Postechian Column: Lessons Learned From Teaching Myself Guitar
Postechian Column: Lessons Learned From Teaching Myself Guitar
  • Kang In-hyuk (Mueunjae 22)
  • 승인 2023.05.19 10:00
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Kang In-hyuk (Mueunjae 22)
Kang In-hyuk (Mueunjae 22)

 Learning a new skill can be both challenging and rewarding. For me, learning to play the guitar was a journey that started in 2020. Inspired by my friends in a school band and the legendary guitarist Slash from Guns n' Roses, I embarked on a journey to learn the guitar with no formal lessons. It was tough at first, but with advice from my friends, I gradually learned the basic strumming skills.
 However, I soon realized that I wanted to do more than just strumming. I wanted to play solos like Slash. It was a challenging goal, and I almost gave up several times. No matter how much I tried, I just could not seem to get it right. As I was putting my work in and was about to make improvements in my skills, I faced the demands of graduation and college applications in 2021. Because of this, I had to take a break from playing the guitar.
 Despite the break, my passion for music never faded. I would listen to famous rock songs and watch live performances by well-known bands. It was not until I finished my college applications that I was finally able to pick up the guitar again. At first, it was a bit rusty, but I soon regained my skills. However, I still struggled with playing solo lines. It was not until a graduation party where I performed with some friends that I rediscovered the joy of playing music with others. The experience was a turning point that reignited my passion for the guitar. I finally bought my own guitar and started watching lessons on YouTube. With practice and dedication, I have seen a significant improvement in my skills.
 Joining a band in POSTECH was a big part of my journey. While I enjoyed playing with other musicians, there were times when I felt like I was not improving. There were moments when playing guitar felt like a chore, which made me extremely unmotivated to practice. To overcome these feelings, I decided to persevere even when I did not feel like it. In other words, my solution was “Just do it”. It was not easy, but I pushed through the tough times and kept practicing. Eventually, I started to see a noticeable improvement in my playing, and it made me feel good about myself. This renewed my motivation, and I started to improve more than ever before.
 At the end of 2022, I decided to take formal lessons from an artist whose YouTube lessons I had watched and learned from. These lessons helped me refine my skills even further, and this helped me become where I am now.
 Looking back, my journey to learning the guitar has been a challenging but rewarding one. If I had given up during the tough times, I would not be where I am today. The lesson I learned is that perseverance, dedication, and passion are essential ingredients for achieving success in learning any skill. Anything can be done if you really set your mind to it and have a strong motivation. From the lessons I have learned, I try to create motivation and find small improvements I make whenever I face any difficulties. I now know that motivation and small accomplishments are key to overcoming difficulties. To conclude, the lesson I learned from teaching myself the guitar is the importance of persistence and passion. Furthermore, persistence and passion have broad applicability beyond their specific context.