Practice; is it a chore?

The key word you will hear your teacher use at the end of every guitar lesson is practice!

A lot of learners believe that if they book regular guitar lessons, the support from the teacher will be great enough to eliminate the need to practice. Some exceptionally talented learners may be able to ‘get by’ a series of lessons without putting in the work in-between, but these learners will be far from achieving their full potential.

I see the guitar lessons as a period of guidance and direction, and a chance to outline the tasks that must be completed during the week to achieve a particular musical goal. I believe the learning and achievement takes places during the students own time when they are putting a given task into practice. This is a chance for the learner to experiment with a given task, perhaps finding a preferred method or technique.

make your practice interactive and fun!

A common misconception is that you should spend hours upon hours practicing between guitar lessons. From my own experience of learning how to play guitar I have found that short and regular practice sessions are the most realistic and effective, in terms of developing musical skills and maintaining enthusiasm for learning your instrument.

Try making a chart with an allotted time to practice every day, for example 10 minutes in the evening.

Make it interactive;

• use colours
• tick it off

Make practicing guitar a part of your daily routine, like brushing your teeth or eating breakfast.

Practicing once a week for a significant period of time could make you more likely to being frustrated with a task, lose motivation, or just get achy fingers!