The

Essential
Guide to
Teaching
Guitar

The 3 Keys to Teacher Success

Author: David J Hart

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR

 Contents
Introduction

1. Brief history of me
2. The experiment
3. 3000 students later
4. The network was born
5. The 80/20 principle

The 3 keys to teacher success

1. Learn
2. Structure
3. Network

Marketing

1. Website
2. Google
3. Facebook
4. List building

Your Next Step

1. Summary
2. What next?
3. Questions

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR

Introduction

My great concern is not whether you have failed, but whether

you are content with your failure. - Abraham Lincoln

When I began teaching guitar as a teen 25 years ago I really had no idea that I
was embarking on a life journey of learning. In my mind at the time teaching
guitar was just about showing someone where to put their fingers. I thought
of a guitar teacher as simply an instructor. Nothing to it I thought. I did some
local advertising in newspapers, noticeboards, letterbox flyers and school
newsletters and got a good steady response. I soon began enrolling new
students on a weekly basis. I was very excited because I could see that within
a few months I was going to be able to leave my day job (retail sales) and work
from home. As the months past more I noticed very few students lasted more
than a few months and only a handful were still with me a year after enrolling.
I concluded that some students had the right stuff so to speak but most did
not. For the 90% who quit in year one it was simply a passing phase. The
problem was that my own teacher was fully booked up until 10pm most nights
and he rarely lost students as far as I could tell. I also knew a piano teacher
who rarely lost students so I knew that it was possible to improve my
statistics. I also couldnt really understand why so many people were eager to
learn guitar but within a few months that enthusiasm had died and they had
quit lessons. This question became somewhat of an obsession for me and is
really what this ebook is all about. I did discover the answer some years later
but I also discovered that very few teachers are actually aware of it. I hope you
will embrace what I am about to share with you because if you do you will
rarely lose students and your student numbers will grow to whatever number
you are comfortable with. But most importantly you will be helping people to
realise their dream of playing guitar.

A brief history of me

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR

As a child I always loved music and I recall spending hours sitting in my
parents cars blasting my favourite songs over and over. I got my first guitar
when I was 8 years old but apparently I gave up after a few weeks although I
know memory of the event. Just a photo of me holding my guitar. Neither of
my parents played musical instruments so I guess they figured that it was up
to me to learn. When I started high school I made friends with a guitarist. I
remember the first time I went to his house and saw his electric guitar and
amp and knew that I had to have one. Initially I took up learning drums
mostly so we could form a band but I found myself spending more and more
time on my friends guitar. Eventually I bought my own and never looked
back. I later joined a few different bands and spent much of my youth playing
in 80s style cover bands. It was a great experience but the smoke filled rooms
and pub fights were really not my scene. I just wanted to play music so I
decided on a serious career change. I started teaching guitar as a teen in the
late 80s. Teaching to me was initially a part time job while I worked in retail
sales. Eventually as my numbers grew I became a full time teacher. At age 21 I
started my first music school in Sydney. In 1993 I opened my second music
school. In 2003 I sold the school and took a 2 year break to further develop
my teaching methods.

The experiment

I decided for my next project I wanted run an experiment. I wanted to create

a method of learning guitar that ticked all the boxes so to speak. I had spent
close to 20 years teaching, researching and learning and felt it was time to
consolidate that knowledge and experience. I was always passionate about
becoming a better teacher. I would seek out the best teachers in all fields to
help me improve my own teaching. I didnt want a method of teaching guitar
that was complicated. I took Einsteins quote Make everything as simple as
possible but not simpler as my guiding principle. I wanted a method that
would have been ideal for me when I started learning guitar. One that I would
enjoy but also produced results. Once I was satisfied with my new method I
put it to the test.

3000 students later

I called my method The G4 GUITAR METHOD. It was simple and easy to

remember. I began teaching in Northbridge NSW in 2005 and my initial focus
was on testing out the method and making any necessary changes based on
the results. It took about 9 months to enroll 100 students but then it took off.
It was nothing short of extraordinary. Over the next 2 years we enrolled
around 3000 guitar students in total. We literally went from a non-existent
guitar school to the No.1 guitar school in Australia in 2 years. This led me to
the idea of a network. When I had put together my plan for G4 I had not
expected such rapid growth. I was hoping for big things but so many students
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
in such a short period was simply overwhelming. What I came to realise is my
passion was in the teaching and developing the method. I had no real passion
for managing. Managing is an important job and one I am sure I would enjoy
if I was not so passionate about the method so I knew the schools had to go. I
always liked the idea of networking with other guitar teachers and I saw this
as the perfect opportunity to take my project to the next level and keep doing
what I love.

