Finding the stepping stones across the creek

[tonyf60]

Hi

You don’t have to complete the skills courses they are a buffet as you put it.

The daily challenges work by each day Monday through to Friday Tony teaching a skill through the lens of a particular song. For example Technique , rhythm, improvisation, chord transition etc. These skills do not change although the song does. So by regularly turning up you practice the skill week after week.

Personally I have then chosen a song myself and practiced that with the skills I am learning, as the aim of the week is skill practice rather than song learning it seems to me, which I am happy with.

Hope this helps

[saddle.nut]

Hi Tony,

Thanks for your help here. I understand we have some latitude and choice as you say. Where I’m a bit wobbly is I started one of the daily challenge weeks on the wrong week, thinking I needed it to progress to the following week. I’ve completed 3 days (May 6,7,8 which I started on May 13. Today is May 15) I would like to finish the May 6 week I started and go on to the rest of the month. But the system seems to have updated me as having completed all 5 from last week and three from this week, which I haven’t. So I appear to be out of sync. I think. Does everybody do the same daily challenge, if they choose to do it, and is it marked completed even if you haven’t?

[tonyf60]

Hi

I must admit I have not heard of the stuff marking itself complete. I think the easiest way maybe to start on the daily challenges next Monday, and go from there. Most people do follow the same daily challenges. You can always mark any day as a favourite and go back to it anytime as it produces your own playlist in your profile

I am no expert here so others may think differently

[saddle.nut]

Hi again Tony, I think you’re right. Since I wanted a little structure and felt I was out of sync, I’ll start Monday as you say on that day’s and that week’s challenges and go from there. Thanks very much for helping me settle in. Cheers

[jumpinjeff]

hi saddlenut, this is neither a buffet nor a boot camp. It can be either but I use TAC as a gym for my fingers. While I was lifting in the finger gym I learned a whole buncha stuff I did not even realize I was learning. While getting strong enough to play guitar…I learned how to play the guitar. Not just one song, all the songs. But hey that is my journey. Hope you can find a dry stone in that somewhere. Here is one really big dry stone. Just because you don’t see it, does not mean it is there. Sometimes you are looking at something unfamiliar and don’t recognize its relativity and value. Then you get a bunch of these mystery thing together and suddenly they have context and together they start making sense. I had to mull things over many times before I saw the patterns emerging. Whoa!, was that fun.

[saddle.nut]

Hey jumpinjeff,

Now my head’s spinning, but in a good way, a
Spinoza way. I didn’t foresee a metaphysical reply flying in. I appreciate your
dry rock philosophy: not seeing it doesn’t mean it’s there. Well said, sir. We
are on our own journey, and TAC is perhaps a cornucopia of seeds and jewels,
ways and sums. I’m always trying to figure out the mystery from facts, before
context is established. Thanks for reminding me to back off the magnifying
glass and catch the whole sunrise.

[TerriG]

Hi Saddle.nut,

Welcome to the family. Starting Monday, you should dive into the daily challenge – I believe it is a Vibrato challenge next week according to the calendar. In the meantime, try to do “Ain’t No Sunshine” benchmark for this month. Since you’ve already play guitar, this benchmark will give you an idea of your skill sets. Remember to record yourself so you have a comparison when the song repeats itself four months from now. Even if the benchmark was marked complete, don’t worry about it. The lessons are still there and you can access them. Remember to “favor” them so you have access to them in your account. Good luck to you and you’ll find there are many people hanging out at the daily challenges to aid you in that forum.

[saddle.nut]

Hi TerriG

Thank you for your kind words of welcome. I actually did start (and finished) the Vibrato challenge this week and stepped over to Ain’t No Sunshine too which I’ll finish this weekend. Even though I only saw your post today I appreciate your reassurance and guidance.

[Loraine]

@saddle.nut Great to have you here. Everyone has given some great advice. I’ll try and be brief, but knowing myself that’s probably not going to happen.. This is your journey, so however you want to approach any of the lessons is up to you. TAC is a foundational site,; meaning that it teaches the foundation skills and knowledge necessary to then branch out and play more effectively.

As for the week being checked as completed when they weren’t, that is a technical issue that Victoria and the Tech group can look into. I e never heard of it happening before, and I’ve been here several years. I have heard people comment on lessons being marked as favorites, but the people insist they didn’t take that weeks lessons or a particular lesson. That is very possible, because many of the courses do rotate back around. If you marked it as a favorite the first time through, it would still show that

It is not necessary to take the skills courses first. The skills courses can or cannot be chosen by you to take. There is absolutely nothing that directs people to take all the skills courses before the Dailies. Most people go through the 30 days to play, the next 6 chords, and then they start to look at skills course, the dailies, Fretboard Wizard, or whatever interests them. As previously mentioned. This is your journey, so make it what you want it to be, within the confines of what Tony offers.

<font face=”inherit”>Finally, TAC is not capable of developing a curriculum for each individual member. There are outright beginners on the site (as I was when I started) to those that have played for years or even decades. The challenges are interspersed throughout the material taught. Some is easy and others more difficult. The goal </font>is<font face=”inherit”> to progress through disciplined practice on a daily reprieve. </font>

Hope this helped answer some of your concerns.

.

[saddle.nut]

Hi Loraine,

Thank you for the welcome, and your explanation helps. As I’ve become more familiar with the environment and taken pointers from other members, I no longer feel out of step. I’m able to enjoy the journey more as I begin to settle in to the routine. Had the jitters about keeping up but I think that’s passing. I’m trying to complete all of May’s lessons, though I started the second week. I look forward to every day’s learning and guitar playing. I appreciate your taking time to give me your insights. All the best.

[Mrfredsporty]

When you go to a buffet you are exposed to quite a banquet.here you are exposed to a banquet of sounds, feelings and techniques.if you sample them you will gradually have more and more tools in your toolbox which will eventually lead you to be able to make more things. It takes a while for this to sink in. You don’t have to know it all . Just obey the number 1 rule which is (say it with me now),”SHOW UP!”

[saddle.nut]

I am and trust you are too, Mrfredsporty: showing up. I appreciate your encouragement. Judging by the help you and others supplied, it feels like a very supportive and knowledgeable family here. I’m happy to be a part of it. Thank you.