Great tips folks.

Mike's tip about "bending the picks" is interesting. Everyone's hand positions are a little different, and that will really help the clarity.

Love the "post-it" notes...problem is I can't READ them from that distance any more!

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Re PAIN!

Make absolutely sure your instrument is "set up" properly! I can't emphasize this too much. You MUST learn what the parts are and what they do. There are many good books and websites on this. A badly set up instrument causes pain! You've gotta trust your local repair guy...or learn to do it yourself. If your "action" is 1/2 mm. too high it will make the difference between playing well and pain free, and agony (which ain't gonna help your chops)

I do set ups on my instruments at least every couple of months to co-incide with weather changes. You don't have to do it that often, but once a year is CRUCIAL.

Rick