The network was born

The idea of forming a guitar teacher network was one I had considered for
many years but now it felt right. Here was a chance to work closely with
guitarists who were looking to build their own successful teaching businesses.
I was of course nervous because it was a new and unknown venture. There
was definitely an element of risk involved because not only was it new for me
as far as I was aware of there were no other guitar teacher networks. Still I
decided to test it out before jumping in. With the help of Brendan Morello
(www.morelloguitarschool.com.au) and Emma Payne
(www.takenoteschoolofmusic.com) I launched the network and naturally
called it the G4 GUITAR Network. I sold off the schools to our best
teachers who became some of the first members of the network. I then
focused 100% of my attention on the network and further developing the G4
GUITAR METHOD. The network is now well established with teachers
right around Australia as well as in Canada and the USA. The success of my
schools and our members is proof that the advice I am about to give you in
this book really works. I speak from experience and hope my experience will
help you to succeed as a guitar teacher.

The 80/20 principle

The 80/20 principle suggests that 80% of results come from only 20% of your
efforts. This of course is not an exact science but is meant to help you to
assess where you put your time and energy. This 80/20 rule can be applied to
many areas of life. Think about school exams. 20% of study time will result in
80% of grade results. The other 80% of student study time is probably spent
studying irrelevant material, checking phones, chatting to friends, day
dreaming, sleeping or just not focusing. Just visit any local library after school
and you will see what I mean. Becoming aware of how to turn the 80% into
the 20% will result in a better grade. In the case of your guitar students 20%
will account for 80% of total practice done by all your students. You will also
find that 20% of your students will end up long term therefore accounting for
80% of your earnings. When you focus on what makes the 20% more
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
successful you can transfer your discoveries across to the 80% to create more
successful students. I am going to apply the 80/20 rule to this book by
focusing on the 20% that matters most. Initially I had a list of 10 things you
could do to become a better guitar teacher but I decided to just go with my top
3. I could have given you 10 great ideas but I dont see the point. I would
rather just stick the my top 3 and explain how and why they are so important.
You have a greater chance of success as a teacher if you keep things as simple
as possible. If I were to ask you to memorise 3 key areas it would be
reasonable for me to expect that you could recite the 3 back to me but if I gave
you 10 it would need a little more work so you would likely forget. The 3
letters I want you to memorise are LSN. Now lets gets started.

The 3 keys to teacher success

I believe there are 3 essential keys to success as a teacher. We will look at
each one in detail but here is a quick introduction.

1. Learn. You must be constantly learning. I dont mean learning how to be a

better guitarist because I can reasonably assume you do that anyway. In this
case I mean learning to become a better teacher. This should be a never
ending process. No matter what profession you chose these days constantly
updating and improving your skills is part of the package. A doctor, dentist,
mechanic, pilot, lawyer, accountant etc who is not getting regular training will
fall behind and the same applies to teachers. I will talk about how and why
you should be constantly learning.

2. Structure. The vital ingredient to successful teaching is structure. As a

musician you know all too well the importance of structure when it comes to
song composition. Structure helps the listener make sense of your
composition. Your teaching should be structured in a way that it makes sense
to your students. I will talk about the importance of using a method and
having clearly defined outcomes for your students as well as explaining why
you should avoid teaching song requests in the early stages.

3. Network. The old saying of 'Its not what you know but who you know' has
several meanings. Firstly it suggests that if we have friends in the right places
we can get ahead in life. It also means that knowing people is more important
than knowledge because when we know people we are able to source the
answers we seek when we need them. Anyway you look at it the underlying
meaning is networking. I will talk about the benefits of networking and why it
is vital to your success as a teacher.

1. Learn

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR

Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty.
Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life
is to keep your mind young. - Henry Ford.

Where would we be without teachers? Without teachers progress would soon

come to a halt. Teachers in some cultures are considered to be the most
valued people in society. In Japanese the word sensei means both teacher
and master. Throughout history the wise person (the teacher) was always
considered the most highly respected of the tribe. As teachers we are
promoters of learning. Our message is simple. Learn and then learn some
more. We believe in the value of learning and we promote the benefits of
learning. We might be teaching people how to play guitar but we are in the
business of learning. This means we too must be learning. Teachers cant
simply be preaching without practicing. They should set the standard. In this
section I want to point out why learning is essential to a teachers success and
why great teachers are first and foremost great students.

Walk our talk

As guitar teachers we are promoting the idea of success via a coach/mentor.

Any guitarist who has had at least one great teacher knows the power of a
good coach. A good coach is not just someone who teaches us how to play
guitar but they remind us of why we play. A good coach helps us to stay
focused and keeps our eye on what matters most. The 20% if you like.
Everyone is easily distracted and we only have one perspective. A good
mentor keeps us focus and gives us an outside informed perspective. If you
truly want to excel at anything your best strategy is to find a good coach. If
you are a teacher but do not have a teacher yourself you need to ask yourself
why. In fact you need at least two teachers. One for guitar and one for
teaching. If you have chosen to be a guitar teacher these are the two areas that
are most important to your teaching. If you hope also make money teaching I
would also suggest a business coach.

The opinions of others

We are swayed by peoples opinions everyday whether we realise it or not and

many of those opinions come from unqualified people. Well meaning friends
and family members may give you unwanted advice that makes you question
your every decision. Their suggestions will often lead you to make poor
decisions. I am always amazed at the amount of business advice I get from
people who have never been in business or financial advice from friends who
have trouble paying off their credit cards. Advice will come at you whether
you like it or not so the challenge is to seek your advice from someone who is
qualified. Your brother-in-law the mechanic may be a great guy and a genius

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR

when it comes to car repair but his knowledge about teaching guitar is
probably limited.

