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.
I’m a 70-year-old total beginner from Colorado. Newly retired and looking for something to do when I’m not fishing.
Today went well! Thanks!
Thanks Tony, I’m a 63 year old struggling beginner in Northern England. I find it very hard to read tab and also some of the language like ‘hammer on’ is foreign to me. I managed it though thanks to your slow mo video! I’m not getting any sound when I hammer on the 5th fret? Are you using semi-acoustic?
Keep up the great work and thanks again.
Hey Tony, I’m 78, (in years only, lol) first picked up the guitar in 1966. I was comfortable jamming with friends through the late 60s and early 70s until I got married. Swore I was getting back to it 1000s of times over the years, with very little success. I started your challenge today and feel like a total beginner. I think for me, along with meeting the goal of the 5 days, will be to get the old hands back into shape. Glad I found your challenge, I have high hopes.
Working through the first challenge. I am brand new at this.
Returning after months away taking cancer treatment.
You’re moving way too fast without explaining the finger and fret moves. Having watched other teachers this is very confusing on video. You need to slow down and assume people know nothing.
Hi Tony
I’ve been playing for 30 years but have felt stuck and limited for most of that time. I fumbled my way through the first exercise and in the past would have been really frustrated about not being able to finger the notes accurately. Looking forward to the rest of the week
Hey Tony, I’ve been taking lessons for 10 years, starting out late in life. although I have played in dozens of the adult rock shop groups that my school offers, I have felt stuck. With a lot of vacation time happening over the next couple of months, I paused my lessons but wanted something to help motivate me to play while I’m away, so I’m giving this a try.
Great first lesson! I’m a 64 yr old newbie from Toronto – have dabbled a bit, can play a handful of chords but still struggle changing chords in time. Really like the idea of stacking progress. Thank you!
Hey Tony, Really excited to be here. I’m playing in Surrey, England.
Beginner really but jumping in and out for years. I struggle with the pic, prefer to pic/play with my fingers. Is this okay?
Thanks
Love the 5day challenge . I’m going to sign up for the rest of the course ! Any advise or exercises to loosen up the wrist and or fingers ? I just don’t have the flexibility. Or will it come the more I play ? Thank you !!
I did it!! Slowly….but I did it!! At first, I was like “what?” I don’t even know what you’re talking about, but then I just did it! Thanks!!!!
Small win?…tried to do it! […for the 1st time-since i started ‘looking’ …early in December…]
Picking it back up after years away as a dabbler.
Started a couple of days late due to holidays and not checking emails
Fingers sore, but smiling
Thanks Tony
Played in a band in the 80’s. Then life happened and I put the guitar down except for rare occasions. As I pick up now, I have forgotten much.
I am good with the notes but I have only gotten the picking down correctly when playing slowly.
Former bass player in high school, 40+ years ago. Just picked up acoustic guitar – fired up to learn it into retirement
A hammer on is not an easy thing for a day one beginner
Got behind a day and trying to catch up. The clear instructions and encouragement are greatly appreciated! Having a challenging moving my fat fingers around the strings, but practice makes perfect!
I’m a 56 year old beginner. I have dabbled a little, but would definitely be classified as a beginner.
New beginner
I was sick yesterday so I’m a day behind. I have been practicing most of the major cords without playing any song. Not able to play bar cords.
stuck in a rut
I am an intermediate guitar player…. I read tab, finger pick…. love the course so far.
I’m a person whose life was geared around music for 20 years. Now I’m a dabbler. I’ve always wanted to play guitar, it’s more portable and independent than my other instruments and it just never felt clear to me. Following this video helped pieces fall into place and I’m excited to not only establish good habits while learning stuff that sounds good, but also to understand guitar more deeply than just learning a couple cords to do a mediocre job with a song. Yippee!
Have been a dabbler for 8 – 9 years, have not touched my guitar for a year due to moving and remodeling the new place. Your approach on the first day really pushed me. I am 76 so you’ve got a challenge ahead of you.
