TIPS FOR TODAY
Progress comes from momentum, not mastery.
If today’s challenge feels awkward or slow, that’s exactly how it’s supposed to feel. This isn’t a “nail it in one day” test — it’s your first pass at a new motion. Your hands will keep improving every time you come across a similar skill.
Even 10 focused minutes is enough to count today as a win. Our goal is NOT to perfect it. It’s to get exposure to a new skill.
Just get the motion under your fingers a few times at your own pace, and trust that next time you try a skill like this, it will feel a little smoother.
YOUR SAMPLE WEEK OF TONY'S ACOUSTIC CHALLENGE
5-Day "Stop Dabbling, Start Playing Guitar" Challenge
- MON: Technique
- TUE: Lick
- WED: Improv
- THU: Rhythm
- FRI: Transitions
FREE WHEN YOU JOIN TODAY
30 DAY JUMPSTART
All new members start with our 30-day jumpstart to learn the basics. It comes free with your membership when you join today.
3-Steps to Stop Dabbling and Start Playing
Try the Free 5-Day Challenge
Get a feel for the TAC method and see what 10 minutes a day can do.
Join TAC and Build Your Foundation
Start the 30-Day Jumpstart Challenge (included when you join) to lock in the basics and build a daily habit.
Keep Going with Daily Challenges
After the 30-Day Jumpstart, keep improving—one fun, daily guitar session at a time.
When I was 16 I was picking out a ‘spanish-esque’ tune on my sister’s old guitar. My dad passed by and asked if he payed for lessons would I practice. Being a snotty teenager I said “Probably not”. Been kicking myself for 45 years.
A couple years ago I told my wife that I’d like to learn guitar as something to do during retirement. She surprised me with a beautiful Ibanez but there was a problem, she didn’t know that although I’m right-handed in everything else, I play guitar left-handed. So she bought me a slightly less-beautiful left-handed guitar. I’ve done some online lessons but saw this challenge had a different teaching method and wanted to give it a try.
Played Guitar for about 10years than moved on to banjo the missing string, now I’m trying to go back to Guitar to many strings hard to go back to 6
first time ever will try but my fingers are sore
Just retired and have always wanted to play. Took some lessons before my daughters were born 32 years ago! Also a hockey goalie.
Always a beginner
Hi – I’m happy to be here. I started paying when I was 11 years old. How long ago was that? Hint: I just retired this past February. I took lessons and played a lot until High School when the normal progression of peers and life and love took over.
Fast-forward to 2020 when my husband passed away. I was spending time purging all of the unnecessary stuff from our life and ran across my guitar. I considered selling it but thought, why not try to play it again. I did. I was surprised at how much I remembered and once I had redeveloped my long-lost callouses, I was hooked. I quickly realized my guitar was too big for me, so I purchased a smaller one and I love it.
That said, with the natural progression of time and decay, I have some pretty painful arthritic thumbs. Holding a pick is almost impossible and when I try to strum with said pick, the string wins and the pick goes flying. I can still strum with my thumb and finger pick – it’s painful but worth it. I recently purchased a Black Mountain pick with a spring-driven attachment that holds the pick to the thumb. I won’t lie; it is still difficult but I’m sure the more I use it the easier it will become.
So that’s my story – sorry it was so long. I would also like to mention that I am loving making music so much that I purchased a Ukulele and recently, a Mandolin. Are you wondering what happened to my guitar? Well, my 14-year-old grandniece, who plays violin, wanted to learn guitar so I have her my 1979 Washburn, and she gives it the love it deserves.
Thanks for reading…
I’ve been a TAC member for several years and keep starting and stopping. Still can’t play a song.
I decided to take this 5 day, “Stop Dabbling” challenge. I went through all 5 days before nailing day 1. So I’ve now started over. Still struggling with the day 1 lesson. It’s frustrating that I can’t quite get it under my fingers. I’ll get it, I know, but for something that seems so simple, it bugs me that I’m struggling with it. I’m determined to get this before I repeat day 2. Maybe this reboot will be the charm. Maybe one day I’ll feel that I can call myself a guitar player.
