, and actually, taught to believe in a negative outcome. It’s a safety mechanism that says, “Don’t get your hopes up, so if it doesn’t work out, you won’t be disappointed.”

There’s no logic in that because you will be disappointed anyway. Now, it’s normal to feel disappointment. It’s what you do with the feelings of disappointment that’s important, but that’s another subject.

Believing in a positive outcome is vital to our success. If we could only believe that God has our best interest in mind and simply trust that everything will work out, we would see great results. Life would change in ways we’d never thought possible. But, most people just can’t believe things will work out for them. They look at past results and judge their future based on their past.

It’s a fact that the best predictor of future behavior, is past behavior. The good news is, that your behavior is a choice. Your past does not have to equal your future! Just change your expectations and have faith.

James 2:20 tells us that faith without works is dead, which means “faith” is an action word. The word “faith” in Webster’s Dictionary is also translated as “belief.” So, believing is an action. And, it really doesn’t take any more effort to believe, than to not believe. It’s just an attitude.

It’s been said that if you truly believe in something(having faith that it will happen), then it really will happen. A lot of people don’t completely accept that, but the Bible is clear; what you believe is what you get. Jesus said in Matthew 9:29, According to your faith, let it be done unto you.

He didn’t say we would see the manifestation of our prayers immediately. We must keep believing and not waver, “For a man who wavers is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. Let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord” (James 1:6-7).

Expectation is the key to receiving from God when you pray! If you are not going to expect God to act, then don’t pray at all. It’s ineffective and displeases Him when you don’t believe. Remember, Hebrews 11:6 says, “Without faith, it is impossible to please God.”

God will do His part when we pray, but only if, we do your part, and that is simply to believe.

Drum Practice Cheat Sheet

Brown Dan — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 09:05:10 +0000

A lot of drummers don’t really sit down to practice their instrument, but rather just sit down to “play.” Just sitting down to play what you already know is fun and can be great for maintaining certain techniques, but little progress will be made.

If you are into drumming only for a hobby, then making progress is probably not really a great priority for you. If that’s the case keep doing what you are doing, and enjoy it.

On the other hand, if you want to progress as a great drummer, you will have to focus. You just can’t expect to sit down at your drum kit every once in a while and just beat around the skins. You need to be clear what it is you need work on, and then apply it.

Each one of your drum practice sessions should create a challenge for you to accomplish something never previously mastered.

When you sit down at your drum set do you know what you should be practicing? Many drummers don’t have a clue what they need to be practicing to become better. This lack of information can kill your potential to really excel at your instrument.

Sometimes, even if we know what to practice, our drum practice sessions can still be weak simply because of a lack of focus.

If you have ever caught yourself saying, “I don’t know what to practice” or, “What did I forget to practice” when you get on your drums, this cheat sheet will do you good. Hang it up on your wall and pick which exercises you want to work on before you begin your practice session.

~ Stick control
~ Playing with a metronome (playing with, behind, and ahead)
~ Odd timing
~ Finger control
~ Left hand lead
~ Double bass drumming
~ Fast tempos
~ Slow tempos
~ Odd groupings (3’s, 5’s 7’s and 9’s etc.)
~ Polyrhythms
~ Beat displacement and/or metric modulation
~ Shuffles
~ Showmanship (stick twirling, etc)
~ Creating your own patterns and ideas
~ Filling around accent patterns
~ Triplets around the set
~ 16th’s around the set
~ Left hand and foot isolation
~ Brush technique on the snare drum
~ Crash cymbal technique (which one to hit, when, how hard, etc.)
~ Two handed cymbal rides
~ Soloing
~ Recording yourself and listening back
~ All 40 drum rudiments

There are probably many more things you can practice, particularly your own technique and signatures. But, just remember, you want to be working on something new at all times.

The main thing is, keep challenging yourself by never being satisfied. Strive to constantly improve during each practice session. Just never say again, “I don’t know what to practice.”

To Get Results You Must Take Action

Brown Dan — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 09:05:06 +0000

Wanting to enjoy a good life is common to us all. We all want the same things, good health, positive relationships, fulfilling career, and enough money to live comfortably. But, there are others that want a life of abundance and prosperity. These are the ones that have dreams of doing great things, having successful businesses, visiting interesting places, meeting extraordinary people, and having the ability to help others financially.

If you are going to enjoy a life of abundance and prosperity it will require some action. This should be obvious. But, sometimes the obvious is frequently overlooked.

