My experience is definitely that learning isn’t linear and just plugging away at something doesn’t usually work (for me). The skills seem to develop faster by using them in different ways - that advice of “learn songs, lots of songs” really does make sense.
So I’d have set aside a song after probably only a few weeks of struggling with it, and then likely at some point in the future, while rummaging through my various bits of paper I’d find it again and have another go. It’s not a guarantee that the song will be possible the second (or third) time round, but there is definitely an encouraging sense of improvement when you tackle the song again and it feels easier than it did before.
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Thanks for the advice and feedback. I have decided to set aside House of the Rising Sun and work on a song to practice bar chords. Once I made that decision, I felt relieved and realized how burned out I am with what I am doing on guitar. Someone in another thread suggested I take songs I already know that use open chords and play them using bar chords. I looked at the songs I know. I found a couple that could work and I had fun playing with that.
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If it is starting to affect your enjoyment of the guitar, move onto another song and come back to it later. You can always practice the technique required until you are comfortable with it, but don’t force yourself because you will get frustrated and see guitar as a chore rather than an amazing instrument.
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