I can see the point of the poeple that say that technique gives you a grounding and programs your fingers, but I think thats a double edged sword. The other edge is that programming your fingers can lead to you playing the same scale fragment type music all the time when you actually want to do something 'different'. I think a player thats gone through drills and scales really shows: they dont miss a note, but all too often you know exactly which one is coming next. [cartman voice] Weak [/cartman voice]
I try to get around this by playing as cleanly as fluidly as I possibly can, but basically improvising all the time, but always pushing myself. Always. I cant pick up a guitar without pushing the boundaries of what I can do or trying to do something I never have.
Like HTH I find scales and drills dull. They make a more proficient player out of you, yes, but I'd much rather make up a motive I like and then explore it, play it with different phrasings and emphasis, cut out and add beats and 'coloured', out-of-scale notes, all the while trying to be clean and fluid.
If youre going to go the way of drills and routine, then please please please, even if just as a 'reward' for yourself, spend equal time just going nuts throwing shapes on the fretboard and trying to make stuff up, thinking "well what if I play a major 6th over that?" or "I wonder what that shape sounds like?" and "lets stick a semitone in there, see what happens" or whatever, and try and spend some time thinking outside the proverbial box, and hopefully you'll get the best of both worlds: technique and proficiency as well as creativity and character.
Good luck!
Edit: and the importance of a click Cannot be understimated.
