So you’ve finally decided to take the plunge and learn how to play guitar.
Congratulations! Learning to play a musical instrument can be one of the most rewarding and fulfilling experiences of your life.
Most of us that take up the guitar share a common goal – to make music. But what we individually want to accomplish on the guitar, and how we ultimately get there, can be widely varied.
As a result, we all travel different paths to arrive at the same destination.
There are, however, a number of common steps we all must take before embarking on our journey.
It’s very much like preparing to take a trip somewhere. You may be going to Europe. I might be traveling across the country. Someone else could be just going to another town in the same state. But we all have to plan out our trip and pack certain essential items before leaving.
Here are some things to consider before hitting the road to “guitar-ville”:
1. What are your goals on the guitar?
Some people want to learn guitar simply for personal enjoyment or for family and friends.
Others have the desire to go to the next level and get good enough to play in a band locally or with a church group.
Some want to write songs and record their own music.
Still others want to shoot for the stars and work toward making music a career.
Having a clear vision of where you want to go on the guitar will define the route you take.
2. What type of guitar do you want to play?
Guitars come in all shapes and sizes and you should decide early what style of guitar interests you the most. Especially if budget is an issue.
Basically you have three broad choices. Acoustic guitar, electric guitar and classical guitar. Each one has it’s own strengths and weaknesses, and are suitable to various genres of music.
3. Decide on a course of study.
There are numerous ways to learn how to play guitar. Private lessons, online courses, guitar books, videos, DVDs, and friends that can assist.
We all respond differently to various instruction programs, some are more suited for one method over another, so it is important to choose a course of study that is amenable to your particular temperament and learning ability.
Avoid frustration and confusion by choosing only one program and sticking to it. Many new guitar students give up early in the game after bouncing around between various programs and accomplishing nothing.
4. Practice
It’s all well and good to read books and watch videos on playing guitar, but the only way to really play is to…play!
Dedicate some time every day or so to pick up the guitar and actually play it.
Your fingers and hands must be taught to do things they have never done before and you must put the time in to teach them. There will be some typical soreness in the fingers, and an overall feeling of awkwardness in the beginning, but these all will pass…with practice.
And you don’t have to play for hours upon hours every day. You would be amazed at how much you can accomplish with ten or fifteen minutes of consistent daily practice.
5. Have Fun
I’m a really bad golfer. So bad that I laugh at myself after sending a ball into the woods or drowning it in a pond.
But I have been on the golf course with guys that get serious. Really serious. I’ve seen otherwise calm and reserved individuals turn into Godzilla, clubs flailing and cuss words sailing, over a bad bunker shot or a missed green.
And it always amazes me that something that is played for enjoyment, for the pure fun of it, can be such a huge source of frustration for these people.
Playing guitar should not be that way. Yes, there will be times of frustration and disappointment while working through the challenges of learning a new chord, riff or song – but ultimately creating music should bring joy and a sense of accomplishment to your life.
Try not to take it too seriously.
6. Just do it!
Yeah, another Nike commercial. But the truth is, many people spend so much time preparing, researching and thinking about playing guitar, that they never get around to actually playing it.
It’s called “paralysis by analysis”.
Sometimes the “ready – fire – aim” approach works best. Decide you’re going to do it – then “just do it” – and work out the details later.
If you’ve been putting off learning guitar for a while, maybe even for years, why not get started today.
Go out, get a guitar, start some lessons and jump on in there. You won’t regret a minute of it!
