This question is about to any of you more experienced players:
I’m a beginner - playing for about three weeks - and enjoying every bit of it. How long did it take y’all before you could keep the left hand tempo going and fret on-time? I’m getting better, but on some notes (D, for example), I have to pause I can resume the rolling. Is this something take takes weeks, months or, gulp, years to accomplish?
Hi Shan!
First off, that is a normal thing. We have to get our right hand going on tempo, we have to get our left hand going on tempo AND we have to coordinate between our right and left hand. The fact that you are aware of it is awesome, and just being aware of it means that you are already improving it. As far as how long does it take… it will get better in a matter of weeks, but in a way it will be a lifelong journey. The hiccups become less severe over time and we can also typically overcome them more quickly, but as long as we are learning new shapes, patterns and phrases (or pushing new speeds), this is a normal challenge.
In short, my guess is that your fretting hand will soon go to the basic chord shapes without conscious thought. Probably over the next days and weeks. Once that happens, it gets much easier. Let us know how it goes! If it doesn’t improve or you feel stuck, post a video of what is giving you problems.
I agree with @Mike_R, it can be difficult at first but will get significantly easier very soon if you practice often.
Hi Shannon 
to @Banjoben 's Forum and congratulations on becoming a new banjo player.
I am not really sure I understand your question. Having said that I know where your coming from since it seems learning to play banjo is a mammoth task and that journey starts out with a zillion questions,. I will say you are amongst friends and in the best place to ask these questions.
So I have a question for you. Are you a left handed or a right handed player?
The reason I ask is because it’s the picking hand that keeps the tempo whist the fretting hand frets the strings and creates the musical notes.
A common question beginners ask is “How long does it take” well it’s a bit like how long is a piece of string. For most of us (unless your gifted) learning to play banjo takes a lifetime. I didn’t pick up a banjo till I was 63 I am 75 now and still learning.
That said, if you work your way through BanjoBen’s beginner learning track you should begin to see good progress after about six months providing you spend time ( at least an hour ) each day on study and practice.
https://banjobenclark.com/university/beginner-banjo
What you need to understand is learning to play banjo is a complex process. By working through Ben’s lessons you’ll learn the mechanics of playing the instrument as well as learning to play music. Amazingly banjo players use both hands that work independently, they do different things at the same time. Banjo players use their eyes and more importantly their ears to help them remember where the notes are. That is complex multitasking.
Now don’t panic, the way Ben has set out his lessons, he leads you to learn the things you need to know at the skill level you are at. As you work through the lessons you’ll repeat a lot of stuff, so the task becomes easier as you progress.
At various stages on the learning path Ben will introduce more challenging stuff and as you work through that things will begin to make more sense.
Don’t rush through the lessons, work at your own pace, if you don’t understand something in a lesson ask away we are always here to help where we are able.
When it comes to learning / practicing / moving between chord shapes - If your struggling to play rolls at the same time - DON’T play the rolls, just work on moving between chord shapes.
A wee tip for you. Make an F Shape Chord anywhere on the neck where it’s most comfortable, Now keeping your Ring Finger and your Pinkie on the D strings, swap the Middle Finger and the Index Finger between the two middle strings, repeat the process. Do this whilst watching your favourite TV show. By the end of the show you should be able to move between the F Shape and D Shape Chords much more easily.
Stick with it Shannon, trust me, if you study and practice like I said, within a week or two you’ll be playing your first tune. 
Thank you, Archie, for your generosity. I’m just trying to manage my expectations and not get too ahead of myself.
Hi Shannon, It’s to be expected, your new to the banjo, your all excited and your ready to soak it all up like a sponge. If you feel your getting ahead of yourself don’t be afraid to go back and revisit a lesson. Expect to make mistakes - lot’s of them - it’s all part of the learning process.
Apart from the gifted players here, we all make mistakes. Learn from them and you’ll become a much better banjo player as a result of correcting those mistakes. None of us are perfect. We are what the Good Lord made us.
As a Beginner, here’s my expert opinion. It takes longer than you would like, but it’s faster than you expected.
But, as they say correctly, “Go slow to play fast.” Slow down to match the speed it takes to fret on time. You’ll learn to make the chord & fret cleanly, which is more important than doing it fast. Fast will come. In the meantime, enjoy the music!
