You may have decided you wanted to learn to guitar solo from hearing some of your favorite lead guitarists perform, like Eddie Van Halen or Eric Clapton. They swing right into a guitar solo effortlessly and leave you and the crowd in awe.

Well, it’s not out of your reach to become a guitar soloist like these famous lead players actually. Here are 7 tips that can help you become a great lead guitarist.

1. Keep your fingers light.

When you learn to guitar solo, keep a very light touch on your fret board. When you think of how quickly your fingers need to move, you’ll realize that they won’t be in the same place for very long. Practice having a very light touch on the strings as you run through scales and riffs.

2. Don’t be ashamed to start slow.

Do you think that Eric Clapton started as fast as he possibly could when learning to play the guitar? He probably didn’t and you shouldn’t either. Always play your guitar solos at a tempo that allows you to execute them correctly and then increase your speed with time.

3. Practice with a metronome.

When first learning to play guitar solos, you may not notice if you’re playing a steady tempo. Get a hold of a cheap metronome and play along when practicing scales and you can greatly improve your sense of time and rhythm.

4. Learn guitar riffs and scales involving pull offs and hammer ons.

Two of the most popular skills for guitar soloists are pull offs and hammer ons. Practice riffs that involve a mixture of these skills to develop a diverse playing method that can put you ahead of some of your friends.

5. Keep your hands dry.

Now, this is something that is overlooked sometimes, but playing the guitar with dry hands and fingers is very important to guitar soloing. You’ll learn that in the wintertime, when the air is the driest, your fingers can move more smoothly over the strings. If you can blow some air on your hands or wash them after eating pizza, you can keep your riffs smooth and your strings clean.

6. Reconsider the guitar you own.

Is it difficult for you to form chords or press notes down on your fret board at a faster pace even when you’ve been playing for at least a month? You may want to consider buying another guitar. Remember, a guitar that’s perfect for you allows the strings to be pressed easily to the fret board, and allows your hand to sit comfortably around the neck.

7. For beginners, crank up your distortion.

When you learn to guitar solo in the beginning, it might seem a little difficult on an amplifier’s clean channel. Start with a channel of high distortion since they’re a little more forgiving for mess-ups, but work your way back to clean. You want to know that your finger position and strumming go together well.

Learning to play fast guitar solos isn’t going to happen over night, but it won’t take an eternity either. Follow these 7 tips about guitar soloing and you can make the transition into a fine lead guitarist.