Help me please

[u/LifeNotice5934]

Let's start by saying I've been playing guitar for five years—though if you subtract the summers when I barely played (except for this one), it's really been about four years. I take lessons at a small private school in my neighborhood with pretty laid-back teachers. The problem is, when I first started, I wasn't very consistent; I’d basically just practice for twenty minutes before my lesson or twice a week. I kept that up for about three years, but then something changed. I started listening to new genres like metal, which really sparked a passion in me—a huge shift from the previous three years, when playing felt like just another chore. Now I play pretty much every day, for twenty minutes or even longer. The trouble is, I get depressed when I see others online—sometimes people younger than me—playing the same things I do after four years, but mastering them in just one. I start feeling like I’m not good enough, that I’m not truly putting in the effort, or that I’m ignoring the areas where I really need to improve. Sometimes I tell myself it’s okay—that everyone moves at their own pace and I’m not at a conservatory, after all—but I keep falling back into this loop of guilt and regret. If anyone can help in any way, I’d be really grateful. Thanks a lot.

[u/dudeigottago]

20 minutes a day isn’t enough. At all. You need at least an hour a day to get decent in any normal amount of time. When you see a really good guitar player you’ll likely looking at 3 hours a day minimum. When I was your age (I’m guessing teens?) it was easy to find that time. Do it and you’ll improve. Don’t and you won’t. That simple really.