Originally Posted by: CSchlegel

There are many, many different ways to play any given chord on the guitar. We just started with the simplest possible versions so beginners could get some music happening as soon as possible. After that, we gradually increase the complexity of the content as the courses move forward.

This is very true. One thing you are going to learn throughout your journey on the instrument is that chords are simply a collection of notes. Given the range of the guitar, and the possibility to play several notes in the same place; you can play every chord you can think of in many, many different ways. We all learn the same shapes in the beginning, and how you finger those can be done in different ways as well. As Christopher stated, most shapes are simply based on comfort and your fingers will gravitate towards the most logical shapes. However, in the beginning; I understand that nearly everything seems a little awkward.

Try out the shapes Christopher posted and keep in mind that on the guitar there are many, many ways to play every chord; some super easy, others more challenging. Below is a link to a tutorial I did on "Major Triads" that explain how to play some C major shapes that are easy to finger and might show you a few new ways to approach your instrument.

Best of Luck!

http://guitartricks.com/lesson.php?input=12505&c_id=13&ch_id=78&s_id=646