by Kristin Yost
During the spring I find myself inundated with makeup lesson requests, summer scheduling flakiness and dilemmas, plus families suffering from general scheduling fatigue. Oh yeah, and baseball has started, swimming is gearing up again, cheerleading, and I‘m sure there is soccer and pre-football in there somewhere. Is scheduling a sport? If so, I’m in prime season and seem to be the head coach.
Do you find yourself in similar situations? On top of the “usual” performance and teaching activities, I have students who participate in the (now) Royal Conservatory Examinations, you may have Achievement Audition (spring festivals), recitals, I am judging events, and in a moment of extreme weakness agreed to accompany a band contest. Did I mention we have two honors recitals that same day? Add all this to my other life obligations and it makes me tired just thinking about everything! I did this to myself, and much like New Year’s Resolutions, I will tell myself yet again that I will not over-schedule next spring – my students or my sanity.
I am here to assure you that if any of this is resonating, you are not alone. This is a crazy time of year when I end up working late nights, Sundays and dream about scheduling. I also dream about May 15th, the last day of Spring semester! Last night I somehow dreamt up spreadsheets, that would work better than my current virtual system…Needless to say, I said a little prayer this morning that my virtual system has a backup system in case of a crash. I also was more determined than ever to get my fall and summer schedules in order! If nothing else, but for a good night’s sleep.
During this time of chaos, it is important to remember a few key relief points in the whole grand scheme of “Life As a Piano Teacher.” And? Don’t feel guilty. Here are the Top 10 things I do keep what little is left of my sanity – please feel free to share yours, and add to the list.
- Make daily “next action” lists – with deadlines.
- Schedule a massage. Take advantage of that Groupon you purchased, or the special at the local massage place. You will thank me later! Upgrade to an hour and a half while you’re at it – at this point in the year, you deserve it.
- Watch this video.
- Go to an athletic event just for fun. Buy the $8 domestic beer and treat yourself to the $12 hot dog.
- After a long day of teaching, go to your favorite restaurant for dinner and a chance to get out of your studio, away from work. Go with a non-piano-teacher friend so you aren’t tempted to discuss work!
- Watch this video.
-
by sea turtle Schedule an ice-cream date and walk with a good friend, or even by yourself. Whichever helps you to relax more!
- Schedule “off” time daily. This means turning your phone off, your computer, and anything that people can communicate with you on.
- Sight-read some of your favorite music, just for fun! No performance goals in mind.
- Say “NO” to Makeup lessons! Yes, parents sometimes get upset. If you have calmly explained and educated them and they are still upset…let them go elsewhere. As Wendy so nicely said in her last article, by them asking you to reschedule their lesson, they are asking you to reserve space for them twice in one week. Multiply that times 5 and you have added too many additional hours of work for any sane person. Release the guilt. Much like a college class, or a class at school – regardless of if you choose to come, you are reserving that teacher’s time, that classroom space and if a student doesn’t attend, the teacher does not make the class up.
Until next time….
This post is by Kristin Yost, an active performer, author, teacher, and lecturer. Kristin is widely known for her conference presentations on business issues including “How I Made $100,000 My First Year Teaching Piano.” Kristin is the founder of Centre for Musical Minds in Frisco Texas and will be launching the Piano Teacher School (covering especially business issues related to teaching) in the summer of 2011. Visit her other articles in the Dollars and Sense category on the ComposeCreate.com blog:
Thankyouthankyou for you this post! Absolutely everything you mentioned resonates with me! Upcoming theory and practical exams, the makeup lessons on Sundays, recitals, trying to figure out summer and feeling exhausted at just the thought of trying to get through the coming weeks. It really is nice to hear that there are others out there finding themselves in the same place. Oh and those two videos made me laugh so hard- that’s a good way to start a Monday!
Thanks Luba! I think at this point in the year most teachers are in the same boat. 🙂
Here’s a very good bit of advice that I received when I started working in this business over 25 years ago. It applies to all your dealings with people (parents): Don’t Complain and Don’t Explain. You don’t owe anyone an explanation for why you are unavailable at any particular moment (the real reason is completely irrelevant). This has worked well for me. Hang in there!
That’s perfect, LaDona! “Don’t complain and don’t explain.” I love it.
This is an excellent article! Thanks for the videos!
My studio policy states that schedule changes/make-up lessons are limited to 2x per student each semester. The number might change depending on studio enrollment and teacher tolerance!