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Establishing a routine to reach your guitar practice goals can be hard, especially for beginners. I’ve outlined a few tips here to get in the habit of practicing that I hope you’ll find helpful.

I’ve never been much of an athlete, but lately I’ve been trying to exercise more (I hear it’s good for you). Like many people, I have a history of an on-again-off-again relationship with exercise. I’ll get excited about it, go full bore for a week or two and then burn out and neglect it for a few months until I decide to start the cycle again.

What does this have to do with guitar practicing habits, you ask? Don’t worry, we’re getting there.

Recently, I’ve been a lot more consistent with my exercise, and I think the reason is because I’ve adjusted my expectations. I’ve learned that when it comes to most skills in life consistency is the first order of business. Lasting growth (or perhaps the opposite… depending on your exercise goals!) comes slowly over days of consistently showing up to spend focused time developing whatever skill one is pursuing.

We all hear over and over that our society loves instant gratification. Delayed gratification seems to require more of us than we have, so most would rather kill ourselves to accomplish something in a week or two than have slow, moderate progress over the course of a year. When we don’t see the results we want in a week or two, we get frustrated and give up. The enthusiasm we feel at the beginning of an endeavor quickly sours, and we find that now we are enthusiastic about some other thing.

It’s true that learning the guitar or another musical instrument is a skill that you acquire. Some will acquire skill faster than others, but whatever the pace of your development, you are seriously undermining your efforts if you start regularly skipping days of practice. It can be difficult to make yourself practice if you’re discouraged or not seeing the results you want, so let me make a suggestion: if your enthusiasm is waning for your guitar (or your instrument or other pursuit of choice) practice routine, commit to five minutes a day of focused, dedicated practice.

“Five minutes isn’t enough to get any better!” some might say, and they’d be right if getting quick results is what we’re after. We’re doing something different. We’re planting a seed that will grow. I think that if you practice for five minutes a day you might be surprised at how much you grow; however, if you’re consistent with it, you’re probably going to end up wanting to practice guitar more. You don’t have to stop at 5 minutes if you want to keep going.

So, don’t think of learning the guitar as a skill that you will work on for a while, and then once you’ve “arrived” and acquired enough skill you can stop. If you do it right, it becomes a lifestyle, and you’ll keep looking for ways to keep that seed growing.

Have any tips to share for starting a successful guitar practice routine? Feel free to leave a comment below!

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Wes Freeman is private guitar lesson teacher in the Atlanta metro area of Georgia. He teaches lessons primarily in the cities of Lilburn, Snellville, Marietta, Decatur, and Brookhaven. Learn more about taking lessons with Wes on his Lessons page.

Ever felt frustrated, wondering how to get better at guitar practice?

I’ve been reminded recently of the importance of being content in the present moment. This idea seems a little at odds with the whole concept of taking guitar lessons; the whole point is that you’re trying to get somewhere, right? Why fork over money if you’re just fine with where you are?

But, accepting your current level of development is not the same thing as lacking the desire to improve at guitar practice. We should always have a desire to improve, but that doesn’t mean we can’t find enjoyment as we’re in the process. In fact, I would argue that the only place we can find enjoyment is in process, because we are always growing. I have no desire to be morbid, but if you’re not developing it’s because you’ve either given up or you’re dead.

We all like to think that there will be this moment where we arrive as a musician (or in some other area of life), but that doesn’t really happen. Certainly there are milestones in life, but these are rare, and the satisfaction that we gain from such moments is not enough on its own to fuel continued practice on your instrument if you view such practice as drudgery. Somehow, you have to find a way to enjoy the process of practice itself.

I’ve done it both ways, and I can promise you’ll be a much happier person if you follow my advice here.

Perhaps you have a goal of playing “Thunderstruck” at full speed. Well, join the club! The bad news is that, unless you are gifted with dexterous hands and coordination far beyond what most people have naturally, it’s going to take a while. It’s going to be best for your peace of mind right now AND for fulfilling your long-term goal if you learn to enjoy the process of working on it — slowly, with a metronome, bit by bit. If you’ve patiently practiced it for some time, you may need to take a break from it for a while, work on something else, and come at it again with fresh eyes and ears.

This is what the process of learning to play the guitar well is like. We never really arrive. At the same time — if done right — we’re constantly arriving. Each measure memorized, each strum pattern that we’re just a little more comfortable with, each time we listen to an old song and realize that we understand what the guitarist is doing, we arrive.

That’s where the joy of learning music is. Don’t let the tunnel vision of playing “that song,” or playing as well as “that person,” prevent you from finding it.

Author’s note: If what I had to say here resonated with you, then you might want to check out one of my favorite guitar book recommendations (click on picture at left or click here).

The Practicing Mind: Developing Focus and Discipline in Your Life — Master Any Skill or Challenge by Learning to Love the Process is a great book to review for a deeper dive into this topic.

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Wes Freeman is private guitar lesson teacher in the Atlanta metro area of Georgia. He teaches lessons primarily in the cities of Lilburn, Snellville, Marietta, Decatur, and Brookhaven. Learn more about taking lessons with Wes on his Lessons page.

I’m writing this on January 20th, so I have in mind the many people — I might be one of them — who resolved to practice more in the new year.

Well, life comes at you fast, and it’s easy to look up and realize that days have gone by without doing the things you promised yourself you would. Here are some thoughts on how to get back on track with your guitar practicing goals:

1. Don’t punish yourself or play catch up.
   Any new endeavor is going to have some hiccups. Unless there is a compelling reason to stress yourself out making up for days missed, you’re better off just picking up where you left off and continuing at a reasonable pace. If your new habit didn’t stick, you probably need to make it easier to stick to — not harder — which leads us to point number two…
2. Pick something modest to work on.
   Change does not come easily. In my experience, the best way to change something or adopt a new habit is to start so small, it is easy to be consistent. Once a pattern or habit is established, you can take on a little more. Start with two minutes of practice. You can always practice more if you want to, but make it easy to pick up that guitar when you’re short on time.
3. Find a way to enjoy it.
   Choose to work on an aspect of your playing that you are really excited about. Don’t make the mistake of practicing something simply because you think it’s what you’re supposed to do. At least that is how it should be at first. If you stick with it, there may be times when you need to practice even though you don’t feel like it. That should be the exception though.
4. Link your practice to something else you do regularly (or develop a routine).
   Often, the most difficult thing to do is just pick up the guitar. For most people there are so many other commitments and activities in a given day, just starting to practice can be difficult. It can help to associate your practice habit with something else that you do regularly, such as brushing your teeth, watching your favorite TV show, getting the kids put to bed, or exercising. You can be creative here. In my experience, and in that of many of the best musicians I’ve known, having a routine is the single most powerful strategy for growth.

You may be detecting a theme here: make it as easy as possible on yourself to succeed. When we set grandiose goals for ourselves, we often set ourselves up for discouragement. This often leads to giving up on our goal altogether.

Of course, your mileage may vary with these strategies; perhaps you’re more of a “go-getter” type than I am, and what really makes you shine is an impossible challenge. I’m not knocking that. If it works for you, have at it! The key is to know yourself and what actually gets results for you.

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Wes Freeman is private guitar lesson teacher in the Atlanta metro area of Georgia. He teaches lessons primarily in the cities of Lilburn, Snellville, Marietta, Decatur, and Brookhaven. Learn more about taking lessons with Wes on his Lessons page.