New Year, New Goals

Will you be a better musician than you were last year?

Now is the perfect time to assess your skills, give some serious thought to what you'd like to accomplish and decide how you're going to get there. Beginning guitar, like any other skill, needs goals that you can not only attain, but perhaps even pass. Be realistic but not over cautious. I've had guitar students who are more than happy to be a little better when they could make much more progress.

What are you working on?

Pick a song, style or skill, and work on it. What is the one thing holding you back and how do you fix it? Consult with your guitar teacher and have him or her help you zero in on what you need to work on.

Finding a good teacher.

There are lots of good guitar teaching websites, but there's nothing like taking guitar lessons one on one, in person. Your teacher will get to know you, help you through trouble spots and keep you motivated. Most people need to have someone to give them feedback, encouragement, and wisdom. Your guitar teacher can catch a developing bad habit and show you something that may take you a lot longer with no one to demonstrate what it looks and sounds like.

Setting aside the time to practice.

The biggest obstacle adult guitar students face is finding the time to practice. Make it clear to other members of the household that you're not to be disturbed, get yourself an inexpensive kitchen timer, set it for 30 to 45 minutes and start practicing. The difference between success and failure when learning guitar is 20% talent and 80% desire. Do you really want to learn to play guitar? Set aside the practice time every day. I know you're busy, I know you have other obligations, but if you want to achieve your goals you need to put in the time.