NO! It’s never too late to learn how to play the guitar. You can start learning the guitar at any age; from a young age of 5 to a more advanced age of 70, it all depends on what you tell yourself and what category you push yourself into: the “I can” or “I can’t” category.
There’s no particular age where learning process totally stops, except when one is dead, obviously. There are evident advantages that come with learning the guitar as a child or young adult:
- More time on your hands – You’re not yet saddled with family drama or life’s responsibilities like paying bills, having a spouse, having kids, going to work etc, so it’s easier to concentrate on the guitar, giving it premium attention and dedication and keeping up with constant practice routines.
- Body flexibility – When you start learning the guitar, it takes time for your body to adjust to that sitting or standing position while playing; your neck, back, hands, legs and fingers are all involved. As a young person, it’s easier to bend and stretch across frets because your fingers and whole body is still flexible enough to move around without feeling as much pains as an older person would. Even when you have calluses on your fingers as a result of constant playing, they tend to heal up faster in a matter of hours or days and give way for you to get on with your practice.
- You’re in your prime in terms of brain development – As a younger fellow, your brain development is much more rapid, you tend to catch on quickly with whatever you learn. The brain is shaped and patterned at a young age, it takes its form and whatever the brain assimilates/absorbs at that young age, stays for a long time.
- Motivation from parents, relatives and friends – Learning the guitar can be quite frustrating especially when you have nobody to cheer you up on your small wins and successes. As a child or young adult, you have the support of your family members and friends. Even when you’re not catching up so well, the motivation from all around you will spur you on. When you’re young, you wouldn’t have to go through the difficult journey of learning the guitar alone.
But hey! Who says you cannot learn the guitar as an adult? Infact, there are advantages that come with learning the guitar as an adult:
- You’re well experienced and know what you want – You’ve gone through some experiences in life that has taught you firmness and strict decision making processes, you’re not uncertain or confused as to what you want, you’ve been listening to music for a long time now and know exactly what kind of music gets you going and what kind of music you would love to learn unlike younger persons who just want to dabble in between jazz, rock, blues, country and the rest, all at the same time without knowing the exact one they want or being patient to master one first.
- You have the financial means – You have a source(s) of income, and as we know, it’s not very possible to be a guitar player without having some necessary gear to back up your playing, and the worth of some of these gear is not a child’s play! As an adult, you can afford your own gear and guitars yourself without having to rely on mom or dad to get you one. You can make your own choices on the type of gear you want (depending on how much you can spare), without having to settle for whichever one was bought for you by someone else.
- You’re under no sort of pressure or competition – You’re under no form of pressure or competition to become the next Eric Clapton or Jimi Hendrix, so you can learn the guitar at your own pace, time and speed limit. You can set up your own practice routine that suits you best and works well with your other daily life schedules.
- You are much more disciplined – When you pick up the guitar to practice, even when you’re not doing it right, you don’t slam your guitar onto the floor in frustration or get distracted and pick up your game console instead. You have better time management skills as an adult, you’re able to dedicate a particular amount of time to practice and see to it that the time invested is utilized.
Learning something new requires time, commitment, dedication and so much effort and can be achieved regardless of your age. Learning the guitar is no different; it may seem impossible or difficult when you start, but that’s all there is to the “beginner stage”, it gets easier and better with time, consistent practice and a high level of discipline (child or adult).
You re very capable of learning the guitar no matter your age. Telling yourself “I’m already old” is just an excuse. It’s not too late. It’s never too late.
Whatever age category you fall into, has its advantages. Take full advantage of these advantages and give it your best shot! Goodluck!