And that s exactly the point. If you want to be at ease in many music genres, you must be able to play on and around the beat. Once you have achieved this proficiency, you will better be able to musically relate to drummers and other musicians. Here is a series of exercises that will get you not only in control of your own time-keeping ability, but will ultimately enable you to better perceive your colleagues , and furthermore will increase your awareness of space in music. This space awareness is one of the elements that distinguish mature and relaxed players from immature and rushing players.
Musical maturity has little to do with age.
In fact, generally speaking, the sooner you mature musically, the sooner you will make it on a professional level. Get out that metronome or drum machine. If you are still not right on the beat, then increase the metronome tempo to 60 bpm. Observe closely your natural relationship to the beat. Don t fret if you don t get consistency right away.