Teachers believe in mentoring

As teachers we believe that students will do better with a teacher rather than
trying to teach themselves. We know the value of a good teacher but do we
practice what we preach? The problem is very few teachers practice what they
preach. In other words many guitar teachers are self taught teachers. They
have no formal training in how to be a great teacher. In fact many guitar
teachers are even self taught guitar players. I hope you can see the irony here.
I am not suggesting that a self taught guitarist without any training as a
teacher cant become a great guitar teacher but it is unlikely and promoting
the idea of a teacher to students while not seeking out a teacher or mentor
yourself seems like somewhat of a contradiction. I think almost anyone who
takes up the guitar does so because they were inspired by a guitarist. For me it
was people like Jimmy Page, Angus Young, Eddie Van Halen, Joe Walsh, Paul
McCartney, Steve Lukather and even some local kids playing guitar in my
neighborhood. Without these guys I doubt I would have played guitar.
Teaching guitar was the same. My first teacher was actually a drum teacher
Merv Dick. Great guy, great drummer and an outstanding mentor. Merv
helped me to stay focused and motivated. Lessons only stopped because Merv
went on tour with his band The Deltones which he is still doing at time of
writing this book. Merv was a great first mentor for me and definitely
influenced my teaching. My first guitar teacher Mark Bergman was an
outstanding mentor. Mark took me from a self taught hacker to professional
in less than a year. Mark seemed genuinely excited about my progress from
week to week. Mark was undoubtably the most influential person in my career
as a guitar player and teacher. Mark was a student of the jazz great Ike Isaacs
so you can see that Mark practiced what he preached. Mark even
recommended I go to Ike but he unfortunately passed away before I had the
opportunity.

Finding mentors

You are unlikely to find one mentor for everything. A great guitar mentor may
not be the right person to mentor your teaching or business. Seeking out
mentors is about finding someone who has reached a level of success in an
area that matters to you. When seeking mentors do some research. Who are
the people in your chosen field leading the charge? Who are the leaders if you
like. Do they offer coaching? If you dont know where to look start with
Google. Get to know the industry and it will soon become obvious who are the
people leading. My guess is if you are reading this book you are already
gathering information so you are well on your way.

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR

Seek out great teachers

When it comes to teaching dont limit yourself to learning from other guitar
teachers. Look for the best teachers and coaches you can find. Buy
autobiographies on famous sports coaches. Watch movies about great
teachers and coaches. Ask your friends if they know any good teachers. Enroll
into a local course and learn something completely different just to
experience what its like. I regularly attend business coaching seminars from
some of the best people in the business to improve my business skills but also
to learn from experienced coaches. I keep two separate sets of notes. One of
the business ideas and one on their actual coaching skills. The best coaches
know how to motivate and inspire their students and when you are in a room
with a truly great coach you walk out feeling confident that you are a little
closer to your goal. Remember one great coach can literally change your life.

Who were your greatest teachers?

I love asking people this question. It seems everyone has one or two teachers
in their lives who play a defining role. Watch their faces when they begin to
talk about their greatest teachers. You can often see a deep gratitude and
affection for their teachers. They know that those teachers genuinely cared
about them. These are teachers who we will never forget. They change our
lives for the better. They lift us to knew heights and give us the courage to go
to places would may never have gone with out their encouragement. Seeking
out great teachers should be a high priority of anyone but most importantly
for teachers. A great teacher will not only improve your own teaching but
they will remind you of why you decided to become a teacher. They will
inspire you.

2. Structure
He who fails to plan is planning to fail. - Winston Churchill.

When guitar teachers take the approach of improvising their lessons they are
taking a big risk. Learning guitar is not easy and takes a combination of
physical effort and psychological discipline. Very few wannabe guitarists ever
realise their dream. When they go to a guitar teacher they are hoping the
teacher has a plan. When teachers operate without a proven plan their
students are far more likely to give up. I have witnessed this many times with
guitar teachers. Many teachers will argue that planning lessons is a waste of
time because students know what they want. Their approach is to teach
students the songs they know and like. Their plan if you will is to fulfill
student requests. While a nice idea it is not a plan. Its entertainment.
Students naturally want to play their favourite songs and that is always the
goal but before that can occur they need to learn how to play the guitar. I
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
might decide I want to pilot a plane and fly to Hawaii yet have no training or
ability to fly. Before I take off for Hawaii I need to learn how to fly.

90% will quit within 12 months

Most students will quit within the first 6 months. This may initially come as a
shock but really should not be too surprising when you compare it to say
dieting where 98% of dieters give up within the first year with most returning
to their original weight. You can also look at the number of people who start
businesses often putting all the savings on the line only to give up within the
first few years. Guitar for most is only a hobby so after a few months of
lessons if a student decides to give up its no big loss in their mind. They can
easily rationalize their decision because unlike dieting or business their health
or financial well being are not at risk if they stop guitar. The only real
downside is they wont get to realise their dream of playing guitar.

