For a brief time as a child, I took piano lessons. Unfortunately, I was not able to continue, so my knowledge of the instrument only includes a sloppy rendition of "Mary Had A Little Lamb." Recently, I have been wanting to learn how to play an instrument. When my church was in need of a guitar player, I thought, "Sure, I'll do it. I'll teach myself to play." Here are a few things I've learned since starting.
1. Playing guitar hurts your fingers.
If you are thinking about playing guitar, I will warn you now: your fingers WILL hurt. It takes a while for the calluses to develop on your fingers, so the first few weeks are rough. If you keep at it, though, it does get better.
2. Learning a new instrument is not easy.
There is so much that goes into learning the guitar. You have to remember where to put your fingers, how to strum for different songs, how to read the music. It isn't something you can just pick up in a weekend. It takes a LOT of practice, but it's definitely worth it.
3. It's okay to fail.
I am very hard on myself. I hold myself to a high standard, so it was very difficult when I couldn't play a chord correctly, or I didn't get the strumming pattern right. It was hard to not get discouraged. But getting things wrong only motivated me to try harder. The failure turned into success because I refused to give up.
4. I should have paid more attention during music theory.
I have a basic understanding of notes and scales from music class in elementary and middle school, but I wish I knew more about the theory behind chords, strumming, and reading music. It's hard to learn it when you don't completely understand it.
5. I can discover new passions within myself.
I have always loved singing, but playing an instrument is not something I thought I'd ever be able to do. Now that I can play guitar, I found that it is my favorite outlet for creativity, stress, and fun. I am constantly itching to pick up my guitar at the end of the day to try a new song or practice new chords. I have a deeper appreciation for music than I ever did and I am so glad.
6. Always be open to learning something new
Because I didn't have a teacher, it was easy to think that it would be too hard to learn guitar. I realized that I can't be afraid to try new things. I found a great new hobby that I love, and I wouldn't have been able to do it if I was too afraid to start.
7. Youtube videos are extremely helpful.
There are Youtube tutorials for pretty much everything, including music tutorials. Watching someone break things down for you to follow along is super useful. It also helps to watch it over and over again when you can't quite get a strumming pattern or finger placement.
8. Having patience with yourself is important.
Learning to play guitar was not something I learned in a weekend - it took a lot of time to be able to play a distinguishable song, let alone sing along with it. I had to give myself the time to practice and develop the muscle memory in order to play. If you rush yourself, it will only leave you frustrated with yourself.
9. Strive for progress, not perfection.
I am a perfectionist, so it was really hard to see that I wasn't getting things exactly the way they sound when Taylor Swift plays it. It's easy to beat myself up about it, but I have to remind myself of how far I've come since I started. I only picked it up in January, and I can play quite a few songs. I may not be at the level of the pros, but I am going somewhere.
10. I am capable of a lot more than I think I am.
If you would have asked me last year if I thought I would ever learn to play an instrument, I probably would have said no way. I've always had a list of excuses stopping me from even looking into it. Now I have six months of guitar under my belt, I can say that I have potential if I don't cut myself off from possibility. I can play the guitar, and I can teach myself. If I can do this, what's stopping me from doing whatever else I can think of?
