There are no “sucky” musicians. Many times in my live piano lessons, my piano students will mess up and then say things like “I suck” or “I’m not very good at this” or other negative things about themselves. And even though it takes valuable lesson time, I always have to interject: “You’re not good at this…yet. But that’s why we’re here.”
The truth is: whether you’re a beginner or advanced, a student or a teacher, a master jazz pianist or just starting your first lesson, we’re all on the same never-ending journey. And everyone should be focused on just that next step. There’s always a next step. For some it’s theory, others: technique, but becoming the “best” is not an attainable goal. Even becoming YOUR “best” is not an attainable goal. Here are two good goals: (1) becoming a tiny bit better than you were a week ago, and (2) enjoying the journey and appreciating the small steps.
That’s it. That’s all we have: enjoying the journey. There is no “best”; there is no “suck”. You are exactly as good as you are and the next step will be waiting for you as soon as you’re ready to attack it. So look up to the people ahead of you and encourage the people behind you, and attack that next step!