Why you need a method

I am about to convince you that teaching guitar using a method will not only
be the best thing you could likely ever do to improve your teaching but it may
actually set your business on a path of explosive growth beyond your wildest
expectations. I enrolled over 3000 students in just a few short years and I
believe much of it had to do with the fact that I was using a method. A method
of teaching guitar is simply a plan. A method is like a road map. If I want to
get somewhere I get a map and follow the directions. I could of course try and
get there without a map but the odds are I will get lost or it will take a lot
longer. I will take the map every time.

The need for structure

I think any guitarist reading this book knows most guitar teachers tend to
improvise their lessons. Sure they might use a method to teach reading but
the majority of their lesson time is centered around fulfilling student
requests, tabbing out songs and perhaps teaching a few skills and theoretical
concepts when required. I am not saying it is wrong by the way. It works very
well for certain kinds of students and is appropriate in certain situations. For
example the more advanced player who is looking for specific training or
needs to learn a certain song for a performance would benefit from this style
of tuition. Think of in terms of music. A song usually has a structure. Intro,
verse, chorus, bridge, solo etc. People are comfortable when the song is
familiar and structured and the musicians are also need structure to keep it
together but within that structure a certain amount of improvisation is
acceptable. But if there is no structure it is almost impossible for anyone to
know what is going on. It just becomes a mess. A method brings structure and
purpose to your lessons.
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
Making comparisons

I want to give you some analogies that will help you to see why using a
method is so important. Analogies help us to compare that which we can
understand to a concept that is new or perhaps unclear. When we operate
without a method we are literally guessing. We are also much more likely to
get off track and end up in the 80%. A method should keep your students
firmly planted in the 20% of what matters most. When we use a method we
are essentially using a system that has been tested. I am sure your students
would rather a tested system than being test dummies in your experiment.
You should experiment sometimes to learn but it is usually more advisable to
start by learning from other peoples experiments or mistakes.

Learning to juggle

I remember as a child seeing a guy juggle 3 balls. I decided to try it so I found

3 tennis balls and began to throw them repeatedly into the air only to have
them fall to the ground every time. I could not figure out how to get the 3 balls
cycling through my hands without dropping them. After several days of trying
I gave up. It was too hard and perhaps even impossible for me. My problem as
it turns out was my method of learning how to juggle or should I say lack of a
method. Had I used a method the result would have been very different and
here is why. I searched Youtube and found a method for learning how to
juggle called How to juggle three balls. In the video they start with one ball
which you and I would be able to do more or less straight away. They then
move to two balls and eventually 3 balls. Building up one ball at a time allows
me to break down the learning process in a systemized way and also builds
confidence. Guitar teachers who improvise their lessons inadvertently give
their student three balls and then wonder why those students give up or fail to
progress. This commonly occurs when students are ask to learn their
favourite songs. The songs are usually too difficult and require several skills to
be employed at one time. You might thing of ball one as the picking hand, ball
two as the fretting hand and ball three as the rhythm.

How I learnt drums

When I began learning drums as a child I like anyone was eager to play the
beats of my favourite songs. I can remember even as a very young child
listening to my Dads records tapping along to the beat. At my first drum
lesson I had no idea what to expect. My teacher gave me a book (method) full
of exercises (no songs) and a pair of drum sticks and away we went. For the
next 6 months I learnt nothing but exercises and a few basic rock beats. The
exercises were mostly progressive so once I was able to successfully play an
exercise I would moved to the next one. I do recall wanting to learn songs but
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
I certainly wasnt considering changing teachers for one simple reason. I was
progressing. I could feel it. Week by week I was improving and my confidence
was growing. It was only after about 6 months of skill development that my
teacher gave me my first song and the great thing was I was able to play it
straight away. I had already developed the skills. The song was Honky tonk
woman and I still remember how great it felt when I realised I could just do
it. My teacher was using a proven method and it had worked. As with the ball
juggling the method had taught me one logical step at a time. By the way the
only reason I stopped having lessons was because my drum teacher went on
tour and the new teacher had no method of teaching. After a few lessons with
the new teacher I felt like the lessons were not going anywhere. There was no
clear path or direction.

Learning to swim

Let us look at something unrelated to music. Swimming like guitar playing is

a skill. If I were a swimming teacher and let my beginner students jump
straight in the deep end chances are they would drown and I would very
quickly lose my teaching certificate due to unsafe practices. When teaching
students to swim we need to begin in the shallow end and start with simple
exercises like treading water or holding the edge of the pool while kicking our
legs. A qualified swim teacher will take students though a whole series of
progressive steps before letting them enter the deep end of the pool. With
swimming there are no second chances. What makes guitar teachers more
vulnerable to teaching without a method is simply the fact that they can do it
without anyone getting hurt. We are unlikely to see a headline about a guitar
teacher up on a malpractice charge. Their mistakes and ineffective teaching
methods go unchecked.

