Becoming a Private Guitar Teacher

If you are an experienced guitar player in need ofIf you want to ensure that you get some interest
some cash, why not give guitar lessons? Would youfrom possible future students, just give them a good
rather spend all of your time working hard just toprice. Giving cheap guitar lessons will still make you
make a lowly minimum wage, or would you like tomore money than most other part time ventures.
spend a half hour teaching someone how to playSome of the more experienced teachers command
some chords and get more than double that? Why$30 for a half hour. You could offer rates of $10-$15
submit yourself to an employer's orders and demandsfor a half hour and still be in good shape. Many
when you can be your own boss and do somethingprivate instructors travel to student's homes for
that you actually enjoy? Giving guitar lessons canlessons, and if you are considering doing this you can
really be a nice gig, but for a number of reasons,charge more for travel expense, but it should also be
most people who are perfectly qualified would nevereasy enough to find people in your area willing to
even consider it.come to you.
You don't have to be a guitar virtuoso to give musicHaving said all that, not everyone would be a good
lessons, and you don't need to have twenty yearscandidate for becoming a private guitar teacher. You
of playing experience under your belt. All you have todo need to have some guitar ability and knowledge,
do is find someone who can learn from you,and you will have to keep an organized schedule and
someone who can benefit from whatever you doplan things out. You will also usually need to provide
know. There are plenty of people who have justequipment, or at least have your own functioning and
picked up a guitar and want to take lessons. In manyquality equipment. Having chord charts and other
ways it would be better for them to avoid the highlyresources available to your students is important and
trained guitar professionals and take lessons fromwill make your services seem more professional and
someone who was at their level not too long ago. Ifdedicated, but the thing you will need most of all is
you know basic chords and scales you can teachthe ability to communicate and work with your
someone who doesn't even know how to get theirstudents.
instrument in tune yet.Not everyone can sit there and patiently explain to a
So how do you find people that would be a good fitbeginner where to put their fingers and how to pluck
for you as a private teacher? When I decided toa string. Some people just aren't meant to be
start giving lessons I put one add up on craigslist andteachers and if you don't think you can spend a half
within a few days I had multiple replies. From thosehour to an hour talking people through guitar
replies I could choose the students who best fit mytechniques, do not start lining up students. If you are
schedule and knowledge. I ended up getting a fewunsure, try giving a music lesson to a friend or
students who would come to me and pay me well,relative and see how it goes, but at the same time,
and I was making decent money from a couple hoursdon't worry if you take a few lessons to get the
of work per week. I don't even think I wouldhand of it. The important thing is that you have a
consider it work.desire to do it.
On craigslist you can browse posts from people whoThere is still, and will probably always be, a large
are looking for teachers or you can put up your owndemand for guitar teachers to give people private
listing with a description of your services. There aremusic lessons. If you are at all considering becoming
other websites that have similar services specializedone, I would encourage you to give it a shot. As
for guitar players and teachers, but they generally dothey say, it beats flipping burgers.
not have the traffic that craigslist gets.