Why a Piano Teacher’s Mindset Matters
Can your self-talk really make that big of an impact on your piano studio and the education your students receive?
Yes!!! In fact, your mindset matters and absolutely DOES affect your studio and your students' education whether you realize it or not.
Whether you are a new and upcoming piano teacher, or a well-seasoned teacher with years of experience, if you do not have the right mindset your studio will be LIMITED to that mindset! In short, mindset matters.
In my first several years of using my piano studio as my primary source of income, I would explain to my friends and family that I was "just" a piano teacher when asked what I do. I can't tell you whether I was embarrassed that I had stepped away from the common corporate world to pursue full-time teaching, or if I just didn't think it was cool enough to have confidence, but I realized that this dialogue inhibited my abilities to market myself with confidence and obscured my vision for my career and studio.
One day I decided to give my friends and family a different answer: I am a BUSINESS OWNER and manage an entire PIANO STUDIO.
And it felt SO GOOD! I felt empowered and excited.
Within a few short months, I noticed I wasn't just going through the motions in my teaching anymore. I was looking for ways to expand my studio, streamline my teaching, and invest in my own personal development as an instructor.
Within a year's time of changing my mindset, I grew my studio by 40% and added two additional teachers to my team. I also grew my profits by 30%!
You can make this mindset change today with these 5 tips:
Mindset Matters Tip #1 - Run your studio for what it is: a business.
So you know quite a bit about the piano, but what about finances? Business policies? These are all very important things to implement within your studio to help it run efficiently and professionally, and help you stay focused on the teaching! If you need a little help with these, check out my complete guide found on my studio ownership page.
"In business, boundaries take the form of policy. Both piano students and parents will have more respect for you as a professional instructor if you have policies in place." – Jess
Mindset Matters Tip #2 - Your content is your credibility.
This is especially helpful for newer teachers. If you think about your credibility as your teaching content, then you are as credible as the books you teach from! Become familiar with those books, keep a master copy with your notes and comments, and don't be afraid to lean on other teachers for ideas on how to further explain difficult concepts. This article has an entire section on getting familiar with your teaching books.
Mindset Matters Tip #3 - Clean up your teaching space.
The look and feel of where you will teach will determine the overall tone of your lessons. You want your teaching space to capture your teaching style, whether that is relaxed and playful, polished and professional, or somewhere in between.
Mindset Matters Tip #4 - Invest in yourself.
Not necessarily with money, but at least with your TIME. Start listening to personal development podcasts, read self care books, and set personal and business goals based on what you've learned. The more effort you put into developing yourself, the more you will be able to give back to your students--and that is a beautiful feeling. My favorite podcasts to listen to are the Integrated Music Teaching Podcast, The Prosperous Piano Teacher Podcast, and the Dynamic Piano Teacher Podcast.
Mindset Matters Tip #5 - Acknowledge that you are the only teacher like YOU!
As a teacher, you have the opportunity to create connections and build relationships--so have fun with it and be YOU! Worst case scenario: your students will either love you for it, or find a different teacher that will be a better fit for them. But by being your authentic self and being personable with your students and their families, your interactions will have greater depth and your students will refer their friends to YOU!
Give Your New Mindset Change a Trial Run
Set a realistic timeline for your trial run. If you don't see a difference within that timeframe, then feel free to never open another blog post from me again! But I GUARANTEE that if you put forth an honest effort to try these 5 tips, you'll see positive changes in you and your studio--and I want to hear about it! Feel free to comment below on how these tips affected change in your piano teaching life, and add a few favorite tips of your own!
As always, stay tuned!
(pun unapologetically intended)
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