Teaching songs too early

When a teacher first starts out they are eager to impress their new students.
They run with the idea that success in any business is all about creating happy
customers. Happiness is important and striving for happy students should be
a consideration but not at the cost of success on guitar. When you focus only
on satisfying the requests of your students you find yourself in the trap of
teaching songs too early. We can be happy in the moment like when we are
eating a piece of chocolate cake or we can be happy long term by going for a
walk or jog instead. Attempting to teach songs too early can lead students to
believe that they should be able to play these songs and when they struggle
they will begin to lose motivation. When we teach songs too early we risk
losing students even if they are requesting the songs. Teachers who fall into
the trap of teaching songs tend to do so because they have no method. Their
strategy is simply to teach songs. Delaying songs until the student is ready is
your best strategy. Some teachers also find it difficult to resist student
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requests for songs. This happens because students lose faith in your method.
They see no real connection between what their favourite songs and your
method of learning. Keeping students on track requires making a connection
between the two. You achieve this by relating the skills in your method to
songs they hope to eventually learn. Keep everything relevant when and
wherever possible.

Too much choice

When I was growing up in the 70s I owned a few toy cars, a football and a
bike. My options for amusement were limited so my choice was pretty easy.
The same applied to TV. On one channel there was Bewitched and on the
other was Get Smart. My limited choices meant it was easy for me to choose.
Todays kids on the other hand have an almost unlimited choice in many
areas of life which may explain why child depression is at an all time high. Its
only a guess but perhaps the overwhelming number of choices they have
cause them to become anxious. I am not alone in my thinking on this point.
See the Randy Cale interview. There was a famous supermarket jam study
conducted in the USA where they found that a display of 24 different jams
attracted more people compared to a display of only 6 different jams but the
smaller display actually sold more jam. What this tells us is people are indeed
attracted to the idea of more choice but when it comes to making a decision
they are more likely to feel overwhelmed with too much choice and therefore
make no decision at all. For more on the Jam Study just follow the link. This
is where a method of learning guitar comes in. When you ask students what
they want to learn they might give you a list of songs but in reality when it
comes to learning those songs they become overwhelmed. A method limits
choice which in turn gives your students less to worry about. They are not
trying to divide up their limited time on multiple tasks. A method will keep
them focused on the 20% that really matters.

Praise effort and acknowledge results

The name of the game is results right? Students enroll to learn guitar and the
bottom line is they want results. While this is indeed the goal it should not be
the focus. Whatever you focus on your students will deem as important. When
teachers focus on results students will see results as a measure of their
personal success. This is often what causes students to make comparisons to
other students. When we only praise results then praise becomes less
frequent and this will erode student confidence. When students dont see
results they feel like a failure. The problem is students dont really understand
how results come about. You can ask them to practice and give them exercises
and even explain that 30 minutes a day practice on these exercises will bring
about results but they still dont really know what kind of result to expect. Its
all a bit fuzzy and commonly leads to frustration. When we praise something
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that students can consciously do or not do they feel in control. If you practice
30 minutes a day and I say Wow, thats great. Keep up the great work you
feel good because you know you had control. You decided to put in the effort.
You can also decide not to put in the effort and when praise is not
forthcoming you are under no illusions. You make a direct link between cause
and effect. Effort will eventually bring about results provided you have a
method that is proven to get results. The method is a critical component
because if your student is putting effort into random exercises and songs it is
guess work. It is also very unfair on your student. The student is putting in the
effort believing their efforts will ultimately produce a result but if you are not
using a method there are no guarantees. If you give a student a song that you
have not tested you really cant say how much effort is required to bring about
a result. This is especially problematic with beginners who want to learn
songs played by experienced guitarists. My first song was Stairway to
Heaven. It was way out of my skill range as a beginner and I persisted on and
off for over a year. I eventually concluded I was just not good enough. Only
once I discovered a good teacher did I realise that I was simply not ready. I
was trying to juggle 3 balls. I almost gave up guitar as a result.

Less means faster progress

The idea of a good method is to focus students on what matters and for
beginners what matters are the basic fundamental skills. Focusing your
students attention purely on skills they achieve results faster. If you split their
attention between skills and favourite songs will require a percentage of their
practice time and their favourite songs will inevitably become their first
priority. This results in songs becoming 80% of their practice time. As already
discussed focusing on songs too early will usually result in students becoming
overwhelmed (3 balls) and giving up. A method helps you and your student to
stay focused on the skills and not get distracted by songs.

