When first starting out on guitar, there is a great likelihood that you will come across some chords or note sequences which requires the use of your pinky finger. However, I notice that many of my students (and I was definitely the same way when I first started!) do not like to use their pinky because they find that they cannot put as much pressure on the fretted note as they can with any of their other 3 fingers (this is even more of the case for the thicker strings of a bass). As you can imagine, this is a very bad habit to get into, as the pinky finger is 1/4 of your playing resources, and it comes very much in handy when doing complex chord shapes and guitar solo-like passages.

A good way of making sure that your pinky gets used is to keep it strong using something like a vari-grip which will let you exercise each of your fingers individually. In addition, be sure to keep in mind the ’4 fingers to 4 frets’ rule while playing. It says that when playing a line on a certain part of the neck to use each finger for one fret down all six strings, and that the 4 frets you’re playing are the 4 directly under your fingers. So, if you’re playing the major scale starting on the 5th fret of the low E string, start with your middle finger, because you’ll need your first finger to play the 4th fret of the A string (3rd note in the scale), D string (6th note), and high E string (7th note).

Something as simple as keeping your pinky well exercised and a part of your practice routine will go a very long way to making sure that you develop good technique as you continue to play.