How can I get better at snowboarding?

Being a snowboard instructor, and having boarded for 8 years, while only being 18 years old, I can offer some pretty useful advice. For one, take lessons. I'm not rich, by any means, and I've got an amazing snowboarding set-up, worth well over $1500. Money means nothing, but here's a tip to overcome that "problem". Buy a board first, and preferably bindings at the same time. You can also rent boots for relatively cheap amounts of money ($12 per day where I live), so that should be your last purchase. Also, you don't need new stuff. If you search craigslist, you can find full set-ups that have only been used once or twice because people bought everything then hated the sport. One of the main problems I see as an instructor is people not keeping their knees bent. This is just a small online tip, but try to focus on that, and keeping your back straight. If you bend your knees and keep your back straight at all times, snowboarding becomes twice as easy. I said take a lesson, but don't listen to everything the instructor says. A lot of the stuff we tell you to do, we only say because we have to. If you want proof, look at Shaun White winning gold numerous times in both the Olympics and the X-Games. He's a professional, we are not. Lastly, once you buy your own stuff, practice on dry land. What I mean is practice on carpet. Not only will it not harm your board at all, but if you can balance on an edge in the carpet, snow will be no problem for you. The best tip I, or anyone can give you for that matter, is don't give up. Everything in life has it's obstacles. You didn't give up in highschool right? Exactly. Good luck with snowboarding. Hope this helped.