A big problem for guitar teachers

In my early years of teaching guitar I experienced a high number of students

dropping out in the first 6 months. Naturally it took a few years to really
notice any kind of trend. I recall it was in my third or fourth year that it
became obvious. Initially I accepted it as normal. I simply assumed that
learning guitar was just one of those instruments that due to its natured
meant 90% would never achieve success. On one hand I decided there was
nothing I could do to change this situation yet on the other I was not willing
to accept that only 10% of my students would last more than a year. When
students begin guitar they have high hopes of achieving their dream of
becoming an accomplished guitarist. No one takes up guitar with the idea of
giving up. What I noticed was the first few weeks for most students was the
peak of their enthusiasm for actually learning guitar. It was also easy for me
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
to assume in these few weeks that students were in it for the long term based
on their enthusiasm but it proved to be an unreliable indicator. I have
operated guitar schools for many years and trained and managed hundreds of
guitar teachers. Whenever teachers had new students I would ask each
teacher after a new students first lesson how the lesson went. New teachers
would often respond by saying something like Great. The student loved the
lesson so I think they will be sticking around for a while. These teachers
would be shocked to learn their new enthusiastic students had suddenly
stopped turning up for lessons often within only a few weeks or months.
Many teachers were left scratching heads trying to understand what went
wrong. Departing students might say something like I am going to take
everything you showed me and work on it for a while or I am just really busy
at the moment or My finances are a bit tight so I need to put my lessons on
hold. All these excuses were basically code for I have lost interest.

Why students lose interest

The answer is so simple and obvious that it may even seem too simple. I think
we all know what its like to be searching frantically for something we have
lost only to realise it was right in front of us the whole time. This was my
experience with student dropouts. For several years I was searching for the
answer and there it was. Clear as day. The students who were dropping out
were the same students who were not practicing. They were not practicing
because they had lost interest. Students lose interest because they fail to get
early noticeable results. You might argue that students shouldnt expect too
much in those first few weeks and months because guitar takes time. This
unfortunately doesnt change how they feel. Early progress even if small
builds confidence. All a student really cares about in the early months is that
they are progressing. If students do not feel any progress they soon lose
interest. Your window of opportunity as a teacher is very small. The first few
weeks are when students are most likely to practice and to follow your
instructions. If they are not seeing results in those first weeks they will grow
restless. In most cases students have paid you up front so when it comes time
to paying you again they will be considering their options based on their
recent results. At best you have 6 months to prove you can get results.
Remember you are responsible for your students getting results. You are the
teacher and its your course so they are paying you to get results.

How a method will solve the loss of interest problem

When you use a method one of two scenarios will occur. Either you student
will follow the method or they wont. If they follow the method and the
method is a proven tested method they will get results and will usually be
satisfied with their progress. If they dont follow your method the student will
know why they are not getting results and you can be satisfied that you
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
offered them a method of learning. Generally when you enroll students and
explain your method clearly students who do not participate in your method
are rare. If your students are using the method and doing everything
according to the method yet you are still experiencing a high number of drop
outs you need to question the method itself and whether or not you are
correctly delivering the method. As you can see using a method allows you to
narrow down the problem. The method I use took many years to develop and
test but it is now at a point where I am confident that when a student does not
respond to the method they are either not practicing what is being asked or in
some cases they just want to learn songs and no amount of convincing will
change their mind. Again this is rare if at time of enrollment the method is
explained clearly and expectations are laid out.

Where are all the guitar methods?

There are surprisingly very few recognized accepted methods of learning

guitar. Most guitar teachers are either self taught guitarists or were taught by
self taught guitarists. Having no formal training means they were unlikely to
be exposed to any kind of method even if one existed. Add to this the fact that
up until the 1950s most guitar teachers were classically trained and most
methods were classical guitar methods. In fact I would argue that method
learning actually went out of fashion. Rock n roll was all about experimenting
and breaking away from the previous generation. Rock guitar eventually
established itself as a credible style of music and the kids of the 60s onwards
were keen to learn. By the 80s virtuoso rock guitar players were appearing but
most young players like myself who were just starting out found it all very
daunting. We desperately needed guidance and clarity.

Where do you find a method?

You have two options. Firstly you can create your own. This is a huge project
and not one I would suggest unless you are prepared to spend at least a few
years researching, testing and formulating your method. I recommend you
just spend time looking at what methods are already available and then
deciding which one feels right for you. For classical and jazz guitarists there
are plenty of good choices. For rock and popular styles it can be a little more
difficult. I myself was unable to find a method that satisfied my criteria so I
created my own. I spent many years developing my method of teaching which
by the way is called The G4 GUITAR METHOD. If you do not have a copy
please visit www.g4guitarmethod.com.au to download a copy. I wanted a
method that set clear goals and taught students to focus on the 20%. I wanted
a method that focused mostly on skills that could be applied to most styles of
guitar playing. I also wanted a method that made it easy for me as a teacher to
monitor student progress. No one method was able to do what I required so I
was somewhat forced to create my own. If there had of been something
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
available I would not have created my own so you should only create your
own method if you feel something is seriously missing from the available
options.

3. Network

A man's growth is seen in the successive choirs of his friends. -

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Dictionary.com describes a network as a supportive system of sharing

information and services among individuals and groups having a common
interest. We all network whether we realise it or not. Networking is what
makes the Internet work, its what keeps our society functioning and its what
makes people successful. The ideal network is one where everyone connected
to the network can benefit and contribute in some way. Networks usually
contain hubs. Hubs are central point meeting points that connect many parts
of the network. For example a city railway system is a network. Certain
stations will be hubs with the main hub often being called Central station. The
most successful guitar teachers are usually the ones with the biggest
networks.

