Chord help for guitar beginners

Many people look at guitar players and don't think about what it takes to play the instrument.  It is practice and dedication to playing that leads to great music.  When beginners play the chords on the guitar they usually look at each individual finger holding down the single notes that form a chord.  The best trick is to look at it as one unit, i.e. if you are typing and hit three keys on purpose at the exact same time to become one unit.  The chord should be a quick motion and over time you will become faster because your fingers will memorize the position.  When someone says, "Can you play an F?" You won't be thinking about the finger placement individually, but all tother as one unit.  Keep in mind that it takes practice and dedication to learn the chords. 

The other tool that you should find, either online or at a music store, is a chord chart.  I can't tell you how many times I would look up a chord until one day memorized it.  Learn at your own pace and when your fingers hurt you should take a breather.  One thing that Bobby taught me was that you should write down the chord that you are most comfortable with.  Then, draw a circle around it with arrows pointing out like a clock.  I.E., one o'clock, etc.  Then write another chord at each point around your dial.  Practice moving from the center to each of the chords and then back to the center.  We used random chords for me so that I wouldn't become complacent with the easy chords.  Also, remember your right hand for rythm.  Try strumming each chord four times and then switch as you move around your dial. 

By far the hardest chords for me ended up being power chords.  The one thing that Bobby said was that, "Whatever is hard now will become easy over time."  Eventually the guitar will become more expressive as you move through your learning process.  The reward---well you can play guitar whenever you want to.