I was interested in guitar as a young person but didn’t
pre-sue it .
I decided to learn guitar when I retired.
My grandson and I have been taking weekly lessons for 2 1/2 years, his is now 11 and I am 70. We are still learning and loving it.
I think it would be nice if the image of the guitar was reversed so the fingering you see was a mirror image, just like when Phil MIckleson learned to swing a golf club
Bob
Have been starting & stopping since 1978! Never mastered & want to surprise the family at Christmas. The challenge is on!
Long time beginner. Started at 16 and still beginning at 83 but I am now convinced I will make progress
Where is the best place to learn the chords?
Thankx! Lifelong beginner here lol. I know simple chords but picking is a challenge!
I just started to learn guitar I’m 63 now,always wanted to learn, never thought I’d had time, then had heart failure…since then I’ve received a heart transplant a year ago Aug. 14th, I’ve been dabbling with the guitar to help my anxiety, which it has…now I want to play the guitar…done construction all my life hands are pretty stiff but the exercise are helping and thank ya,I’m enjoying this challenge tony…
I started to play when I 12.Not really play just mest around with the guitar. Now I’m retired and I been trying to learn by watching YouTube .
Hi guitar heroes. I decide to try this course as I have been thinking about lessons for a while, and I like the way Tony talks. I started learning guitar about 30 years ago, but only learned chords and riffs. As I was playing on my own I was definitely only dabbling. i stopped playing completely for about 20 years, but have been back to it for about 2 years. It is just amazing that I forgot how to play basically everything I learned apart from some chord shapes. I feel I am doing the same dabbling as before again now, so I want to learn to play the guitar, not just songs. I am going to give this a bash and see if I can be disciplined enough for just 5 days to start….I am running through this progression on day one, but I have found the top of my forearm is really hurting. I am not sure why that is at the moment, but I am playing a mini guitar (Tanglewood TRX2E Roadster Travel) so not sure if the shorter neck is doing that to me. Anyway. I will persevere through that pain and see how it goes. By the way. I am from Wales, but have only seen comments from people on your side of the pond. Are there any others from the UK learning?…I have a question. How long should we be practicing each lesson? A new lesson is coming every day, so I am unsure how much time I should be doing this for. I watched the video about consistency, but that spoke about 10 minutes a day and I feel this will take more
Neil
Hey Neil.
I’ve just started learning the guitar and from just over the bridge from you in Swindon.
Happy playing.
Hi Neil. Great questions! Please reach out to us in TAC Support so that we can assist you with those. Email: support@tonypolecastro.com
As a beginner , you didn’t explain the chords and fret locations . While most of your people are returning guitar players or beginners with a few lessons . Someone who just bought a guitar and is clueless is left searching internet for understanding of basics .
Hi,
I was able to download a piece of music but no loop. The play button was greyed. I did see your video but I wasn’t able to download it. Can you help me?
Perhaps I was on the wrong webpage.
I am just checking out your lesson.
Thanks,
Stephanie
I am sixty years old and have always wanted to learn basic guitar. I just wanted to be able to play a few sing alongs around the campfire. I tried to learn guitar a few times a couple of years ago. I tried using a couple different online courses and apps. I saw the Acoustic challenge on Facebook, and thought “what the heck”, I’ll give it a shot. so here I am.
TONY, Ive tried many times over the years to learn to play, starting in college, I’m now 75 and I keep running into the same stumbling block, when trying to play on the frets, I get a clear note on one string and then a dud on the next string down, (like fat fingers) but yet my fingers are not large or fat and I get frustrated
I Amma longtime dabbler excited for some bite sized chunks I can grow with.
I’ve been playing and teaching for over 30 years and working with Guitarsforvets.org has been the most fulfilling time, I wish to share this with our vets at James Lovell FHCC and our cyber group..
Grad from Guitar4Vets and just starting at age 68.