You didn’t get to where you are today without taking some sort of action. So, it makes sense that if you have a vision in your head about where you would like to be in the future, it will require action.

The problem with most people is, even though they may have the knowledge to do some particular thing, they lack putting the necessary action behind that knowledge.

We often hear that “knowledge is power.” But, knowledge is really only power in reserve. It remains useless if it’s not tapped into by applying action. Knowledge that is not put to action remains just knowledge in your head and provides no benefit. It’s completely wasted.

To accomplish results we must couple our knowledge with the necessary action to attain results. The formula for achieving results is: Knowledge Times Action = Results. If you were to apply massive action to your knowledge it would have a faster, and even greater impact on your life.

Why is it that most people find it difficult to put the necessary action behind their knowledge? I believe it is nothing more than a lack of belief.

Your belief system is the driving force behind your behaviors and your results. If you can change your beliefs, you will change your behaviors. When you change your behaviors, you will change your results. Then, when you change your results, you will change your life.

It all starts with your belief system. Jesus said, “If you can believe… all things are possible to him who believes” (Mark 9:23).

Many things can keep one from believing. But, I think the biggest factor that keeps one from believing is fear. It is a fact that it takes courage to succeed. But, keep in mind that courage isn’t the absence of fear, it’s the ability to press on despite the presence of fear. Many times, the solution to any fear is simply to do the thing you fear. It’s amazing how the fear will disappear!

The smallest of actions, even the ones that seem trivial and insignificant, can lead to great success. It’s been said that, “Actions, like pictures, are worth a thousand words.”

Without action, you could have the greatest idea and the greatest plan in the world and you would still fail. Where as a modest idea and an incomplete plan often produces success when accompanied by enough action.

You just got to get moving. Sir Isaac Newton’s principle that states, “A body at rest tends to remain at rest, and a body in motion tends to remain in motion,” definitely applies to the action principle. Once you’ve taken the first step, the next steps seem easier to take.

It’s a natural law that if you do nothing, nothing will happen; if you take minimum action, results are going to be minimal; but, if you take massive action, then you will be rewarded with massive results. Hugely successful people, the kind who go from mediocre to millions almost overnight, know that the major key to their success was taking massive action.

If you want to become hugely successful you must start at the beginning. Most beginnings are small, and appear trivial and insignificant, but in reality they are extremely important.

It’s not only the right beginning that is important, it’s beginning in the first place. It’s about applying that powerful little six-letter-word called “action.”

Why Practice Drums With a Metronome?

Brown Dan — Sun, 29 Apr 2007 08:46:08 +0000

Practicing with a metronome will improve your time keeping dramatically! What… you say you can already keep time? Try to keep time with a metronome for about twenty seconds. It will show you how good you really can keep time. If you have never tried it…try it! You will see there is room for improvment.

In order to be an outstanding drummer you’ll need to keep good time, and practicing with a metronome can help you do that. A metronome can improve your time keeping almost by magic. And, we know how important time keeping is, particularly for a drummer.

You may wonder what the big deal is and think, “No one is gonna be able to distinguish any small changes in tempo in the middle of a song.” Well, that may be true, but the major importance of keeping good time is at three different places in a song…

1) The times when you break away for a fill and come
back to the original rhythm.

2) If the song contains pauses and later returns to the original rhythm.

3) If the song contains different tempos and returns to the original rhythm.

A metronome is such a vital tool in music education that most teachers of guitar, piano, and violin all utilize the power of metronomes within their lessons. How then, even more important for the time keeper of a band to practice with a metronome.

I can’t strees enough the importance of practicing with a metronome. Once you go out and invest in one, start out by setting it at 80 beats per minute and play along with a standard 4/4 disco beat. This is a good pace to begin. It will give you enough time between beats to concentrate and land your beat in sync with the beat of the mertonome.

You will see that when you first start practicing with a metronome it can become very discouraging, but then you will eventually get the hang of it and keep pretty good time. Then it may become a little boring. It’s at that point where you must challenging yourself a little bit more.

Adjust your metronome to a few more beats and increase your speed. Not so much where you will sacrifice your form, though. You don’t want to become sloppy. Once you feel like you are really getting good at staying in sync with the metronome using a 4/4 beat and at various speeds you should begin to practice a variety of different rhythms, also at various speeds.

Practicing with a metronome will improve your drumming dramatically, so if you don’t have one, get one. You will be amazed at how much it will increase your level of playing.