Happy New Year’s Eve everyone! As you’re donning your party gear (or your sweat pants) and preparing for a night on the town (or on your couch) are your thoughts turning to the coming year?
I’ve never been a fan of making New Year’s resolutions, preferring instead to constantly reinvent myself… not just once a year. However, this year I’m taking a more organized approach to my creative energy and so I’m using New Year’s Eve as an excuse to highlight my most pressing goals for 2013. Will you join me in making a positive difference in your piano studio this year?
5 Resolutions for Piano Teachers
1. Build a strong relationship with 3 “fringe” families
Choose three families who are “fringe families” in your studio. These are the families who rarely phone, email, or sit in your waiting area. Take a proactive approach to building a strong connection with these families. How? Make a point of emailing or calling at least once every three weeks with a comment of kindness on their child’s progress. Mail them something at least twice in the next three months (a little postcard for their child, a progress report, or even a small gift certificate for a local coffee shop), and remember any birthdays, special events, or life moments that you know of that they will be celebrating. Strong connections in your studio are your most valuable retention and advertising tool. It’s worth the effort. We can help with the helpful email templates that we regularly share. Get started with this New Year-themed one!
2. Focus your advertising on a group you may not have reached
Have you spent most of your advertising time attempting to reach school-aged children? This year, consider adding older beginners to your studio’s focus. Adults can fill timeslots in your schedule that younger children cannot, and they’re a ton of fun to teach! While this used to be a tricky age group to find resources for, The WunderKeys Pop Staff Piano Library has changed this, making it so easy to guide older beginners through learning to read music while playing rewarding music. Get more info and a printable trial pack here.
3. Choose your most pressing piano studio problem, and eliminate it for good
Do you struggle with students who don’t practice? Parents who don’t pay on time? Students with spotty attendance? Students who forget their books? Choose the issue that causes you the most stress and take the time to implement a plan to eliminate it from your life. Existing in “coping mode” is far from being proactive. Often it takes just a day of thoughtful preparation to make a significant change. Don’t be fearful of the potential results – make the change and be flexible enough to alter as needed once the change has been made.
4. Set aside a total of 60 minutes a week to practice…yes, YOU!
This sounds easy… but it isn’t always! Set your alarm a bit earlier, turn off the TV a little sooner… do whatever it takes to steal some serious (yet doable) “me” time on the piano. Start a binder of music you love to play so it is immediately at your fingertips and just enjoy making music for no other reason than personal pleasure. AND… commit to playing at least 3 different genres of music. Add jazz, pop, blues… change up your regular repertoire, and watch your own musicality grow so you can share your newly-found treasures with your students.
5. Go ahead… use us!
Commit to reaching out and becoming an active member of our online piano teaching community. Email us, comment on our posts with your questions or experiences, become a Facebook fan, enter our contests, give our products and programs a try, and contribute to our online communities. You’ll have the benefit of connecting with other piano teachers worldwide and the experiences and passion that come along with this profession. Use the web as your daily professional development and know that we’re always online with a desire to help YOU succeed!
Happy New Year everyone – may this year bring success and happiness in all forms.
Lauren L. says
What a great list! So simple and practical that I think I can do it! I especially like #1, because I wouldn’t have thought of it myself.
Tami says
What a great motivator! How do you fix “your most pressing problem” if it’s yourself being to generous? I have 5 FREE students! :o/