How to Learn to Play Guitar

Part 3: Your Five-Point Checklist (Points 3 & 4)

In Part 1 of this series of learn how to play guitar articles, we looked at the key questions beginners most often ask themselves when they start. In Part 2, I introduced you to the Five-Point Checklist for helping beginner guitarists find the best way to get started. And we took a look at Points 1 & 2.

In this article, we move on to Points 3 & 4...

Point 3: Do you want to learn a specific style?

The main genres for guitarists usually include: Classical, Blues, Jazz, Rock, Country, Fingerstyle, and Metal. You might, of course, want to play more than one style. Nothing wrong with that!

You do need to start somewhere, though. And what you'll find is that all styles share some striking similarities with regard to the basics. Be careful with racing out and getting a genre-specific course because it might be too advanced for a beginner. Make sure you cover the basics, which are the same regardless of style. Then go and get a genre-specific course or tutor.

This is a very common mistake that beginners make so think about this point carefully. There's nothing at all wrong with wanting to play, say, jazz guitar. Other styles may not interest you. That's fine.

But there are things that make jazz (to continue the example) which are different from other styles. To go leaping into these too early, skipping over the commonalities across all styles would be foolish. Basics first.

Point 4: How much time can you—and are you willing to—devote to practice?

Remember your notebook from Part 2 of this article series? You'll need it again now.

Write down how many practice sessions you can comfortably fit into your schedule each week. Comfortably. Don't cram them in or you'll soon find that they get squeezed back out of your schedule!

Next, write down how much time you think you'll be able to practice each week.

Now, look at the other things in your current weekly timetable and be honest: Are these realistic estimates. If not, then you're setting yourself up for failure. You don't want to do that. And I don't want you to do that.

There's nothing wrong with being ambitious and determined, but you have to also be realistic—with anything you undertake in life. If you set unrealistic goals, you're likely to not reach them. And then you feel bad.

On the other hand, if you set high-but-realistic goals, when you achieve them you feel good and that spurs you on to even greater heights.

So, how much time and when can you practice each week? Really?

This point will be particularly important if you're thinking of hiring a guitar teacher. They're not cheap and if you're not practicing, your tutor is unlikely to move onto more advanced stuff, are they? Not until you've mastered whatever they've set you, that is.

Meanwhile, you're still paying for your lessons! Paying to go along week after week and not improve because you're not practicing. This is madness too. Don't do it.

If you really don't have a lot of time to practice—forget about how much you think you want to practice and focus on how much time you actually can practice!—then using self-study materials is obviously the best choice for you. (See Points 1 & 2 again. As well as Part 1 of these articles)

In Part 4—the final part of this series—I'm going to ask you why you want to play guitar. What is your actual purpose? The answer is what will drive you to either success or failure so be sure not to miss it. See you there!

Absolutely Essential Guitar

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