Somewhere between chords and notes, every person who wants to start playing guitar seems captivated by its sound and the way this instrument is played. At first, almost every person is clueless and not aware that this kind of process takes a lot of time, patience, and consistency. It may seem very easy and not as challenging, but in reality, learning to play this amazing instrument can sometimes be very demanding.
The guitar is one of the most popular instruments among musicians all around the world and all for compelling reasons. Learning process may be challenging at times, but not impossible. Every experience is unique, and every journey has its own story. Good preparation and proper education on what to expect before you get your hands on a guitar can make a significant difference. That’s why, here is everything that you need to know before you start this journey!
Quitting As the Main Cause of Failure
Lack of talent is not the main reason for failure. Quitting is. Yes, talent can play a big part in this process, but it is not strictly a necessity. One thing that makes you a guitar player that you aspire to be is persistence, practice, and consistency. Every learning process consists of small, seemingly insignificant steps, whose importance becomes evident later on. It consists of repeated ups and downs that sometimes can seem unbearable and impossible to overcome. But persistence and confidence play a major role here. With these two qualities, every obstacle is indeed easy and highly possible to overcome.
Choose the Right Guitar
One of the very first decisions during this process is choosing the right type of guitar. Whether you decide to go for an acoustic or electric one, the most important thing is to choose the type that fits your character the most. Both types, like every other thing, have advantages and disadvantages, which is why it is very important to do proper research on both before choosing.
Apply What You Learn
Everything you learn and apply properly will make you progress and fall in love with playing the guitar even more. A few concepts that you will meet once you have chosen the type of guitar are notes, guitar tab, and guitar sheet music that may appear confusing to you at first. But applying what you’ve learned correctly will motivate you to learn more and more, but only if you have the will and the focus to do so. For example, if you have learned how to change a few chords fluently, start to learn other songs with different chords.
Or if you have learned a scale, try to come up with a melody, no matter how simple or short it may sound. In such a way, learning guitar will be more fun, and when it’s fun, it appears a lot easier!
Learn to Accept Mistakes
Not every journey is the same. Some people may learn to play guitar more easily and faster, or harder and slower, than you. During the learning process, it is crucial to avoid comparing your progress with others and to learn how to accept mistakes. When we learn something, it is an integral part to sometimes make a wrong move, start over and over again, and have a hard time learning a particular part. When you start playing the guitar, it is essential to recognize that some days, you can play well, and on other days, you may sound off, which is completely normal.
Practice Is Important, But…
Practice is important, especially when you are a beginner, but there are some things that affect its quality. If you have searched online on how to play it, you may have noticed that the first results that probably popped up are lots and lots of practice. But one thing that nobody points out is that hours of practice won’t be effective if you are not properly focused. Sometimes, half an hour of daily practice, where you are indeed focused, is much better than three hours of practice just out of obligation. It’s not about the quantity, it’s about the quality.
Sometimes It Is Necessary to Slow Down
Guitar is not just one skill, but a set of skills, and some of them may sometimes require more attention and more time. The beginners usually expect to learn to play the guitar in a short period of time, but in most cases, some steps need to be followed slowly to be learned the right way. Proper coordination, for example, one of those things that most beginners struggle with and which takes a lot of time to master. But every person who has even the slightest experience in music knows that good coordination is essential in professional guitar playing. That’s why it is important to remain patient and focused, no matter how excited and impatient we are.
Tuning Is an Unavoidable Step
Tuning is an unavoidable step that most beginners at first forget about. Without proper tuning, your guitar will sound bad, no matter how you play it, or despite the great technique that you may use. Because beginners usually forget about this, most of them become unmotivated and disappointed, thinking that they are not playing as well as they want, but in reality, the main problem is improper tuning. Luckily, today, there are a lot of helpful tools that can help you with this process, such as different tuning apps and a clip-on tuner.
Good Coordination and Finger Strength Take Time
At the beginning, you may not have the finger strength or coordination that you want, and that is completely normal. With enough patience and enough practice, you will slowly develop these skills, and as time goes by, they will become an integral part of playing the guitar that you won’t even have to try so hard for.
Building a finger callus is an essential part of playing the guitar and takes up to a few weeks. There is a myth that this process is very painful and it may even cause a small injury, but in reality, finger calluses will simply grow out on their own, the more you play the guitar.
Every journey has effective results once you create the right mindset. When you decide to start playing the guitar, the most important thing is to truly believe in yourself. Motivation and patience are the main qualities towards success, and everything that happens during this process can be a wonderful lesson if you are willing to see it.
