If you are wanting to either enjoy the guitar when you learn to play it rather than feel lost and frustrated or you are wanting to make some massive progress on the guitar. Then getting a great guitar teacher that right for you is an important first step. Not all guitar teachers are the same, nor are they necessarily right for you, so let’s see what some of the things you can do to help ensure you get a great teacher that suits your needs and goals.
What are you wanting from learning the guitar?
Is there a particular style of music you are wanting to play? Are there any guitarists that you would love to play like? What are you wanting to achieve from your guitar playing? These are questions to ask yourself when you look for someone to teach you guitar. You want a guitar teacher who will be able to help you achieve what you are after. Typically, if you are after a certain style of playing. You want a guitar teacher will be able to provide that specific style. They will be able to help you progress faster along that route. So if you want a guitar teacher who teachers rock, then get a guitar teacher who is accomplished at teaching rock. Likewise, if you are a beginner, find a guitar teacher who has lots of experience teaching beginner guitarists as well.
How much do the guitar lessons cost?
This is a factor that plays into most people’s minds when they look at guitar lessons, and it is an important factor. You have to think of the lessons both as an investment and also the lessons are there to help you get something out of it. Now cheaper lessons may seem cheaper, but you will probably get less out of it as it’s taught by a less experienced teacher. Whereas an experienced guitar teacher may be able to achieve the same results in a quarter of the time. Even though the prices may seem higher for a more experienced teacher, you get what you pay for. So don’t just get the cheapest lessons you can find, that will definitely end up wasting your time and money in the long run.
Can you see yourself being taught of this teacher?
What are your first impressions? Does this teacher seem confident in his teachings? Do you trust what he/she has to say? DO you think you will do what he/she tells you to do?
Now it may seem obvious that you should do what your guitar teacher tells you to do. But lots of people still second guess a lot of what they are taught. And also make sure as you go into the lessons, especially if you have been playing guitar for a long time, to keep an open mind. Accept that they are the more experienced guitar teacher and know how to teach you.
Is this teacher going to teach you how to practise?
Practising correctly when you are away from your teacher is vital for your progress on the guitar. Whether you are a beginner, getting past those barre chord stages or at an advance level wanting to shred at 1000 notes per minute. You need to know how to effective practise to get the most out of your practising time when you are away.
There are a lot of great teachers out there who will teach you this, but a lot may not. This is definitely something you need to look out for. Once you know how to practise, your progress will accelerate like mad.
Can you see what their other students have accomplished?
Can they refer to other students that have achieved good results with them? Do they have videos of students and what they’ve said about the improvements in their playing?
Often when people look for guitar teachers, they look at how good the teacher is at playing guitar. But actually the most important thing is how good are they are getting their students results. This shows how good they are at teaching guitar. Which is what you want. You want someone who can turn you into a greater player than you ever could if you tried on your own or with online resources, books or with a friend. You want someone dedicated to getting you better at guitar and have the ability to do so.
Go and meet your potential teacher
As you are committing to trusting this person, letting them teach this amazing skill of guitar. It’s important that you meet them to ensure you are fully comfortable and confident they can help you before you start lessons. So when you do start, you are ready to take in everything they so and progress fast!
What experience does this teacher have in teaching?
When you look for your potential guitar teacher, ask them how long they have been teaching for. It’s important for you to find someone who does have a certain amount of experience when it comes to teaching guitar. You could get a beginner guitar teacher, but you won’t get results as quickly. Why is that? Because they have less experience in solving people’s problems, challenges, and getting them results. The more experience they have in helping people reach their goals, the quicker they can do it for you. They should also have taught a lot of different guitar students and more importantly, students who are similar to yourself. Both of these will help protect you to ensure you don’t have a teacher who is using you purely as a guinea pig.
With all of these points to consider, make sure you go for a teacher who you can definitely trust to get you the results you are looking for. And someone who genuinely cares about you and your progress on the guitar.
If you are based in East London and looking for a guitar teacher to either help you get started on the guitar, or help you solve some frustrates you have with your playing and to accelerate your progress on the guitar. Click on the button below to get in touch with us. We ask that you fill in a short form about yourself, so we can find out how we can help you. We offer a free introductory lesson so you can find out how we can help you achieve your goals on the guitar.