Brand new to guitar and to that pattern from Grateful Dead. It took a while for me to get the rhythm done with the pick hand but I got it. Had to watch the video several times- just watching pick at first and then just watching the fret hand. Slow speed was super helpful. I got it except maybe the hammer part. I was picking on that part when I think I should only be switching fret place. When I did that I did not get much sound though. Biggest challenge other than getting rhythm was my middle finger hitting two strings on the fret! Lots of mistakes!
I use to play in college, haven’t “played” in 40 years. I did not see tabs.
That was definitely different, bu I gained confidence as I practiced.
I’m new, to Guitar (less than a year)
Got started with G4V. Love learning, and it helps with my PTSD and depression. I’m 67 in February coming up, just playing for family and friends.
Oof. I want so badly to make one pleasant sound. I’m BRAND new, having inhereted my stepdad’s guitar after his recent passing. I touched it twice when I was 5yo.
I don’t know how to hold it, I can’t keep my fat fingers out of the way of the strings. I had to play it at .06 a million times just to get the picking and finger movement in my brain, let alone actually try to do it. Are you sure it’s possible to do this from new? Challenge accepted and I’ll be back tomorrow, but my wrists will be cramped. lol
I haven’t played in years, and I am self twilight with some bad habits. I only know the basic chords.
When I scrolled down I didn’t find the box where I could slow or speed up, or see tabs.
Hey Tony. New player here. 50 years old and picked up the guitar two months ago after a shoulder injury kept me out of the gym. I was able to hit all the notes reasonably well. I had not considered picking on the upstroke before. I used it after the lesson on some scales and it was a light bulb moment!
I almost got it . 30 year beginner. Played first position strum songs before that. 64 I’ve never done a hammer on
Hi Tony – I am a soon to be 65 year old Christian Worship leader vocalist that was previously a classic rock lead vocalist in the 80’s with choppy bar chord rhythm skills that has a “love” for guitar (1 acoustic and 4 electric on the wall). I have been self taught and dabbling since by leveraging downloaded charts, background tracks, and numerous youtube videos. However, I do not have a solid foundation of the full fretboard, harmonies, melodies, rhythm patterns, theory or technique. Your first lesson and course is intriguing, and I am happy to share that I have nailed the first Day One : Technique. Looking forward to seeing what’s next!
Brand new, 58 years old. Having a hard time just getting my fingers in the right spot, and I’m not certain my tuning is matching yours, which is a struggle.
I grew up listening to my dad fingerpick songs by James Taylor, America, and John Denver. When I was around 12, I started playing around on an old classical guitar my dad had lying around. I could mimic songs he had played and then I started playing tabs from artists I loved, like the Indigo Girls, Nancy Griffith, and Patti Griffin. Coming from classical piano lessons to just trying to figure out the guitar on my own felt freeing, but I never grew to understand music theory or rudiments very well. I just wanted to play well fast (ah, the impatience of youth) Today was a nice start at what I hope will encourage me to continue playing daily after a couple years dry spell. Thank you!
Brand new at picking enjoyed the challenge very much
I just turned 70 and I’ve been strumming off and on for years, but I’ve been stuck on the first 3 or 4 frets for the most part. Even so, I found the first lesson a bit awkward, so I will need to work on the finger positions. I plan to move forward with the 5-day lessons and then decide if I will continue on.
Super excited for a successful, easy, fun day of playing guitar! I put in my ten minutes and a little more. Then, later in the day, I wanted to pick up my guitar and play some more, so went for another 10!!
I’m an old guy coming back to guitar after about, um.. 40 years. I was convinced I just wasn’t cut out to be a musician, though I love music obsessively. A couple of years ago I took up banjo thinking it would be easier and I enjoy finger picking but again, I got frustrated over a lack of progress. Now I’m trying guitar again, I like your concept; don’t try to be perfect, just play.
