Words of encouragement

[verichai]

Repetition, repetition, repetition. When I was first learning to play, I would watch videos of people playing chords and effortlessly changing the shapes and it just seemed impossible to me. Especially the barred F chord. I still think of that every time I play an F. How some things seem impossible but then eventually how you're doing those very things.

[packy]

Wow!  Some great advice on this thread.  Stick with it!

[Frayed Knot]

All of my periods of rapid improvement on guitar have been associated with playing with others.  Just like when you are playing, eg, tennis, you want to play with someone who is better than you (not way better--frustrating for you both). 

Luckily I live in the mid-south where the humidity is pretty stable.  I have a guitar stand by my bed with my 410ce.  I play some every day and several hours on the weekend typically.  Sometimes it's songs and sometimes just scales, arpeggios, riffs, and the like. 

I'd also try to play in front of others, even if it's just a local guitar circle.

Also buy more guitars.  A guitar addiction is not something to be ashamed of.  One woman, many guitars as they say. 

Lots of good recommendations on this post.  Someone said 10,000 hours--yikes.  I did the math and guess I am in that ball park.  At 63, however, my goal is to get another 10,000.   

[Gordo in OZ]

I am learning to play again. I have been playing for 48 years but after neurosurgery to fix a wrecked left hand (not guitar related) I am learning to adapt to my changed abilities. My advice on technique is to set realistic small goals that you can master in a couple of weeks. It might just be a five second lick, picking or strumming or whatever but you will love mastering that. If you are a singer, then learn a new set of lyrics every couple of weeks too. You don't have to learn the lyrics at the same time as you learn the music but you will probably do just that anyway. If not, you can sing in the shower or the car. If you miss a goal, just leave it for a while and tackle something else and revisit it every now and then to see if you have a solution as your mastery of other little steps advances. Take breaks. If it hurts after 10 minutes, you have had enough, go and do something else for an hour or three. Have a guitar handy so you don't have to make an effort to 'get' a guitar to play. Play for 5 minutes with your breakfast coffee. It all adds up. Make a list of things you want to play. My list has Key. Capo position, Tuning ( I play a lot of dropped D), chord shape, current playing status, and current knowledge of the lyrics, eg OK, Learn, Revise.  Above all just have a bit of fun.

[Earl]

Gordo, I understand perfectly.  I had a brain tumor (non-cancerous) 3½ years ago that paralyzed the left side of my body for a couple of weeks.  As I got better a big part of my rehab was starting to play again on ukulele  - four easy nylon strings and much commonality with guitar, then on to my NS34 nylon, then finally back to steel string guitars.  I'm back to about 95% strength and dexterity in the left hand, so ultimately did not lose much.  But it could have been much worse.  Such an event sure makes you appreciate being able to do the little things like guitar, walking, going to the toilet unaided, etc.

You'll ge there, just keep plugging away.  And be thankful for what you have.  PM or email me if you want to chat off-line.

[Jimmer]

I'm chiming in a little late but I just finished reading the posts... GREAT STUFF!! Very helpful. I want to bring up a post from early in the thread. Quality guitar. I agree whole heartily. My Wife bought me a $200 Yamaha dread about 10 years ago. learned a few open chords and practiced. That guitar hurt my fingers and was not at all fun. After several attempts and a few weeks later I put it away. A friend of ours came over one night and I showed him my guitar. He's has several cd's he have recorded. The guy is very talented. He played a few licks and said it wasn't a bad guitar but he suggested I get a better guitar. He gave me the name of an online guitar dealer and told me I should look into Taylor guitars. GS MINI .. he said give the sales rep my name and he will give you a good deal. So I did and he did. Strummed my first chord and Practice is fun now. Got a 214 and i just love playing. To me practicing is playing.. it's just plain fun. Looking at a 414 now. Another tip my friend gave was to record myself and then in a few months  listen to it. I call it  self encouragement. Gave me the prof that I am getting better... all the hard fun pays off.

Sorry for rambling on

Jim

[jima9426]

I would like to read some stories on how you “real” guitar players suffered, or were frustrated and maybe even wanted to quit.

The first key is the pick the right guitar. So called "student guitars" aren't just marketing tripe (tho some of the guitars are). I encourage all of my students to get a concert/orchestra size with a short scale. I learned on a barreled neck Yamaha FG-180 starting at the age of 7. Big mistake. It was the cause of many fits and starts for the first five years or so.

Follow a structured plan that assigns something to practice everyday, but not so rigid that it forces you to do something you're not in the frame of mind to do.

