Guitar for the absolute beginner: jerks in music stores and why I suck at golf
Seth Godin wrote an excellent book a couple of years ago called The Dip. He explains that crucial phase of development that separates the pro from the amateur and the expert from the novice. It’s a quick read and it’s inspiring. I highly recommend it.
But there’s another phenomenon that happens with playing guitar (and I’m sure a lot of other pursuits). It looks like Seth Godin’s “dip” but something else is going on here. There are a LOT of people who like the idea of playing the guitar, and an entire culture of guitar has developed as a result. There are bazillions of well-intentioned magazines and websites out there offering tips and tricks. They are probably helpful in context, but they are often contradictory and , when taken together, tend make playing the guitar a confusing proposition. Then there are the punk kids in music stores copping an attitude when you walk in. They act like you have to be in a special club to play guitar.
These things all support the idea that playing guitar is some kind of mystical thing, that it’s really hard, and it’s only for the select few. The clouds have to part, the anointing oil is placed on your head, and suddenly, you are - A GUITARIST.
Let me let you in on a little secret: while it does take a little bit of work initially, PLAYING GUITAR IS NOT THAT HARD.
If you can do any of the following, you can play guitar:
- bowl with a hook
- drive a car with a manual transmission
- shoot 100 in golf
- save the princess on Super Mario Brothers (OK I threw that one just for the random factor)
OK, so I intentionally chose activities that I myself cannot do. But the people that can all say something along the lines of “it’s not that hard - you just have to put a little bit of work into it.” And that’s all I’m saying when it comes to the guitar.
In the case of golf, I’ve never broken 100, but I used to play. Kind of a lot. But I never practiced. I spent a LOT of time in the sand, but very little time in the practice area. I spent a lot of time in the woods, but very litte time on the driving range.
You see where I’m going? I think a lot of people do this. They want to play guitar, but they don’t spend any time practicing guitar.
If you spend a little bit of time practicing, you can play.
In the coming weeks, I’m going to do a series entitles “Guitar for the Absolute Beginner”. I will, hopefully, explain how just about anybody, if they put a little bit of focused effort into it, can be playing guitar in just a few weeks time. I hope some of you will take up the challenge!
If you enjoyed this post you might like these:
- 5 Ways You Can Play Guitar Faster Right Now
- Can you learn to play guitar by playing Guitar Hero?
- Guitar for the Absolute Beginner, # 1: Make a practice plan to ensure your success
- The next level
- The learning curve and guitar lessons at sea
