p0ke
7-string guitard
^ same here. When I started I just learned actual songs, and I practiced them a minimum of 8 hours per day, often up to 14 hours at best. I didn't care about lead stuff that much back then but my rhythm playing was tight af.
... And then I had a friend who asked me if I could teach him to play guitar. I agreed, but then he would just keep going "I can't believe you're that good, I'll never get even close". Then I'd explain to him that there's no way he could be as good yet, since he's played for like a month and only randomly for an hour or less every now and then, whereas I had played for 5 years at the pace I just explained. But he just insisted I must be inherently super talented, which I definitely was not. I just put the hours in.
But nah, he just wouldn't listen, quit and sold his gear soon after.
... And then I had a friend who asked me if I could teach him to play guitar. I agreed, but then he would just keep going "I can't believe you're that good, I'll never get even close". Then I'd explain to him that there's no way he could be as good yet, since he's played for like a month and only randomly for an hour or less every now and then, whereas I had played for 5 years at the pace I just explained. But he just insisted I must be inherently super talented, which I definitely was not. I just put the hours in.
But nah, he just wouldn't listen, quit and sold his gear soon after.