Beginner Guitar Academy

Do you stop strumming every time a difficult chord comes along?
In part three of Songs, Start to Finish, Paul shares practical ways to keep your song moving while you improve your chord changes.
You’ll learn how to choose a manageable tempo, simplify your strumming and practise the movement that causes the hesitation. Through guitar demonstrations, Paul also explains how to recover after a missed chord without losing your place.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
How to identify what makes you pause during a song.
How simpler strumming gives you time to prepare the next chord.
The difference between a planned gap and an unplanned pause.
How to practise a difficult change, then put it back into the song.
How to recover from mistakes while keeping track of the beat.
How to build up your rhythm without increasing every difficulty at once.

Your challenge this week
Choose one section of your song where chord changes interrupt the flow:
Identify the particular change that needs work.
Spend a few minutes practising the movement carefully.
Choose a comfortable tempo and a simpler rhythm.
Play the section through, keeping the chord changes in their correct places.
Note one improvement or one useful next step.

Give yourself time for both careful chord practice and short play-throughs where you practise continuing through small mistakes.
For BGA members: Which chord change interrupts your song, and what simpler rhythm are you using while you work on it? Share your answer in the forum.
Coming next: How to connect your verses, choruses and other sections into one complete play-through.
Find out more about structured guitar lessons at Beginner Guitar Academy.

Do you know the chords to a song but lose your place when you try to play it all the way through?
In part two of our Songs, Start to Finish series, Paul explains how to create a simple song map so you know where you are and what comes next.
You’ll learn how to identify the sections, keep track of repeats and use listening cues to follow your chosen arrangement from the intro to the ending. With a practical guitar demonstration, Paul shows why knowing the chord sequence is only part of learning a complete song.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
How to recognise verses, choruses, bridges and instrumental sections.
A three-listen process for building your song map.
How to count bars and repeats without assuming one chord equals one bar.
How starting chords and musical cues can help you stay on track.
Why verses and choruses can sound different even when they use the same chords.
How to use your map to identify what needs practice next.

Your challenge this week
Create a simple map of the song you’ve chosen for October:
Listen to your chosen version from beginning to end.
Write the sections in order, including the intro, instrumental passages and ending.
Add useful reminders: starting chords, section lengths, repeats or listening cues.
Follow your map while the recording plays.
If you’re ready, try adding a simple accompaniment.

You can start by listening and pointing to each section. Following the whole arrangement is a useful step towards playing it.
If you’re a Beginner Guitar Academy member, share one thing you discovered about your song in the forum.
Coming next: How to keep your song going when chord changes are difficult, using a rhythm you can maintain.
Find out more about structured guitar lessons at Beginner Guitar Academy.

Can you play a few chords and riffs, but struggle to get through a whole song?
This episode kicks off Songs, Start to Finish, our October series helping you work towards a complete song play-through. We’re starting with a decision that can make everything else easier: choosing a song and arrangement that suit your current ability.
Paul explains how to find a song you enjoy, check for unexpected challenges, and decide exactly what you’ll play from beginning to end. Whether you’re strumming chords, playing along with a backing track or learning a simple instrumental arrangement, you can choose a version that gives you a realistic goal.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
What counts as playing a complete song.
Why songs often stay unfinished.
Four questions to help you choose a suitable song.
How simpler strumming and a comfortable tempo can help you get started.
How to plan for difficult sections, including solos and unfamiliar chords.
How to fit your chosen song alongside your regular practice.

Your challenge this week
Choose one song for October, listen to it all the way through, and write down:
The song title and artist.
The version or guitar part you’ll play.
The chords or skills you already have.
The section that will need the most work.
Your first small action.

If you’re a Beginner Guitar Academy member, share your choice in the forum so we can follow your progress together.
Coming next: Learn how to map your song’s intro, verses, choruses and ending so you know what comes next.
Find out more about structured guitar lessons at Beginner Guitar Academy.

