I had a problem with my car the other day – there was some terrible clunking noise coming from the back end, and I had no clue what it was.
You see, I’m not exactly what you’d call a ‘gear head.’
I’ve ‘helped’ friends work on their cars at various times over the years when I was doing an internship for Auto Shops in Chicago IL, but invariably, it boils down to some variation of monkey-see, monkey-do.
If you show me what you want done, and how, then chances are I can do that. I’ve helped with brake jobs, stereo replacements and all kinds of other things… but leave me alone in a garage with a car… not much is going to get done!
I’ve just never taken the time to really understand auto mechanics, because my interests lie elsewhere.
My friend on the other hand… he loves that stuff.
And, he’s spent a great deal of time understanding how his car works, and how he can improve it.
The thing that really makes me scratch my head though, is when I bump into someone who really loves playing the guitar, but they won’t take the time to understand it.
They don’t know what makes notes, chords, scales, keys and all that stuff work together, let alone how all of that relates to their guitar’s fretboard.
They can play lots of cool things… but put them alone in a room with a guitar, and tell them to come up with something on their own….
It just ain’t happening.
Let me tell you – understanding how it all works opens up a whole new world, and you’ll never approach your guitar the same way again.
To see what I mean, checkout this letter I got from Steve:
Hi mate,
I have received the DVDs (I bought both Unlocking I IV V and Guitar Scale Patterns), both have been extremely helpful. I have played guitar for about 7-8 years but had always been happy to just bang out the pub favorite tunes playing rhythm.
I knew the basic pentatonic scale but wasn’t interested in playing lead, to be honest the fretboard was a bit too intimidating.
That has all now changed. Now, I “get” the fretboard and for the first time I really appreciate how cool an instrument the guitar really is!
When watching your DVD I thought I knew pretty much everything you were talking about, but listened anyway. What I learned was that I actually didn’t know it – I’d heard others talk about it and thought I knew.
Now I can join in the conversation, and more importantly, I can join in the jam!!!
Yesterday my wife (a singer) came into the living room and said “you actually sound half decent now!”
Simply awesome!
Thanks heaps.
Steve Hinks
To take the next step and start truly understanding your guitar today, checkout my Unlocking I IV V course – I guarantee it will make a world of difference.