I'll be the first to acknowledge the importance of finding a good teacher to further your development, but without the drive to study and learn on your own, you may not be progressing as rapidly as you could be or should be. A teacher is someone who has gone before you and has learned the skills and knowledge necessary to attain a level of expertise that you don't have. In other words, teachers are like road signs - though less linear - and they can offer little more than helpful suggestions along the way. They can't tell you what route to take or how to take it but they can show you the map and guide you depending on which way you want to go.

As a teacher I've become increasingly aware of the limitations of the standard weekly 30 minute lesson format. I always try to make the most of those 30 minutes but that doesn't mean that it's all spent in a productive manner. How do I know that the knowledge I pass onto my students is becoming a part of them? How do I know that they will practice? How can I be sure that they are practicing in a constructive way?

The answer is that I can't. I don't have control over any of these things. At the end of the day, the student is still responsible for his or her development. It should go without saying that there's a big difference between the students who show up poised to absorb anything I throw at them, and the ones who merely show up. The ones who "get it" don't really know "the way" anymore than I do, but they've made the decision to grow and learn. The ones who "get it" usually progress much faster, and are already doing many of the things I've talked about in this series.

As a side note, I'm not trying to dissuade you from practicing. Quite the opposite, in fact; the previous article in this series is all about practicing and I think it's vital to one's continual growth. I'm merely stating that teachers have very little control over students who refuse to take their advice.

Studying on your own is imperative. As I've said already, there's only so much a teacher can cover in 30 minutes. I'm not saying that every student would benefit from more; I'm just saying that it's tough for a teacher when they can't provide the guidance a student should be getting.

Regardless, a student should be taking the initiative. Any inspiration or motivation a teacher can provide is probably going to be momentary, and a student still has to be self-motivated and disciplined. There are so many great resources out there that it would be a crime not to take advantage of them. Many of them can be obtained cheaply and sometimes for free. There are some great guitar tab sites, magazines, books and DVDs you can pick up and learn from. You can find online lessons on YouTube. The list goes on and on but the point is that if your learning is limited to the 30 minutes you spend in the lesson room then you're really not getting the most out of your lessons.

Remember what I said about Watching and Listening? That principle applies here, too. Pick up some CDs and DVDs of your favorite bands or guitarists and study what they're doing and how they're doing it. You're going to sink some money into music anyway. Why not learn something while you're at it?

When I was taking lessons I took advantage of all of these resources as I became aware of them. I was resonating with my goal of learning so much that it really didn't feel like effort or work. Are you resonating with your goals? Are you finding the resources you need, or do you keep putting it off? Are you finding more reasons to do it or more reasons not to do it? Take a close look at your priorities. This article was written by David Andrew Wiebe, web designer, graphic designer, guitarist, bassist, keyboardist, songwriter, guitar instructor, and music expert. Interested in winning a free CD? Click here for more info! Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Recommendations? Email me.

Published on January 14, 2008