Okay, here goes. I've been at it for a few months, and through a combination of factors, I think I've hit my first plateau. :mad: I feel like my progress has ground to a halt. I'm in a definite rut.

Some external factors include family obligations, increased work load at the office, and some renovation to my practice area. All this has resulted in decreased practice time and a definite loss of focus and motivation. I've even had to stop going to my son's guitar lessons (which are a great source of inspiration and learning) due to time constraints.

I'm addressing some of these factors currently, but the amount of time I have to devote to practice is not likely to increase for a few months. I've subscribed to a couple of guitar rags to at least keep my motivation up by taking in as much as possible. I'm talking guitar with my son constantly to keep me (and him) engaged. Heck, I've even put my guitar out in the open for a constant reminder that I'm slacking!

My question to the group here is: Given a limited amount of time (10 to 15 minutes at best), what are some suggestions as far a practice routine to get me back on track? I know it's a wide open question without knowing too much about my ability level. So, I'll try to add a bit on that end of it.

I've gone through the beginner lessons here; and looked at few beyond that. To be totally honest in this self-assessment, I'm stuck at chords. I'm having trouble moving between them and really haven't taken the time to move beyond major chords. I've been learning a few songs that I really like - but just in bits and pieces - not as completely as I'd like to. I practice a few scales here and there, but rather randomly and inconsistently. Bottom line, I'm just having a hard time putting it all together, I don't have a feel for where I am in the process, and I don't know how to break out of the slump, so to speak.

I feel like what I need is a good short-term gameplan. If I could just have someone say, "okay, here's what you need to do", then it could jump start me again. Given my limited practice time and the fact that I'm burned out at the end of the day, a quick little routine that I could attack in that short time for a month or so would be ideal. I realize I'm taking the easy way out by not thinking through it myself, but knowing how I am, this is one those cases where it's better just to take direction from someone who has more knowledge and has been there.

Any ideas? Thanks in advance.