Spent more time with the finger exercises earlier in my journey.
Like this: https://www.justinguitar.com/guitar-lessons/finger-stretching-exercise-te-101
and similar exercises as well as finger independence exercises and the slur exercises. I feel this lapse is starting to hold me back. So I am back at it.
What else would you wish you had put a little more effort on early to save trouble later?
Definitely strumming development and fundamentals of dynamics. 2024 is the year to fire up the delorean to go back in time to day 1 and improve.
Great question!
My answer is not a physical guitar skill per se, but I really wish I had spent a bit more time on music theory.
A lot of my guitar time is spent on songwriting now and it has become obvious to me how a little more theory work would have gone a long way! I subscribe to Justin’s course and I always seem to stall out at certain point. I think I just don’t have that kind of natural curiosity that really helps when you are exploring the fretboard. I tell myself that I will dedicate one day a week to theory, but then I just end up messing around on the guitar instead 
I need someone to just tell me I have to do it
You have to do it!
Thank you 
No you don’t. JFDI ! Crack on kid !!
Just added finger exercises and theory to my practice to-do list for today…
thank you! I knew I was forgetting something!
I think that with things like theory, you can learn as you grow. But get on it @Jenndye429 ! You want it to go where you want to go!
The wall I have run into with the finger strength/flexibility thing is that it probably takes a few years of doing exercises all the while to get where we would like to be.
The lesson for those that follow is to take this part seriously. There will come a day you want it and want it right then, but it takes time.
There are lots of things we can learn more and more quickly as we progress. Flexibility and strength are not those things.
Definitely taking it seriously.
I started teaching myself before I discovered JustinGuitar and I developed some different ways of doing things and bad habits. I’ve had to go back and retrain myself and my fingers - very slowly! Practice makes permanent!
I think it’s a very good idea to do all this stuff along the way 
I wish I had …
Been bolder about finding and playing with other people. Started in my teens, now in my 60s, and my experience playing with others is negligible. Instead, I’m this guy (“Peephole”, by Deanna Bogart). Or maybe this guy (“Rock and Roll Nerd” by Tim Minchin).
Learned to transcribe early on. Even if just little bits. For the music that interests me, right now that often feels like mountain climbing.
I wish I had known JG back in 2010 when I had plenty more time to learn!
I can only echo what you are saying @Avalon426 . It’s the same for me. I have also played guitar on and off before discovering JustinGuitar - and I have developed a lot of bad habits, which seem to be very deeply ingrained. Retraining will take a long time and I’m happy that I finally added in person lessons to JG guitar to tackle these issues.
So while I am in theory somewhere in Grade 2 between modules 10 and 12, it’s back to basics now.
While dealing with basic strumming, foot tapping with my left foot (which is so counterintuitive for me), finger exercises, air changes and what not, I don’t consider it trouble at all.
Sometimes it’s just needed to go back several times to then finally being able to move forward - and I am really happy that I finally started taking this process and learning learning seriously.
I wish I had….
learned guitar when I was young…!
For me, I wish I paid more attention to the rifts, so making finding individual strings and notes. I only flirted with them as they were not the type of music (too modern for my taste) I liked. Now learning country rifts which are more my ‘thing’.
Tim’s a genius, but I am ‘that guy’ (except 60 instead of 30)
No regrets though-
Wouldn’t do anything differently 
It’s definitely easier to learn almost anything young, but…
I learnt the piano for a good number of years as a child, so I have some perspective. I really appreciate the maturity that I have today in learning the guitar. It’s not just discipline or being focused when practising or taking ownership of the learning process, it’s also about enjoying the journey and being clear about my what goals and aspirations are and, more importantly, aren’t. As a child / teen, I remember fretting a lot over the question—in this age where numerous recordings are available for free, does the world really need another thoroughly average / mediocre pianist? All of that ate into the joy of learning, and ultimately, into my mastery of the piano (the lack thereof).
My wife didn’t want me to hear that Tim Minchin song because she knew it would resonate with me (other than the songwriting part, I do very, very little of that). I guess both of those songs help me “feel seen” or not alone or something. They don’t depress me.
If you didn’t check out the Deanna Bogart song, I highly recommend her. Terrific songwriter and musician. She’s local to me and I’ve seen her perform a bunch of times; always great.
I don’t think I’m far enough into my guitar journey to be able to say I wish I’d learned this or that earlier.
I wish that a younger version of me had been into guitar rather than video games but I wasn’t so it’s not a real regret - it’s not like I quit guitar to play video games
I can think of a lot of things I did in my youth (and early middle age, I guess) that may have been better if focused learning guitar instead. But those aren’t choices I made at the time. Clearly, I wasn’t ready then and am more ready now. So, carpé diem as they say. No regrets, glad I am here.
I wish I had known how to practice and do finger exercises when I first tried to learn the guitar 28 years ago. My finger dexterity was so poor that I actually convinced myself that I just didn’t have the physical capability to learn to play the guitar beyond the basics. (It didn’t help that I had a friend who started learning at the same time and just picked it up so seemingly easily.)
I held this belief until less than a year ago, when I picked up the guitar again, and a bit randomly discovered guitar finger exercise videos on YouTube.
Improving my finger strength and dexterity is frustratingly slow, but it’s working. And it has changed my belief - I might never become a great player, but at least I’m not physically incapable of improving.