Hi Tony,
Thanks for the first lesson – happy to get stuck in. Im a very new player – been at it for about 6 months and looking to find a more structured approach to learning. Playing the guitar was a life long dream – and finally at the age of 39 i have started my journey 😀
Tried learning a three years ago. My grandson picked up my guitar and showed a lot of interest, so I give him my 3/4 acoustic guitar, then just kind of got away from it. A year later he wanted an electric guitar so I built him one instead buying him one, that led into an obsession of building guitars. 11 guitars later I thought how silly it is to build them and not be able to play them, so here we are.
Long time bucket list. Started the guitar a couple of times over the years. Started again in January 2025. Play practically every day. Lovin it, but have felt a little stagnant. Excited for the next challenge. Thanks Tony!
Bruce
I am playing guitar for the past four years. I would classify myself as a low intermediate player. I’m somewhat struck at this point in this journey spending more time on music theory than guitar playing skills and fluency. My focus is to significantly improve my guitar playing !
I started playing about 3 years ago…I am rolling past my mid-50’s. I have work with an instructor a few times a month but I feel I need more structure to move me on to the next skill level. So far…. this program seems to be exactly what I have been searching for! Excited for the days ahead!
hi I am 15 yrs old and I have started to learn guitar and I really do hope I will be able play it better
I am 77 years old. I played saxophone in high school and college, but did not play again until I was 55. I had dabbled with guitar a couple times but never stayed with it. Four years ago I moved half way across the country. I left my saxes behind and decided I would learn guitar. I play acoustic at our senior center once a week. I have a decent grasp of most of the chords but I would like to go further than that.
Tony,
I am 61 years old, getting close to retirement.
Always wanted to play guitar, played bass for a couple years as a teenager but never serious. Thought I would now buy a 6 string and see if I could learn to play. My fingers do not move as easy as yours but maybe with some practice I can learn how to play. Thanks for your time and your help !
Steve
I started in a band at 16 – that’s 50 years ago – on the piano but became a Guitar George! I’ve started this course but found I don’t have the pressure or precision to play single notes so it’s taking me ages for each lesson. I hope they will be available after the course ends. Anyway, it;s going well but slowly. Thanks for the help, I’ll stick at it. David, Kent UK
tried it today 23 Sept….very good…will need practice for fluency though..ThaNKS…GOING TO CHECK TODAYS ITEM NOW 23.19…GOT A WINDOW
Hi Tony. This is what I have been yearning for, for yrs. I am a forever beginner and didn’t know how to move forward. I think this just might be it. It is intimidating, though you have really broken it down and made it simple. I may have to do day one more than one day before I can move to day 2.
I am stuck playing alternating bass chords or playing melody. Pretty boring and I’ve played for nursing homes. I gave up on guitar. I play melody on mandolin ,while my husband plays chords on dulcimer. I really like your first lesson. I need some fluff in my playing. I took a break during Covid and would love to get some new skills
Great first day! Thanks for giving me a chance to learn guitar at my age. (70) I am loving it! Majored in music in college years ago but never really mastered any instrument. Sad but true. This is my final push to enjoy playing music…for the sheer pleasure of it. Thanks for making this possible.
Hey, I’m excited about starting to play again! I was a touring musician many years ago (a couple of 80’s pop bands, then a traveling country group in the 90’s). Please rhythm guitar and keys. Then I stopped to raise my lovely set of triplets… so other than playing for them when they were little, I haven’t played at all in the last 25 years. Now I’m 60, and my hands have gotten stiff and clumsy. I really hope these little sessions help me get playing again. Maybe not to the degree I used to, but at least so that I can enjoy making music – maybe by the campfire, or maybe just in my corner of the basement?
I’ve been playing quite sometime.
Have a long story but I’ll leave you the meat and potatoes…
First off thank you.!
One of my fav songs is friend of the devil.!
I have 22 songs on Spotify.
Been writing, speaking, rapping for what seems my whole life., picked up a guitar as a child my grandad built. Always knew I wanted to play. Never put the time into. Though the past 5 years and especially the past 3 I’ve played everyday. My income comes from busking., I play a lot of shows., small, big, medium stages. And I play many hrs daily.
Recently seen your course and said ok… let’s stick through this one.!
Mostly self taught but willing to learn and listen, watch and focus.
