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How I TAC. Patrick T.
How many days per week do you play?
My target is five days a week, but for almost two years now, I’ve been able to play seven days a week. When I’ve traveled and haven’t been able to take a guitar, friends and relatives have helped me get access to one. On weekends, I like to review the previous weeks lessons and work on incorporating them into my playing.
What time of day do you play?
The vast majority of the time between 9 and 10 a.m. I’m retired and that time slot works well. If I have an appointment that conflicts with that time, I’ll make a note of scheduling my TAC time for a fairly specific time during that day (I might decide to get up a little early and play, or set a specific time after the appointment). I found that helps me stay on track.Where do you play?
In our downstairs den. I keep my guitar on a stand in that room and also have access to my desktop. I have a shelf that holds my collection of picks, capos, cords and tuners. (My guitar arsenal is limited to one, but I have enough capos for a guitar orchestra.)
What was your guitar life like before having a guitar routine & how has implementing a consistent guitar routine helped you
I can’t overstate how important the TAC routine has been in my improvement. Before I started, my “routine” wasn’t really one at all. A couple of times a week, I’d pick up my guitar, noodle through the same songs and things I’d always done, and maybe do a Google search and see if I could find a lesson or suggestion online. Fortunately, one of the lessons I found was one of Tony’s and it led me to sign up for TAC.
Three ways the routine has helped me include:
- Consistency: I now actually have a routine. As I noted above, I play virtually every day and the TAC format gets me trying new things and not noodling through the same old stuff.
- Broadening my horizons. When I first started, I tended to work through the lessons very diligently. As time passed, I found that the lessons had become just a starting point. I began changing up the timing on licks, adding notes, and looking forward to coming up with solos on “scale” days. And while I don’t tend to post a lot in the forums or discussions, I always read through them and am amazed at the gems and suggestions I pick up from fellow TAC members.
- Finger and flat picking. If there’s one thing I’m happiest about, it’s my improvement in these areas. I used to joke that I wasn’t a guitar player, I was a guitar strummer, because chords strumming was just about all I did. That has really changed.
<b style=”font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit;”>What is one non-guitar item that is a must have in your guitar routine?
I’m with Tony on this one. My second (or third) cup of coffee goes down to the den with me, and helps fuel my routine. I also keep a notepad and pen handy, so I can jot down questions and ideas that occur to me during a TAC session.
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