Guitar Dojo
DOJO SKILLS ACADEMY OVERVIEW AND MISSION
Whether you are black belt or white belt in the world of guitar playing, advanced or beginner, proper technique is the foundation of all talent growth.
The #1 issue we face as we advance and run into issues and plateaus are technique problems.
Yes, you can grow talent. No, talent is not natural-born. Talent is programmed. And yes - we are going to program your talent in this Dojo Skills experience together.
Get in touch with instructor Andrew Wheeler to learn more!
What is the Guitar Dojo Skills Academy?
Welcome! I created the Guitar Dojo Skills Academy as an online extension of my in-person guitar teaching and coaching business. After having taught almost 10,000 one-on-one in person lessons to date, I saw long ago that there was one leading theme crucial to a guitarist's success: Mastery of guitar skills from basic to advanced through excellent technique and singular focus.
All my clients' frustration came down to one main idea - whether they were 7 or over 70: Proper technique and how to improve it through a focused practice plan and regimen.
Poor technique and lack of focus/practice plan are the leading progress killers. It always ties back to this when a guitarist "hits a plateau". Great technique is the #1 factor in playing your instrument freely and fluently. Any guitarist can play the music of their dreams if they just start with proper technique and institute a clear, consistent practice schedule.
However, in the age of instant, disposable online lessons and reels from YouTube, Instagram, TikTok and other platforms filled with 'guitar gurus', the epidemic of poor technique has never been worse. Yes - it's awesome there's such a huge amount of pre-made lessons available to you at your fingertips - even so much for free.
But...the #1 issue is that the "teacher" on the other end of your screen can't see your technique issues in your picking hand and your fretting hand. So, when a new student/client who has been hopping around YouTube from guitar channel to guitar channel starts working with me, they usually say a very similar thing: They feel 'stuck' where they are because they lack a clear, focused practice plan to grow their skills and because they can't physically play what they thought they'd be able to by now.
Sound familiar?
Time and time again, student after student, clients came to Andrew with the same pain points. So - after fine tuning the core skills and curriculum, Andrew founded the Guitar Dojo Skills Academy.
What Makes Our Dojo Academy
Work?
Many guitar students think they don’t have enough knowledge. They worry that without knowing numerous scales and chords they won’t be “good enough” or ever “meet their goals”. While a sound knowledge of the inner workings of music on the guitar neck is crucial to developing your skills as a musician - and please note there IS a difference between a guitarist and a musician (ideally, they blend for success), - you don’t need to know dozens of scales and modes to express yourself fully and freely on the instrument. You don’t need countless chords and strumming patterns. You don’t need a million licks. They will come - but only if - you have a foundation of solid technique.
In my 20+ years of teaching I have often met students who feel frustrated by their lack of progress and lack of musicality. Especially now, given the wealth and breadth/depth of information available online, adult learners are under the impression they can be Bruce Lee without the training.
We know this is impossible, right?
You may have a supremely talented guitarist who does not read music and doesn’t have an ounce of formal guitar education. But I guarantee you they found the proper technique that worked for them in their system.
Master Every Guitar Technique
There are techniques particular to blues. There are additional techniques particular to heavy rock, classic rock, rock and roll, RnB, neo-soul, classical, folk, and jazz.
But don’t worry - all of these special techniques branch from the same tree of proper guitar technique.
You need only solid technique to grow your wings.
What is ‘solid’ technique?
It is the physical process of playing the guitar. The hallmarks of good technique are as follows:
- It is efficient
- You work smarter, not harder.
- It reduces stress on your joints, and in your arms, fingers, hips, shoulders, neck, and more.
- It forms a flawless process of fingering the neck, thumb placement, and picking hand technique that will allow you to achieve your guitar playing dreams.
- Increases Musicality.
- Allows you to experience the “flow” (more on that later) and truly be one with that which you seek to play.
- It is like water. You use the technique you have trained so carefully in the execution of your music.
- It grows with you. The more reliable your proper technique is, the quicker you will learn as you are removing physical obstacles.
- It is the problem / barrier 100% of the time when a guitarist feels they have hit a wall.
What makes the Guitar Dojo Skills Academy
different?