You are a hub for your students

If you teach 50 students to play guitar in your area then you are a hub. You
are the point where all 50 students are connected. You are also connected to
other musicians and most likely to professional musicians. Some of your
students may just want to learn guitar for pleasure whereas others may be
considering a professional career in music. Chances are you know people who
can help them become professional. The more connected you are the more
you can do for your students and the more you do for your students the more
your reputation will spread. As you can see your value as a teacher in your
local community largely depends on your network.

It only takes one student

Every student you teach connects you to a network. If you are a great teacher
you only need one student for your reputation to spread. The average child
will have a dozen or more friends in the immediate area. Their parents will
also be connected to many people in the area. They will also be connected a
the local school and perhaps sporting groups. There is also the possibility they
have a sibling who again extends their network of friends. If you are a great
teacher this one student will be enough to spread your good name. When I
was at school there was a local guitar hero. His name was Jim and when he
played guitar our jaws just dropped. The question on everyones mind was
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
Who is his teacher? The best way to spread your reputation is to produce
amazing guitar students. Just one student is enough to spread your
reputation like wildfire. Now imagine having 10 or more jaw dropping guitar
students. As you can see networking is very powerful but you must be
producing great guitar players that are remarkable. If you think you can get
away with teaching students who dont practice therefore dont progress I
advise you to think again because the reputation goes both ways. If your
students fail to progress this will reflect back on you. I remember as a teen
one of my friends who had a guitar teacher yet failed to improve. My friend
even recommended I go to his teacher because he was a great guitar player
but subconsciously I knew something was not right. I was not aware of it at
the time but I knew my friend had been having lessons for over a year and
was still very much a beginner. My instinct told me that his teacher was not
producing successful students even if he himself was a great guitar player.
Focus on being a great teacher and your reputation will grow organically.

No one has all the answers

No matter how much experience we have we are unlikely to see all sides of a
problem. I recently read about how the aviation industry was concerned
about the the number of incidents occurring with Asian airlines compared to
the rest of the world. Their investigations discovered that there was a cultural
issue going on. In Asia the planes captain holds a position of high rank.
Copilots and navigators were therefore cautious about questioning the
captains decisions. This created a problem when the captain made a mistake.
There were several cited cases where the copilot had pointed out an oversight
but the captain had dismissed it. In the case of American pilots copilots were
much more likely to push the point without fear of offending their captain. To
overcome this problem they made two major changes. Firstly they reversed
roles. Traditionally the captain would fly the plane while the copilot would
oversee and carry out instructions according to the captains orders. The new
change meant the copilot would now fly the plane and the captain would now
oversee. This made much more sense because it was easier for the captain to
see a potential problem and advise the copilot then the other way around. In
effect instead of having one person in control of the decision making now
there were two. Secondly they made English compulsory for all pilots and air
traffic controllers worldwide. This ensured that air traffic control were able to
listen in to conversations at all times. In other words they broadened their
network. Now any number of people could listen in and give advice if
necessary. A very clever move which has since dramatically decreased the
number of air disasters in recent years. Expanding your network especially to
qualified people in your industry will increase your chances of success. If you
dont belong to a guitar teacher network I strongly advise you look for one.

The power of one

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
We often hear stories about great people who single handedly changed the
world. Martin Luther King, Ghandi, Nelson Mandela, Mother Theresa to
name a few. While they were indeed amazing individuals they did not do it
alone. These individuals were in fact great at networking. In each case they
were very well connected and had spent years building their personal
networks. They had a cause and their networks helped them to spread their
message. Their networks just as importantly were a source of reliable
information. When we network information flows in two directions helping us
to stay informed as well as sharing our own information. Those people who
are viewed as influential are really just network hubs. They often rise to fame
because they become the connection between those who support the cause
and the general public. When you become a hub you become more informed
and as you can see from the above examples you soon rise to the top of your
chosen field.

Guitar teacher isolation

Guitar teachers as a rule tend to operate in isolation. Most will teach from
their own homes and rarely have contact with other guitar teachers. When I
started teaching guitar I was exactly the same but it just felt wrong. I knew I
was going to grow. I had been working in retail since I was a teen and there
were always other sales people and at least one manager and perhaps office
staff around. It always felt like a team environment. We were able to share
experiences, talk about problems, ask for advice and exchange success stories.
I found myself learning very quickly because I was not only receiving valuable
training I was able to see other team members in action. As an isolated guitar
teacher I did not have this opportunity. I was alone in isolation so there was
no one to learn from. I knew I had to change this if I was to improve as a
teacher so I came up with a solution. Start a music school. That way I could
bring in lots of different teachers and we could all learn from each other. I
spent the next 20 years establishing and operating music schools and that
interaction with hundreds of great music teachers over the year is what I
believe made me a successful teacher.

