Hi everyone, I am a recurring returning student. I have tried learning to play the guitar since i was in my teens but always failed. Finding this Justine guitar course has made me think that I may be able to learn.
I am working through the beginner module 3 and trying to play along to a song.
I would love to know if there are learners who meet online to help each other.
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Welcome to the forum Keith. Everyone on the forum help each other though the lessons. Each lesson has its own thead connected through the website to the forum. Feel free to ask anytime you need help.
You can start your own Learning Log Learning Logs to keep track of your progress. It allows others to see your progress and give you better advice by getting to know you better.
You also find many people here with a similar guitar story.
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Hi Keith,
Welcome in the forum, Iāve just tried to learn the strumming pattern for the song: āYou do something to meā (Paul Weller), and saw your question.
I think if you are not yet used to strumming, you should start with a paper thin pick first, then gradually when your confidence grows, you can use thicker picks. The thickest picks I use currently are the yellow ones from Dunlop I guess. I started with their white ones, then got the grey ones, red ones and finally these yellow ones. It also depends on the song. Currently, Iām using a white pick (the paper thin ones) again for the song Tequila Sunrise (Eagles) as the thicker ones get stuck in the strings sometimes.
Hope you have a good start-over, take the course(s) one by one, practice a lot, register your own progress, and youāll have a lifetime of fun ahead of you. Regards,
Chris
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Hello Keith & welcome!
Iām 60, have been āplayingā for years & when I discovered Justinās online lessons about a year ago, I couldnāt believe how much I didnāt know! Some tipsā¦
- Try to pick up the guitar and practice for at least 10-15 minutes every day!
- Keep the guitar handy, on a stand or hanging on the wall so that when you have a few extra minutes (I pick mine up while waiting for the coffee to brew in the morning) just strum that new pattern or a scale, etc.
- Listen to music with an ear for chord changes, strumming/picking patterns and song structureā¦ itāll help with your level of understanding !
- Follow the lesson plan Justin has laid out, it really, really, really works!!!
Good luck with your guitar journey, remember that itās not a sprint, itās a marathon! 
Tod
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Oh, to address your initial question, are you thinking of something like a āZoomā meeting to practice together or helping/tutoring each other with problem areas in each otherās playing?
I donāt know of anyone doing that here but Iām still a bit of a newbie with the Community siteā¦
Maybe one of the veterans here can help!
Tod
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Welcome, Keith. Iām in my 60s as well and really just started in January. I donāt know about meeting online, I am sure some may be able to do that, but we do ask and answer lots of questions and post photos and videos to help each other along.
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Hey Keith welcome I am 53 and been with Justin for 9 months and learned a lot with strumming. I struggled with that so I bought the strumming course and suggested that for anyone that needs strumming help . I am interested in helping and practice with anyone via online or meet up. Let me know and good luck.
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Hi Keith,
Welcome here and I wish you a lot of fun 
And as advised, start a learning log and ask the questions you want to ask (also outside your Learning Log) and the answers will come
Greetings,Rogier
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Hey Keith
Welcome to the forum. We all do our best on here to help each other along to better guitar goodness.
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Welcome aboard, Keith! Glad you joined us. 
As mentioned by the others already, weāre all here to connect and help each other. 
For the moment, I wish you loads of fun on your journey!
Cheers - Lisa
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Hi Keith and welcome to the community. You wonāt go far wrong by following Justinās beginner course and I really hope that it works for you this time. I donāt know if any folks here actually meet online but I myself had many skype and zoom lessons when I first started playing. Good luck.
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Hi Keith,
Nice to meet you. Good luck with your guitar journey.
Best wishes,
Alan
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Hello Keith and welcome to our community.
If you stick with Justinās course Iām sure you will achieve what you are wanting to on the guitar.
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Another welcome Keith, hope youāre having fun! My advice to your question, get involved with the Community here and get to know a few of the people, no doubt youāll find some kindred spirits whoād be happy to meet and do something online. What I would not suggest though is trying to play together online (ie at the same time), internet delays just wonāt make it practical or good, but perhaps as sounding boards and reciprocal live feedback it could be a good shout.
Either way enjoy
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Keith, welcome to the community. As others have said you can get help and advice on playing guitar on this site. I also agree with the advice that Justin recommends to start with a thin flexible pick and use simple strums at first. You can practice strumming while lightly holding your fingers down on the fretboard to deaden the strings so you can focus on strumming. I still do that to practice strumming. It takes time but eventually strumming will feel natural and you can strum without thinking about it. Have fun learning your beginning songs.
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Hello Keith.
Welcome to JustinGuitar and the Community. Itās great you have found Justinās lessons, he offers structure and a sure path to follow from the very beginning. Thousands and thousands have learned using his lessons. If you need any help with a lesson specific question or with any general guitar learning question then do not hesitate to ask. Every lesson on the website has a video lesson, written content to supplement it, an orange click-button to take you to a Community topic for Q&As about the lesson etc.
There are many good folk here who will happily offer help and encouragement to those coming up behind them on Justinās Beginner Courses. They embody and carry the pay-it-forward ethos we have nurtured for many years in our community. There are many old hands too who have years and (hopefully) a bit of wisdom they can bring as they give their support to those hitting the road blocks - which we all do.
Hopefully this tip topic I wrote will help you. Many people have issues when going from chord changes in isolation to chord changes at a tempo and in a consistent time when playing to a song or backing track.
Just ask if you need anything.
Cheers
| Richard_close2u | JustinGuitar Official Guide, Approved Teacher & Community Moderator.
Thank you so much for replying to my question. I am starting a new job tomorrow which involves sleepovers. Once I get my head around the new rota and the available time to practice, I would like to catch up with you.
The amazing response to my question is very encouraging. I am making progress, still some finger pain, but much better.
Thanks
Keith
Hi again.
I found Justinās course about a year ago and i did ok, except where I was expected to play a song. I tried but I couldnāt get there and felt soo bad. Maybe I will never manage to play, but working with Justinās course and the song app have helped me more than anything else, ever.
I have returned to the beginning- learning and practicing A and D chords and trying to get to 30+ changes a minute.
Just a slight inconvenience was that I had my left shoulder replaced on September 20th. Only reaching 17 changes at the moment.
Last thing is I know I need to seek help from the community. I always found this difficult, but onwards and upwards.
Thanks all for being there.
Keith
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Welcome Keith. Itās a familiar tale of trying and giving up (and repeat) to a lot of us, and certainly is my story too. I think unrealistic expectations are certainly part of the problem because we see others play and make it look easy, but we didnāt see the work they put in behind the scenes.
I also found Justinās app a big help in my first year.
I guess my suggestion regarding the shoulder would be to try to play often (maybe a few times a day when possible) but in short spells - even down 5 to 10 minutes if need be. Youāll make just as much progress that way as with longer sessions but hopefully will be less hard on your shoulder. Itās better to be able to play daily than have to skip days because your shoulder is sore. Building a habit of picking up the guitar and playing most days is important
Thanks, I appreciate your advice. I am trying to enjoy playing now. Playing silent night was the first song I have managed to play along to, and it felt so good. I am not really good but it is recognisable.
Thanks
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