Access to top-tier teaching from a real, experienced, full-time guitar instructor for a fraction of the cost of traditional lessons.
The Four A's make the Dojo stand out among its competitors and produce results you'll see and hear in your skills quickly. If you're reading this, chances are you're looking for a reliable learning structure to help you attain (and crush!) your goals.
Let's look at the Four A's:
01 Affordability
We are all familiar with the impact inflation is having on our wallets. It seems to have impacted everything! Well, our monthly fee in the Dojo is 1/2 to 1/4 the price of in-person lessons with an excellent, well-qualified guitar instructor.
02 Access
The Dojo meets you where you are at any guitar skill level, anywhere in the world. It uses a super simple communications app called "Telegram", which has no cost of its own. It's free to download on any device and looks as good on a tablet / phone as it does on your desktop computer. You'll also have access to Andrew.
03 Assistance & Accountability
You will have access to Andrew directly via the Dojo / Telegram app and you will be encouraged to send him your training videos on a regular basis so he can offer you feedback for improvement. Yes - an experienced and understanding instructor in DIRECT contact with you, the student, so you'll never be 'lost' in the process and to stay accountable. Additionally, Andrew hosts podcasts, group meetings, office hours and live events in the Dojo. There's even the Dojo "Cafè" where we can go and just have fun in a virtual jam where Andrew teaches some of the most fun and popular music of the 20th and 21st century. You're encouraged to post videos of yourself, if you like!
How does the Dojo work?
The Dojo works on any smartphone, tablet or computer. You will see interactive videos module by module with exact and precise skills instruction and activities for each 'belt level'. The Dojo platform called "Telegram" is fun, easy to use, and is the world's absolute best and most common messaging/communication platform/app. Once you download Telegram, I reach you via videos you watch; I write out all the examples in a downloadable PDF notation (guitar tabs), and together we'll move through all the skills/activities inside each module. You can sign up anytime. I post new activities and information weekly - including podcasts, videos with students, student success stories, book reviews, and motivational tips & tricks. It's clear, concise, easy to use, and you'll always have a solid idea of how and what to practice. You'll stay accountable through sending me short videos of your progress which I will then watch and respond to, offering you custom feedback.
If you're tired of hitting the same guitar ability and skills walls on repeat, why not take this opportunity NOW - not later - to take control of your guitar future once and for all? I'm offering a free 3-day trial. If you enroll in the free trial and don't like the Dojo - just cancel before your trial is up. I would love the chance to meet you through the app and help you transform your playing.
Signing up is so easy. There are only two steps:
1 - Click the enrollment link at the top and bottom of the page to start your free trial.
2 - Download telegram and create a username.
Boom! Done.
Feel free to check out my over 60 five-star google reviews (518 guitar) and testimonials right here on our site.
Join Our Remote Guitar Program Today & Start Seeing Results
There are hundreds of thousands of YouTube videos on anything from strumming at the campfire to ripping Eddie Van Halen or even Flamenco Guitar. They are all meaningless if you don’t have technique. You will never be able to reproduce the sounds on the guitar you wish to hear.

The area that disturbs us as guitarists is the space between - the difference of - what we expect to hear from our fingers and what we really hear. That is the friction. When that negative space grows and pushes the river banks of “expected sounds” vs. “reality sounds” too wide, we become discouraged, non-committal, and eventually - if we can’t solve the puzzle - we give up.
We are here to learn from that negative space - the space between our hopes and our current abilities.
Don’t adjust your hopes. Adjust your technique.
Be like water.
In our Dojo, you will learn to go with the flow. It is about the journey, not the destination. We will let go of any negative thoughts or feelings we have about ourselves as players.
Once our technique has solidified and become predictable, trained, and careful - we will then be able to play the music of our dreams.
We will see that music is nothing more than a puzzle which you can assemble any time, at any age, at any skill level - but only with a sound, solid and reliable approach of technique and training. Without that, everything else will suffer.
Help has arrived.
Welcome to the Dojo.
Requirements:
Each belt in martial arts has core skills and meaning behind it. Rather than label yourself as a "white belt" or "yellow belt", think of your progress and skills in these terms. Remember - belt level reflects mastery of a core set of guitar skills leading to improved musicality and fluency. Here is a simplified overview.
