[Superman]

A guitar player in my band pissed me off recently when he suggested I stop stroking strings upward. In other words, he asked me to only stroke then downward with my right hand (I am a bass player who plays with a pick, about half the time). I then noticed he's one of those guitards that only strokes strings downward. I have known guitarists like that. Some are very fast, considering they only stroke downward. A player who learns to stroke strings both ways has two advantages. Speed. And also, there are special sounds and rhythms (especailly rhythms) you can get by stroking in both directions. Using the heel of my hand and some versatile picking strategies, I can create rhythms on a six=string that were originally done by a drummer or bass player or piano or whatever. Each song has its unique rhythm signature.

At first, the hard thing about guitar-playing is forming the chords with the left hand. Very quickly, the barrier stops being the left hand and starts being the picking hand. That barrier remains until you die.

Nostatic's advice is very good. I'm going to follow it myself. I can also advise you from my experience that if there is a rif you need to learn, play it for a time at a speed that is comfortable to you. However slow that seems. Then add speed gradually. You will get there.