One more thank you from the top and bottom of my heart.
Here’s to the 5 day course.
I’d say I’m more than amateur on guitar but my voice is where I really shine., as well my lyrical wordplay and cadence.
That said.. I really want to bring my guitar playing level up!
Sincerely
-Flash
Greetings and Salutations Tony-
I am a beginner; I have owned a guitar for 30 years. I’ve messed around from time to time trying but I lacked a program and consistency. I’m retired now so I have a better chance at getting consistent practice.
I live in Southwestern ND in a town called Dickinson. I’m hoping to be able to play the guitar in the beautiful Badlands of ND. It would be awesome if I could.
Shawn
This challenge looks super fun! Just a couple strings sounds amazing! I’m brand new to guitar- I’ve been trying to figure out chords and transitions and finger exercises etc. I basically feel like I have zero coordination along with being all pinky’s . BUT I’m still loving the process and get way too excited when I can make a chord sound good! This challenge is most likely over my head but I’m going to give it a shot anyway – I love your energy and encouragement on the process! Can’t wait to see what I can make happen – thanks for the awesome tutorials
Took a quick tutorial on how to do hammer on… very cool! Going to take me longer than a day to get good on this 1st lesson… very slow but getting there 🙂
Hi Tony, just wanted to say thank you for taking the time to do these video lessons. I have just recently retired and I mentioned to my wife I would like to learn how to play guitar so I can play for us in our retirement on the beach. So she bought me a guitar 10 months ago and I was instantly hooked. I am self taught . Practice at least 3 – 4 times a week. I know the open chords. Quite a few licks and everything is getting cleaner and chord transitions are improving with time. I play mostly classic rock. Still can’t put full songs together other than simple 2 or 3 chord songs, moving around on the fret board between chords and notes quickly and correctly is where I struggle. So I just keep trying to learn new licks and play them untill I get them clean with tempo and move on.. currently licks like intro to Layla, band on the run, feeling like making love, day tripper, we are the champions, etc. So this is where I am on my journey 10 months in. I am happy with my progress so far, but really inspire to be a real guitarist and I hope your lessons will get me there. Thanks again Tony
Hi Tony! Hi everybody! I’ve learned a bazillion songs over 45 years of playing but I haven’t gotten better at playing since high school. I taught myself how to play guitar for the most part. My musical journey started when I was forced to take piano lessons, which I hated as a youngster, then played trumpet in grade school, and chose to play violin as well. I can’t play any of those instruments anymore. Don’t ask me to (just kidding). I started out teaching myself guitar (at age 15, I bought my friend’s guitar for $50) using a Beatles songbook that had incorrect chords for some songs, a Wings Complete songbook, a Grateful Dead Anthology songbook, a Peter, Paul, & Mary songbook, a James Taylor songbook, a Dan Fogelberg songbook (not all songbooks at the same time – it was gradual), and then by listening to records and figuring out chords of different artists that were easy – like Bob Dylan. Sometimes the alternate tunings threw me off, like when trying to learn Neil Young and Jackson Browne. Now there’s Ultimate Guitar that has chords that are mostly correct, and I use a tuner. Before there were tuners I used a piano for the first note and then my ear. I probably lost my ear training because of using a tuner. I do not like tablature. I learned all my instruments using actual notes so that’s what I prefer. I know the notes of each string up past the 12th fret but I am not quick at it. I’d like to learn all the notes so I am able to go from string to string more easily if I ever learn to solo or learn double stops (I think I’m using the correct term). Anyway, I’m gonna try this method and see how it goes. This first exercise I am taking slowly. I hope I’ll be ready for whatever tomorrow brings. I’ll probably have to review today’s exercise before starting the new thing. Peace!
Hi Tony!
Name’s Alex, and I believe I fit into the category of “Lifelong Beginner” as you put it.
My parents paid for my guitar lessons when I was in Middle and Highschool, and I was the bad student who’s teacher saw potential in, but never practiced. I’ve decided to finally try my hand at music again, since my career now lies within the arts. (Voice Actor website below) It’s Day one and I’m already optimistic! Thank you for providing this opportunity to get back into what I had previously discarded out of apathy, self doubt, and shame! God Bless ya!
