It is already the second week of 2021, but it is never too late to get inspired for some more New Year’s resolutions or to adjust the ones you have already set. Here are some goals that would benefit a great deal to any guitarist – no matter a beginner or an advanced player. Take a look and adopt right away ones that fit you!
Practice technique regularly – Whether you’re preparing for gigs, or just want to stay in top shape, technical exercises are your friends. Not the most pleasant of friends, but the ones that push you to be your best self. And you can only hang out with them for 10 minutes at a time 😀 so you’ll be able to manage this!
Learn Something New Each Week – even if it’s not a full song, or just doing something easy. After all variety is the spice of life 🙂
Join a Guitar Club – doing your hobby is great, but joining a club like our Guitar Family will make sure that you are held accountable to your goals. Also, you can always rely on your club members to back you up whenever you feel uncertain about something and have any questions, or just for a safe-space filled with like-minded people where you can share your progress.
Try a new genre – have you tried playing country? Or jazz? Or metal? Or classical? Pick a new genre just to tip your toes and explore what expressions and techniques are different in this genre. This will not only broaden your horizon, but also improve your overall technique and therefore your playing in the genres you love.
Read More Books – Do you want to improve on your skills? Get a book filled with notes so you can sight-read, or a book on theory or the neuroscience of music, so you better understand what lies behind the thing we love. Or just something lighter like the story of your favourite guitarist. It’s always great fun to read what people went through to get to where they are.
Plan a home concert – whether it is online, you’re alone or with people, planning a concert at home can help you stay focused on the songs you want to learn. If you set a clear date when you’d like to do a 15/30 minute or even 1h concert, you’ll also have that date to look forward to. And you can invite people closer to the time if you feel like you’d like to brave an audience, or you can just record yourself, so you’ll be able to look back on your progress from that moment in time 🙂
Share your resolutions one-on-one – “Some research shows that telling others your goal makes you feel like you’ve already achieved it,” says Dr. Oz. But other studies indicate that sharing progress can help you keep going, he adds. Dr. Oz’s advice: “Confide in one friend, then share achievements with others when you’re on the road to success.” And you can always share your goals or success in our Guitar Family. I love seeing you achieve your goals!
Invest in your Guitar Maintenance – grab a good pack of strings (you can see my recommendations at the Musician Toolbox), and if you don’t have this already, grab some fretboard oil, nut sauce to lubricate the nut and the bridge of your guitar and a good cloth. That way you can clean your guitar, take care of the fretboard wood and make everything feel brand new! And if you don’t want to do this yourself, head to your local guitar shop and ask for a set-up. They will also be able to adjust the neck of your electric or acoustic guitar and give your instrument some needed TLC.
Keep Healthy – take some walks or try out Yoga – that way you will keep your mind at ease, which does wonders for your focus when playing the guitar. You can also try lifting weights – this can do wonders for your durability while playing standing up, or just moving your gear 😀
Build a Budget for a New Guitar/Gear – what’s up with that guitar you’ve been dying to get? You can totally do that this year by planning ahead and creating a savings budget. Make sure that it is viable in the long run and you can stick to it.
Are any of these goals already on your list? Which ones will you add after reading them here? We are waiting for you over at our Guitar family to tell us! We would love to hear also if you have ideas for what we should add to the list.
The featured photo is by Haley Powers on Unsplash.