Make part of your practice skill/technical oriented, and make part of it fun. Nothing is more fun than playing actual songs (better yet with others). For that I recommend to my beginner students an app like 4Chords. For my intermediate students, I get them to start applying a little theory to draw out their creativity.

Finally, make your learning as social as you can. Mastering an instrument is like mastering a sport in that you can effectively elevate your game when you compete with others slightly better than you. And "sociality" is the nature of humankind. Doing anything almost exclusively alone is bound to make it a tedious venture.

[Treyson]

Seems like allot of us are ( were ) in the same boat. Had a mild stroke a few years ago and suffer from chronic pain.   2 - 2.5 years ago after being advised to find a hobby, bought my first used guitar and traded up to my Tak and finally my first new Taylor ( GS mini ) last Christmas.

Being self taught has been challenging and largely because of lack of strucure and I have not found anyone to play or practice with.

I can say after many many hours of watching many youtube gurus the realization has set in to LISTEN to recordings, get ACCURATE tabs, and PRACTICE slowly even if its ONE bar or chord at a time and be PATIENT .....which I admit is HARD. 

Oh, I decided to journal what I do daily so I can track my efforts.


I really enjoy this thread mainly because of the kind & sincere responses.

[DennisG]

Seems like allot of us are ( were ) in the same boat. Had a mild stroke a few years ago and suffer from chronic pain.   2 - 2.5 years ago after being advised to find a hobby, bought my first used guitar and traded up to my Tak and finally my first new Taylor ( GS mini ) last Christmas.

Being self taught has been challenging and largely because of lack of strucure and I have not found anyone to play or practice with.

I can say after many many hours of watching many youtube gurus the realization has set in to LISTEN to recordings, get ACCURATE tabs, and PRACTICE slowly even if its ONE bar or chord at a time and be PATIENT .....which I admit is HARD. 

Oh, I decided to journal what I do daily so I can track my efforts.


I really enjoy this thread mainly because of the kind & sincere responses.

Treyson,

Welcome to the forum, and I hope you make a complete recovery from your stroke and are pain-free forever.

I just started playing the guitar a few years ago, at the age of 60.  One site I found immensely useful was TotallyGuitars.com.  They have a catalog of over 500 songs that are extremely well-taught, complete with deadly accurate tabs.  I know several people who've used and loved the site.  I'm pretty sure it accelerated our learning by a lot.

[Guitar Cowboy]

I'll put in another plug for TotallyGuitars.com. Neil Hogan helped a great deal when I picked up my guitar again after a 25 year break.

[Treyson]

I'll put in another plug for TotallyGuitars.com. Neil Hogan helped a great deal when I picked up my guitar again after a 25 year break.

I had looked at TotallyGuitars in the past but scratched them off my list.  Honestly, the site ( at least to me ) seemed busy, confusing and less than user or budget friendly in that it's tough to navigate or see what you get for the money. Maybe I'm missing something?  Will look again.

Thanks

[DennisG]

I'll put in another plug for TotallyGuitars.com. Neil Hogan helped a great deal when I picked up my guitar again after a 25 year break.

I had looked at TotallyGuitars in the past but scratched them off my list.  Honestly, the site ( at least to me ) seemed busy, confusing and less than user or budget friendly in that it's tough to navigate or see what you get for the money. Maybe I'm missing something?  Will look again.

Thanks

I will agree that the web site, because of all it offers, is a bit hard to navigate for newbies.  But the content is without parallel.  I don't think you'll find the breadth of offerings anywhere else, nor the attention put into the lessons and the tabs.

[DannyF]

I'll put in another plug for TotallyGuitars.com. Neil Hogan helped a great deal when I picked up my guitar again after a 25 year break.

I had looked at TotallyGuitars in the past but scratched them off my list.  Honestly, the site ( at least to me ) seemed busy, confusing and less than user or budget friendly in that it's tough to navigate or see what you get for the money. Maybe I'm missing something?  Will look again.

Thanks

I will agree that the web site, because of all it offers, is a bit hard to navigate for newbies.  But the content is without parallel.  I don't think you'll find the breadth of offerings anywhere else, nor the attention put into the lessons and the tabs.

I've bought a couple lessons from Totally Guitars and the one thing that I don't like, is you have to keep going back to the website for the lesson.   
You can't download the lesson to play on your TV so I tend to visit YouTube more for instruction. Justin is another excellent source for lessons and only asks for donations. I've bought a DVD set from him and two song books. Another great lesson resource is Shut Up & Play and he will use a GS Mini and I believe A 300 series Taylor guitar.
 I too started late in life & I'm still having fun and will have more fun when my BTO arrives.
Danny