Are you becoming a better guitarist, or just getting better at noticing your mistakes?
Guitar progress usually happens so gradually that it can be difficult to see. While you’re focused on the chord you still can’t change cleanly or the song you haven’t finished, it’s easy to overlook everything that has already improved.
In this episode, we explore the signs of progress that beginner guitarists often miss, and why feeling more aware of your mistakes may actually mean that your musical ear is developing.
You’ll discover:
Why guitar progress can be difficult to recognise
How improving can sometimes make you feel worse about your playing
Why faster doesn’t always mean better
The difference between playing something once and playing it reliably
Why recovering from mistakes is an important musical skill
How reduced mental effort shows that a skill is becoming automatic
Why learning new material more quickly is evidence of progress
How returning to older songs and exercises reveals how far you’ve come
Three useful ways to measure progress: numbers, recordings and experience
What to do when your playing reaches a plateau

This week’s challenge: The Progress Evidence Check
Complete these three steps:
Revisit a song, riff, chord progression or exercise you were learning a few months ago and notice what feels easier now.
Find an old recording, practice entry or course milestone and compare it with where you are today.
Write down three specific pieces of evidence that your playing has improved.

Your improvements don’t need to be dramatic. Cleaner chords, steadier rhythm, greater confidence, more consistent practice or recovering from a mistake without stopping all count.
Then ask yourself:
What can you do on the guitar now that you couldn’t do three months ago?
This episode concludes September’s Build Momentum series:
Begin again without trying to catch up
Build a routine that doesn’t depend on motivation
Choose the right practice priority
Recognise the progress your work is producing

If you’d like a structured path, unlimited teacher support and a community of adult guitarists learning alongside you, join Beginner Guitar Academy.
You’ll also receive access to the BGA Practice Studio, where you can create focused sessions, set goals and build a record of your guitar journey.
Start your 14-day trial for just $1:
https://www.beginnerguitaracademy.com
If you enjoyed this episode, follow the podcast and share it with another guitarist who may be overlooking how much progress they’ve already made.

When you sit down with your guitar, having too many options can make practice harder, not easier.
In this episode, Paul Andrews shares a simple way to choose what deserves your attention right now, so your practice sessions become more focused and productive.
In this episode
Why more lessons, exercises, and guitar information can create confusion
How to start with your current goal
How to identify the bottleneck holding back your playing
Why smaller practice actions lead to clearer progress
How to isolate difficult chord changes, rhythm patterns, transitions, and tempo increases
The three parts of a useful practice session: progress, maintain, and play
Why balance should be considered across weeks and months, not forced into every session
How long to keep working on the same priority
How to avoid constantly switching to new riffs, songs, and exercises
What to do when you don’t yet have a clear guitar goal

The three questions
Use these questions to decide what to practice:
What am I trying to achieve?
What is stopping me from doing it?
What is the smallest action that would improve it?

Instead of choosing a broad goal such as “get better at guitar,” identify a specific action, such as changing from G to C four times without pausing.
Build your practice session
A balanced session can include:
Progress: Work on your current bottleneck with your greatest concentration.
Maintain: Revisit skills and material you already know so you don’t lose them.
Play: Make music by playing a song, revisiting a riff, or improvising over a backing track.

For a 20-minute session, you might spend 10 minutes on progress, 5 minutes on maintenance, and 5 minutes playing. The exact timings can change, but each section should have a clear purpose.
This week’s challenge
Choose one practice priority and write down your answers to the three questions. Give that small action focused attention during each practice session this week.
Your priority could be:
Changing between two chords smoothly
Playing a rhythm consistently with a metronome
Learning four bars of a song
Working through a difficult exercise
Playing a song from beginning to end without stopping

Keep it specific enough that you know exactly what to do when you pick up the guitar.
Beginner Guitar Academy
Beginner Guitar Academy provides a five-level curriculum covering seven essential guitar skills: picking, chords, arpeggios, scales, rhythm, notes, and ear training.
Members also receive focused exercises, songs, progress checks, assessments, unlimited teacher support from Paul Andrews, and access to the Practice Studio.
Join for a $1 two-week trial at beginnerguitaracademy.com.