3 Secrets To Speed Up Your Chord Changes

If you’re having trouble not being able to change chords as quickly as you’d like then you should find the following helpful…

Step One: Use “Connector” Points

If we take a look at the change between Em to G for example you can see that your first finger can remain exactly where it is.

em-chord g-chord

There are actually many chords where you can do this, here’s another example…

c-chord  em-chord-2

When changing from a C chord to Em (or vise-versa) it’s the 2nd finger which acts as a connector between the two.

For beginners there are a total of 6 of these chord connectors to master in the beginner section of the course “Learn Guitar With Paul“.

Step Two: Find Your Pressure Point

You need to practice your  chords changes intelligently and spend the vast majority of your practice time working in and around your pressure points.

Here’s how you do that:

  1. Pick two chords you’d like to work with
  2. Start up a metronome (if you don’t have one you can use one online here)
  3. Begin changing between the chords at a slow tempo and gradually increase the BPM (beats per minute) until you find the point where it all breaks apart. This point is where you’re struggling to keep up and you’re no longer able to change between chords in time with the metronome click
  4. Congratulations… you’ve just  found  you’re pressure point!

Now Squeeze It…

Make a note of it so you’ll remember where it is next time you practice that particular chord change. Simply decrease the tempo down 15BPM and work your way back up again. Speed most of your time practicing in this zone!

Working intelligently in this way will massively increase your chord changes and your rate of improvement on guitar because your spending your practice time where it really counts… laser focused upon the problem.

Step Three: Mix & Match

Rather than spending 30 minutes killing yourself over one chord change mix and match things up.

For example:

  • 5min – Chord change 1
  • 10min – Chord change 2
  • 5min – Chord change 1
  • 5min – Chord change 3
  • 10min – Chord change 2

and so forth.

The trick is to give your mind breaks and move between different problems in each practice session. When you come back to something you were practicing a few minutes earlier you’ll find that it really, really helps!

Make your practicing dynamic and intelligent. ATTACK YOUR PROBLEMS.

Before I Forget…

Try to not become emotionally attached to your practicing. It is very easy to become discouraged or depressed when you feel your at a standstill and that you’re not making any progress. The key is to simply do your practice and forget about it. Don’t put any emotional energy into it! Don’t give it the power to depress you.

In a nutshell “Do it and forget, regardless of your results.”

Let me know what you think below…

3 Comments
  1. Paul I’ve been learning guitar for 9 months now, practice everyday for aprox an hour. I have not missed a day . i take private lessons once a week with a very talented musician … Major, minor and 7 chords and barre chords I have learned and working on a handful of songs but feel that I’m having trouble putting what I have learned into action as I would like to… Putting it all together is very slow for me, I feel that I do progress but at a very slow pace and at times wonder if I am missing something other than obvious talent. I was wondering what you would suggest for me. Does your course include all levels and if not should I still want to take the beginner course? Thanks for your time and input

  2. When I lived in an Alaskan village years ago, the Eskimo kids would pick up the guitar and play beautifully in no time at all. Me, well I have been playing for some time and I have had struggles with the guitar. I keep playing because I have fun with it. Finally, after decades of practice something clicked in my brain. I am playing all sorts of songs and enjoying the guitar more than ever. Some people figure out the guitar quickly, and others need more time. Be happy with where you are, strive to be better, and always have fun.

    John

  3. I sound the chords o.k. My speed is not up to it. Good players seem to change in half a beat.Will I ever gain true speed. Its annoying.

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