My mom was a piano teacher, and tried to teach me, though i wasn’t interested in playing piano. My dad however played guitar, and I loved when he played, and asked if he could teach me how to play guitar instead of learning piano. I was around 13, he sat me down, then after about 15 minutes he said “i can’t teach you, you have damn ‘girl hands'” Not the sort of thing a 13 year old boy wants to hear, but i digress, i didn’t try to learn for another 10 years. I saw a cheap yamaha acoustic at the local Sears one day, and decided to pick it up and teach myself. I love playing, though I have let it lapse quite a bit in recent years. Now my son (13 yo) is maybe interested in playing, so i’m trying to be more encouraging than my father was in that regard. Now my father has passed away, but before he died, we were able to play guitar together at family gatherings. He will deny my “damn girl hands” story, but I always joked with him about it. Now his guitar is hanging on my office wall with my other guitars.
I retired and bought a ukulele. I played every day and learned some basics. I found tons of stuff on YouTube and signed up for a years worth lessons. Worth it. I got to the point after 3 years that I started thinking about guitar. I dabbled when I was a teenager in the 70’s. Learning by ear off records. Had no idea about open tunings etc.. Took lessons, briefly. Then as the saying goes, life happened. School. Work. Couldn’t afford a good guitar. That is, one that had playable action. And my parents weren’t into helping, so it got set aside. Now that I’m retired, I can practice and put my work in. And I love it. Finding songs on YouTube is great. All the songs from the 70’s. That’s how I have been teaching myself. But I feel like something is lacking as far as form. And that’s why I am here. And also to pick up anything more you have to offer. I have a couple of issues that I am working through. Dupuytren’s Syndrome in both hands. Mildly. Had surgery on my fretting hand 3 years ago which shut down my Uke playing. I started playing again after 9 months. It was painful, but I was determined. My thumb won’t open up all the way now. Most people can form an “L” with their index and thumb. I can barely make the “J” shape. But I can play. It’s hard to press my thumb on the back of the neck for C chord shape and F. And about 3 months ago I found out I have Polymyalgia rheumatica. Makes everything stiff. But I still play. I’m on prednisone. So I’ll see what happens when I get off that. Bought a Yamaha CSF3M parlor. Love it. I also have a Lotus L-220. And 3 Uke’s. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. Thanks for your efforts and dedication.
I like your honest and straight forward approach. I love playing the guitar and feel like a lifelong student and admirer of the instrument and its limitless expression!
Hiya,
I’m a guitar beginner, what’s a ‘Hammer-on’ and how do you do it? I thought you’d start with naming the strings and explaining how to read Tab. I think this might be too advanced for me. Ger
Hi Tony. Yup, that’s me, a lifelong beginner. I played with some friends in my late teens, learned a few songs – strumming only, and ever since then I would pick up the guitar every once in a while, but nothing structured and no skill to speak of. I know a handful of chords, progressions and some runs. Heck, I have trouble remembering the names of the strings and notes. Any tips for that?
Anyway, back to your lesson.
Hi Miguel, Please reach out to TAC Support here: support@tonypolecastro.com They will be happy to tell you more about TAC – and how it can help you to achieve your guitar goals.
Hi Tony, our stories are eeerrily similar, I too am a goalie with big aspirations to play in the nhl, GO LEAFS, didn’t get the call up and started playing guitar when I was 25 years old, I consider myself a very amateur guitar player, I know the basic chords, A,E,C,D,EM,AM,F,G, no barre chords and as long as I play alone I sound ok lol, one of my biggest hurdles or better put “excuses” is my chording hand always seems to mute or muff the lower string, I will say that I think you have your work cut out for you teaching me but I really want this and I do believe I am capable, thank you in advance for getting me excited about attempting to finally be good enough to play in front of anyone, which I am to afraid to do at the moment, take care and thank you once again, Kurt
HI, Tony,
i am sorry. i did not realise at first it was for Acoustic Guitar, however I am using my Electric, so so far great
thank you
Kelvin aged 74