[Bayvu2]

Well David, The fact is Guitar is hard. I have been with TAC for over 2 years now. I know what my guitar playing sounded like 2 years compared to now and its a world of difference. I know I will continue to get better if I stick with it. Am I where I want to be with Guitar…. Heck NO! But I have final found a program that I have stuck with for over 2 years, and I have been trying for 35 years.

When I started a couple of years ago, I would listen to the challenge and then try to play along. Because most lessons are in the 10 minute range, I would tell myself, “Steve you played for 10 minutes.” Now I do the challenge, and when it is over, I set my timer on my phone for 10 minutes and either spend that time on the challenge or just practice different chord transitions and strum patterns.

Give it a chance. You will get out of the program what you put in. Stick with it and keep on strumming!

[David2458]

Thank you for the encouragement! I am better than I was when I started, I just seem to convince myself that I should be better. It a marathon and not a sprint, just need to be less critical of myself.

[the-old-coach]

David—

(your words)— “I’ll never get better, I’m not progressing as I should, my skills are nowhere near where I thought they would be….”

It seems you are buried in your own (self) expectation. You are comparing yourself to where you think you should be……

And that has never— and will never— work.

Look– I completely understand…. we all completely understand- (and have ALL been where you are right now!). But this is not about time. It’s not a race (against your own expectations).

Learning to play is S-L-O-W, because it’s supposed to be. There is a LOT of unusual information going into your brain right now, and your brain needs time to absorb it, period.

Good news is— actually— you are in a great spot in your guitar-journey!

Go slow.

FOCUS on everything– the TAC method is a good one– let it do its magic!

Pay close attention– (I mean really close attention) to every single movement of your hands; and every single sound you hear for your guitar. Feedback is the key!

Learn accuracy over speed; your brain will learn the habits you teach it– (but– they can be good habits or bad habits).

Your brain will pick it all up and store it– automatically!- (you just may not know it yet).

Give it some time/ lose all the “expectation-pressure”

Forget the destination/ enjoy the scenery of the trip!

Hang in there David— you are not alone— we are ALL there for you!

• This reply was modified 1 week, 1 day ago by  the-old-coach.
• This reply was modified 1 week, 1 day ago by  the-old-coach.

[David2458]

Thank you! I needed to hear that. Sage advice that I will cherish!

[petelanger]

@David2458 Hi! A year learning guitar sounds like it’s a long time but it really isn’t. I started late like many here, now I’m 2 years into my journey and on the one hand I really suck as a player. On the other hand I’m light years ahead of where I started. Real growth will occur if you are consistent enough at doing the right things. TAC has the best formula IMO because it’s not complicated: show up and do the challenge daily. Most other online sites have waaaaaay toooooo mannnnnny options and you get bogged down not practicing what needs to get practiced.

You definitely need to REFRAME your perception. Instead of having the focus on what you can’t do, look at all the things you are able to right now. I regularly get blown away by the stuff I’m suddenly capable of, that only a little while ago seemed impossible.

There’s a lot more I could say but much has been said already and I don’t want to make it seem too preachy! Rock on David!

[David2458]

Awesome! Yes, a perspective change is a great point. I appreciate the encouragement.

[David2458]

If I had read earlier posts on the Community page, I probably wouldn’t have published this thread. It seems that a whole lot of people are experiencing or have experienced the negative thoughts I mentioned. The advice given for all are great, but what has stuck out for me is that comparing myself to a future self as an accomplished guitar player is a futile excercise. I will always want to get better no matter how much I have learned. Taking things slow is also something I am applying to my playing sessions. If I learn to play it slow, then I can iron out the mistakes and not carry them with me when I increase the tempo. I had a really great session yesterday with the 12 bar blues riffs and the boom chicka strumming by playing them slowly. TAC is awesome and thank you to all who gave me encouragement! It helped tremendously.

[Skyman911]

Frustration is a natural part of the process, and frustration will continue to happen at various stages in your guitar journey. I don’t think we would get better without frustration and perceived failure. For some, it motivates them to get better, and they work a little harder, and play a little longer. For some others, they give up. If you’ve been playing for over a year, you’re past the point where most people quit. I would call that a major win. I try to accept the fact that I WILL get frustrated. Whether working on a complicated song, chord, or combination of both. I’m cursed with being a perfectionist, and when I get this way, I just walk away for a minute, just being aware of my frustration, but not dwelling on anything. Once I’ve allowed the emotion to peak and recede, I jump back into it.

I’m just over 5 years in. Almost three with TAC. I do remember how I felt the first couple of years. It was pretty difficult, I was lost, but I got through, and I know you can too. The magic is about to happen.

[David2458]

Thanks, Skyman! I, too, am a perfectionist. I didn’t realize how much until I started working in the Electrical Utility industry. It has been a source of frustration, but I have also found it to be helpful when I am problem solving. But you are right, if I walk away from it for a while, it gets better. Congratulations on 5 years!

[Sean S]

David,

I am no expert. I have played Bass for 30 years along with several brass instruments. About two years ago I started trying to learn guitar. I want to play acoustic mainly for myself but would like to play with others accassionaly. I had no structure for the first year. Then I found and tried the TAC 30 day challenge. Having the focused routine really hit a chord (pun intended) with me. I have been using TAC for about 10 months now and my playing has been getting better and better. I am still not a good guitarist but the routine of TAC has been what I needed. There are weeks where I struggle and weeks where I don’t struggle as much. There are weeks where I am not that interested in the type of music were are working on, but even on those weeks I stay interested and learn something.

I look forward to the lesson 5 days a week. I am to the point now that after I have completed the lesson I will play for a while working on other stuff. For me, the struggle has been real but the enjoyment has increased every week.

Finish the 30 day challenge and see how you feel. Try not to compare your playing to anyone elses playing. Compare your playing today to you playing a month ago.

Hang in there!

[David2458]

Thank you! I’m glad to hear that using TAC has improved your guitar playing. I actually had one of my best sessions this morning. I was able to play 2 of the 12 bar blues at 1x speed without any mistakes. I have also improved my chord transitions and my strumming is getting a little better. I realize that some days are better than others, but it really makes you want to play more when you can see improvement. Wishing you all the best on your guitar journey!

[petelanger]

That’s the way, @David2458 .

Just look for little nuggets you can take away from each Challenge (or lesson if you’re not in the Daily Challenges yet). I remember when I started it was the smallest of things. I could only do one or 2 measures in the time I gave myself. Then Thursday would come around and I couldn’t even get started. I would go back and repeat Monday – Wednesday, try to get a little further than I had. I would keep doing that through the weekend and then start the next week’s challenges. It didn’t take long until I could go through the whole week and at least play everything, if only at .5 speed and with a lot of mistakes. But always try to find some aspect that went well. There almost always is something if you give it your best effort for at least 10 -15 minutes, but you might not see it in the moment. It might come to you as your repeating on Saturday or Sunday that “oh my goodness, that little section there is sounding quite musical”. Or “I can remember the first 5 bars of that lick, I still make mistakes but I know what I should be doing”

[David2458]

Pete,

Yeah, little wins go a long way in keeping the desire to improve on track. Thanks for the advice!

[jumpinjeff]

Great post, thanks for putting it up….going through it is inspirational….keep playing David. I am gonna go play more.

[David2458]

Awesome! Let’s have some fun on the guitar.