For me the Monster was the F chord shape. I would joke that the music must stop so I could change chords. I never thought I would get my hands to cramp in that shape.
I made a point of picking up the banjo for five minutes first thing in the morning and five minutes just before going to bed and making that F chord. I never noticed it getting easier, but one day it just happened. I built my brain synapses to know the chord. Now it’s fairly comfortable for me. I’m still a little rough going up the neck with it, but I know it’s getting better, even if I can’t tell today.
Finally, keep enjoying every minute of it. When it’s not enjoyable, play something that is. That will better prepare you for coming back to the challenging stuff.
(Personally, I hate a challenge. I want everything to come smoothly & easily, like winning the lottery. And the odds of everything coming smoothly & easily are the same as the odds of winning the lottery.)
It won’t be long until you amaze yourself at what you just played!
Thanks. I was just reading a NPR article about learning an instrument as an adult. Apparently, patience is up there with musical skills.
" Scot Hawkins, a piano teacher in Silver Spring, Md., says that ability is low on the list of what’s required for adult students. Instead, attitude — especially patience — is everything.
“Adults come in with exorbitant goals about what they can accomplish, and how quickly,” he says. “We want to skip steps one through five, and get to step six.”
My motto for learning are the four P’s - Patience, Practice, Perseverance and Positive Thinking is the Key to Success
I want to give you a different view.
I’m not as elegant with words as most, but tend to get to the point…
It’s no different than learning to juggle.
It’s no different than working a very difficult jigsaw puzzle that perhaps takes weeks, months, or even years.
It’s no different than spending 12 years in school and 4 years in college - studying, practicing (homework).
It’s no different than learning to walk and talk. You might not remember learning those two things, but you had to in order to actually do it. Took you a year or so to get up on your feet. Took another 6 months to finally keep from falling over and killing yourself by banging your head. Success! By age 3 you probably had a pretty good control of your walking abilities. By age 5 you were the fastest kid in the school. 5 years.
Language? Took ya 7 years or so to finally get control of that. BY age 10 or so you should have a pretty good concept of sentences, paragraphs, etc.
10 years or 10K hours is pretty much the standard to “get good” at anything. Golf, baseball, talking, walking, etc.
Music is no different. I think a new musician should be able to step in and play with a group and “wing it” by the 7th year. Year 10? Maybe take the stage.
All of this is based on effort though. Have to bust those rocks on the chain gang. If you have a good ear, naturally gifted, coordinated well, and treat this as a lifetime hobby? Honestly look to 7-10 years…to “get good”. Pro Material? Probably not. Pros become pros at anything by not stopping at year 10. “Pro” material pops out another 5-10 after that…they’ve honed and perfected the skill.
If ya just want to sing and play and maybe pick a little lead? 3 years before you start getting comfortable. If you REALLY WANT TO GET GOOD? Then you’ll have the discipline to work on music theory while your getting control of those two huge stumps you are trying to get in tempo. Couple years? Those hands, fingers, pick, etc are really not even there. Like breathing, riding a bike, or chewing gum and walking at the same time.
Good luck to you. Ben’s materials are top notch. The support group around here to answer queations? You had a couple of great responses above…they are always here somewhere to help.
A bunch of good advice here, but I’ll add something else. If you allow it, your left hand will try and become the boss and won’t let your right hand progress. I like to make the right hand the boss and force the left hand to perform up to speed. yes, it’s muffled at first, but the left hand will get in line and perform sooner if the right hand is putting some pressure on it. Does that make sense? Start slow (a metronome helps you keep up with progress) and figure out at which tempo your left hand can’t keep up without pausing. Remain at that tempo and just keep playing there, but the key is to not LET your right hand pause. If you will keep the right hand rolling, your left hand will eventually perform because it hates being left out.
Thank you so much for that thoughtful and well-written post.
Thanks for sharing this ShanMan.
I just discovered this while doing some scanning on the Forum
and, being an 'Ol Timer Beginner, it provided a good “boost” to
continue my journey.
Much appreciated. 
Thanks very much Ben.
Great advice for us Ol Timer Beginners having difficulty keeping the left hand
in line with timing and smooth chord transfer.
Hats Off to you Oldhat2.
You hit it right on the head with your analogies.
Thanks for the enlightenment.