It's been two and a half years since I picked up the guitar to learn and now another year has passed, so I thought I would give a self-assessment of the progress, or lack thereof, in 2023.

I am an eclectic learner, but really that's another way of saying that I cannot focus, lol.  Once I learned the open chords, I have been learning and practicing by finding songs I want to play.  I have learned quite a number of songs, which involves some techniques I thought I need to master.  I learned basic picking patterns, Travis picking, tricks like slapping and palm muting, and improved barre chords, though I still need to work on precision in barre chord changes and A-shaped barre chords, like B, etc., which I can only do the index/pinky 2-finger version or use B7 etc. as substitutes.  And I learned some finger-style pieces. Those are wins and progresses I feel good about and I would be comfortable to be a campfire guitarist to accompany singers (I am not a good singer).  And above all, I have been having fun and will continue to learn and play.  

Now, the misses.  I had goals to learn CAGED system, scales and master the fret board (now only somewhat familiar with lower E and A strings), learn picking with a pick (alternate picking) in 2023, but managed to achieve none of them.  I never fail to be lured away to learn some songs that appeal to me or I want to learn (my wish list is growing longer and longer).  Damn Youtube!  And another problem with me is, when I learn a new piece, I would feel satisfied when I reach 85-90% accuracy and move on.  I heard many guitar teachers on Youtube say that you should be able to play a piece 20 times in succession without mistakes then you can say you have mastered the piece.  But I have not done that even with my favorite songs that should be the core of my "repertoire".

Going into 2024, I need to seriously settle down and spend more time on the knowledge areas where I failed in 2023 as mentioned above.  I will continue to learn some fingerstyle pieces (melody-based arrangement) but focus on a few small pieces and play them well.  Since I recently joined the GuitarFam, I will explore the courses and fill the gaps in the basic knowledge/technique area and correct some bad habits.  I can't guarantee I won't tempted to explore "Blues Hound", lol.  And one thing I have been debating with myself is whether I should learn to play bass guitar, since there is one in the house (one of the con's is obviously being distracted away from acoustic guitar).  After all, I have about 1 hour a day to practice for now.  

I look forward to hearing shared experiences, feed-backs, comments and suggestions from GuitarFam members.  

Happy New Year!