Seemed totally beyond me to start with but I slowed the video down and feel like got somewhere. I recommend a tune up before starting!
Like Willie I’m finding the video etc really clunky.
Web site really slow to respond on my ipad. I will try my laptop tomorrow.
I’ve been strumming songs for 50 years.
Recently started having lessons as I just want to be better. Doing my best to learn fingerstyle.
This felt like WAY too much to learn in one day; I’m gonna need at least a week to learn just this. I have to work two jobs today, so will have little time to actually practice this, and knowing that tomorrow is going to build on what I’m SUPPOSED to be learning today feels overwhelming. I think I’d rather move at a MUCH slower pace, where I have at least a week to learn each little nugget, and time to practice and digest it all. Learning something this complex every single day is too much for my overloaded brain to take in.
Some trouble and time taken up getting my guitar somewhat tuned with yours. My old tuner wouldn’t work, even with new batteries. Have always had problems with finger strength and could not get but a muffle out of the hammer. Is it fair to pick instead? I always blame the guitar strings or type of guitar and have never been able to efficiently press down the strings. Love the teaching method. I tried many in my youth. I’m now 72 with arthritic fingers, but I feel your method may finally work for me, especially since I now have time to dedicate to the skill and realize it’s the daily persistence that slowly leads to results.
Clunky not clingy. I’m 74 and have been dabbling for 8 months – I had hoped to gain structure from this programme
I’m one of the old guys, who played for years, never got where I wanted to, despite dedicated and intense practice and finally gave up. I started in 1972 as a college sophomore, quit some time in the 80s. I went by the old saying about the definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result. So I didn’t beat myself up or feel like a failure. I knew I’d given it all I could and then some. I felt I had to face the fact that I simply didn’t have ‘it’ (whatever ‘it’ may be, talent, musicality…).
Then during the COVID lockdowns decided to give it another shot and ordered a cheap acoustic online and started up. Surprisingly, a lot of the muscle memory was still there and I could finger the chords and run the pentatonic scales, and some of the runs and leads I had learned. I could even play from memory some fingerpicking pieces I knew (My Creole Belle by John Hurt, one of my all time favorites to play) which amazed me and kept me motivated. I even found some of the old books online I’d learned from, now out of print, so I could refresh those songs I used to know. And I’m just having fun with no expectations of perfection.
All good so far…but as before I had trouble going past that. I realized that my interests were too varied and my focus too scattered to make real progress to a deeper understanding of how to make music with the instrument. Not just rote memorization, which I never could quite nail despite 1000s of repetitions. I had to laugh in your long video when you showed the montage of all the books you’d bought. I have a giant stack of them, many uncracked. Bluegrass, country-traditional folk flat picking, acoustic, electric and slide blues, fingerpicking, etc. etc. Another love is lap slide guitar, I originally wanted to be a pedal steel player, so I have books on Hawaiian, Blues, and country. So you see the problem. I lacked focus and direction. I needed to learn how to learn. And that’s why your description of your approach and your in depth study of the psychology of learning, really resonated with me. I’m really excited to get a plan in place and follow it.
54 dabbled for years off and on finally gave up because I figured i just don’t have the natural ability needed to be good at it. Haven’t touched my guitar for years.
Been playing for many years, just want to get better. I want to learn more guitar theory and technique so I can grow and not just play at a basic level. Appreciate the tools/advice you provide to make the learning experience easier (controlling speeds of practice videos, tab options) I’m looking forward to tomorrow, thanks for sharing Tony.
Been trying to play guitar for years (electric) using YouTube, rocksmith and books and always get stuck in the same place then give up. I decided to go and get an acoustic and came across you, thanks Facebook. I have found 2 other online tuitions that offer some free lessons so I’m going to try them all to see what works best for me before committing. Today’s lesson was nice and easy to follow I just need to get used to have a massive guitar under my arms and I’m sure I will do fine lol
I’ve tried guitar on and off for 50 years! This is my last attempt, so I hope it goes well! 🙂