By the end of your journey, you will have an entire set list of music you can play on your own and/or with other musicians and you'll be expert in a genre area (or more than one). You will most certainly be equipped to jam with other musicians routinely, and teach other guitarists, if you so choose. You will be one of the most knowledgeable and skilled guitarists that people near you will ever meet, and you'll be known for touching people's lives with your music.
Please know you won't have to complete the entire belt level to be happy and fulfilled as a guitarist. This Dojo is happy to accommodate any guitarist from recreational playing at the campfire all the way through to individuals who desire to play fluently, gig and teach.
Our goal is to create complete guitarists who are fluent at a professional level, if desired, through the installation of crucial core techniques, music knowledge and hands-on application of skills.
Checklist by Color
White Belt
(for promotion to yellow belt)
Yellow Belt
(for promotion to Orange Belt)
Orange Belt
(for promotion to Green Belt)
Green Belt
(for promotion to Blue Belt)
Blue Belt
(for promotion to Purple Belt)
Purple Belt
(for promotion to Brown Belt)
Brown Belt
(for promotion to Red Belt)
Red Belt
(for promotion to Poom Belt)
Poom Belt
(for candidacy to Black Belt)
Black Belt Candidate
Graduating to a Black Belt means that you must know everything learned in all belts.
Through dedication and hard work, your goal is now a reality that you will be reaching shortly. Below is a checklist for you to follow of things that you will need to do, know, and accomplish before admittance to black belt training. Some require commitment and sacrifice, however, after all of our training, that’s what is needed to reach your ultimate goals.
- Attend all masterclass that have been offered in each module
- Alternate Picking and/or Finger Picking fluency including inside picking, outside picking, inserting runs and riffs, finger picking to include ALL segovia scales in at least 3 right hand i-m-a combinations. In other words, you must be advanced in EITHER picking OR Finger Picking and at least a workable knowledge of the other as song performances in your life will call for using both.
- Speed growth in the performance of songs, melodies and riffs at least 80% faster than White Belt measurements.
- Give back to our community (chat, podcast, student spotlight, offer masterclass) showing loyalty to continuous learning and gratitude.
- Extensive knowledge of your skill. In other words - could you teach what you enjoy playing?
- Must attend 1 Guitar Summit (virtual or in-person) - no make ups.
- Must pass written test
- Must post at least 3 performance videos to the community at any time in your learning path from white belt to completion of Poom Belt.
What to expect in Black Belt Classes:
- These classes are for Black Belts only and may not be sampled by any other skill level- Guitar practice routine at least 5 times a week via studio app tracking.
- Extra help from master/instructor via video exchange AT LEAST 2 times a week.
- Advanced Chord Harmony knowledge
- Advanced Fretboard Logic knowledge
- Advanced Scale Combinations with execution at any point in the fretboard- How to use Major, Harmonic Minor, Melodic Minor and Exotic Modes
- Song set list construction, gig planning, setup.
- Being able to play songs for at least 2 sets of music at 45 minutes each.
- Increased Community Participation; posting encouragement in comments and posting of your song writing, guitar performance, improv, virtual 'open mic', or other - videos.
- It's time to tap into your motivation and reflect on the lifelong learning journey, reignite your passion, and be known as the amazing, committed, loyal and well-trained guitarist you are!
**Remember, our goal at the advanced levels is to create a musician who happens to be an amazing guitarist. It is not possible to ignore playing music with and/or for others. Growth and fluency cannot occur alone. What if you learned a language but never spoke with anyone else, ever? Would it be possible to be fluent? **
*Not ALL skills are taught each week. They are offered in the order of importance starting with Module 1. However, there ARE skills and training offered each week for each belt level.
**Starting with Green Belt and Above, you will be able to opt out of an "elective" area and replace it with a skill, idea, or technique of your choice. Word of caution: It will be very, very hard to communicate the essential musical elements of rhythm, pitch and dynamics if you opt out of "Note Reading". You can certainly opt out of note reading at level Orange and above, but your ability to truly understand harmony on your instrument will be limited.