The Jimi Hendrix experience

Hendrix rose to the top of the electric guitar world for one reason. He was a
master at networking. Hendrix spent his early years connecting with every
guitarist he could find. He would literally turn up to concerts of other guitar
players with his own guitar in hand and go back stage and ask for a lesson. He
was shy but not when it came to guitar. Even before Hendrix became famous
he had played with Little Richard who was the biggest act going around.
Hendrixs ability to network made him both a great guitar player and a
successful one. It was the girl friend of Keith Richards who introduced
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
Hendrix to Chas Chandler who introduced Jimi to Clapton and the British
guitar scene. This in turn help Jimi to become popular. Everything about
Hendrixs success revolved around his ability to network. Hendrix was a hub.
He was even connected to the jazz scene through Miles Davis. It is doubtful
that Hendrix would have been so successful had it just stayed in Seattle and
practiced a lot. Without his networking efforts he would not have come in
contact with so many great guitar players and he would not have gained the
knowledge and connections he needed to succeed.

Social networking

Social networks like Facebook make it easier than ever to connect with other
guitar teachers and students for that matter. We are all busy so you need to
make the best use of your time. Again you are looking for the 20%. There is
also the issue of location. The people in your networks can now be anywhere.
You are not limited to those within traveling distance. I have found Facebook
to be a great solution because almost everyone I know is on there. I was easily
able to create a network on Facebook for guitar teachers and students. What I
like most is that I can come back at anytime and read posts, answer questions
or post a new topic. I am able to stay connected to the people who matter and
I can work it around my schedule. In the old days organising a meeting
amongst guitar teachers was practically impossible. Face to face is of course
still the best way to communicate if you can do it but in between social
networking is the way to go.

Marketing
Website

The first step is to create a website. There are free options like Wordpress,
Weebly and webs.com but if you want to do it right I suggest registering your
own domain and creating your own website. When you use a free service they
will put advertising across your site and may even close down your website or
start charging you. Having your own domain and hosting will avoid any
potential problems. This is something we do provide help with in our mentor
program.

Google

Google is really the only serious contender when it comes to search you need
to be concerned with. Ensuring your website and therefore your lessons are
found online you need to ensure you are well placed on Google. This actually
takes a lot of work because what Google looks for are websites that meet a list
of over 200 different criteria ranging from the keywords in your website to

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR

the quality of your content and even the design of your site. Its complicated
and not something the average guitar teacher wants to be spending too much
time on. One thing you do want to do though is register yourself on Google
Business Map Listings. This will ensure you are found.

Facebook

At this writing Facebook has over 750 million users most of whom visit the
site several times a day. Facebook is the place to be and its where your
potential students will be. Facebook has enormous potential for guitar
teachers because you can target to your exact audience. I am going to give you
one simple strategy that you can use to attract an audience on Facebook.
Make a Facebook page with pics that represent you and the kind of students
you are trying to attract. E.g. If you want to work with kids put pics of kids
playing guitar. If you want to teach metal put appropriate images on your
sites. Next start posting relevant posts to that audience. Now go to Facebook
Ads and place an ad with a pic that relates to your audience and then target
them. You can choose all kinds of criteria such as age, sex, location, interests.
This will allow you to attract your ideal audience.

List building

This refers to capturing potential student emails. Most people need to learn
more about you and what you offer. Adding them to your email list will allow
you to contact them again and to educate them on your products. You can use
services like Aweber or Mailchimp. Both are good except Mailchimp is free to
a certain point so if you just want to test the service this may be the place to
start.

Your next step

Take action

Knowledge is soon forgotten if not actioned. They say we only remember

about 10% of what we read. By taking action you are much more likely to
remember. As I hope you can see the the 3 keys to teaching guitar Learn,
Structure and Network are the 20%. Focusing on these 3 areas will account
for about 80% of your success as a teacher. I have included a page with the 3
keys to teaching success so feel free to print and hang it on your wall to
remind yourself every day otherwise chances are within a week you will have
forgotten them.

What next?

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR

This book covered the basics but to ensure success it is important to
continually development your skills. Great teachers start by being great
students. When you stop learning you stop developing as a teacher so follow
the lead of your students and find a good coach. You are welcome to contact
myself via the details below. I welcome your questions and wish you all the
best with your teaching. Below I have included information about joining the
G4 GUITAR Network which will help you to keep learning, structure your
lessons and of course network with other guitar teachers. Its a complete
solution that will practically guarantee your success as a teacher.

Questions

If you have any questions please feel free to contact David Hart via email at
[email protected]

The G4 GUITAR METHOD.

To receive a free copy please visit our website www.g4guitarmethod.com.au.

The G4 GUITAR NETWORK.

If you are interested in joining our teacher network please email David Hart
ay [email protected] for more details. Network membership means you
will be taking action and covering the 3 keys to teaching success.

Thank you for taking the time to read this book and stay tuned for more in the
future.

Acknowledgements

Firstly to my family for being ever so patient and understanding about my

long and seemingly never ending work hours. A special thank you to Emma
Payne for her many years of dedication and belief in my many crazy ideas.
Brendan Morello for his amazing support and help in launching the G4
GUITAR Network. Plus a big thank you to all the G4 GUITAR employees
and network members. Sorry too many to mention but you know who you are.

The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR

 3 Keys to
Teaching Success

Learn
Structure
Network
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR
The Essential Guide to Teaching Guitar Copyright 2012. G4 GUITAR