Balance for your life … Creativity for your studio.
My guess is that you LOVE teaching and the other parts of running a studio are … perhaps not your favourite. Admin for studios doesn’t have to be a series of tasks that takes away from the things your love.
While you may want to focus on just the music, the administrative part of running a studio is what pays the bills & keeps students enrolled.
But, it doesn’t have to take hours every week … or, involve a box full of receipts at tax time to be entered into a spreadsheet.
If you want to be paid what you are worth, making life easy for your clients (& yourself) is important.
These are the articles that will help you set up each aspect of your studio.
Perhaps you have been really lucky & not dealt with any “problem” clients. Everyone pays for lessons on time, arrive/pickup happen on time & the issues other teachers deal with have not happened to you. So, why do you need studio policies? Policies: The Start of a Beautiful Friendship Simply put, studio policies are the…
Here is the elephant in the room. Most of the problems that happen in any studio stem from policies that are not clear to clients. Even when they’ve signed them. It could be a client that pays tuition late or makeup lesson requests. Whatever drives you a little crazy when your client asks is a…
Do you ever get the sense that your studio repertoire is taking over the bookshelves? You know the song you’re looking for is there. But, is it on this shelf? Or, perhaps in this area? Knowing how to organize your studio repertoire is crucial in managing time in lessons & minimizing prep time. When I…
Gone are the days when we could keep our information in file cabinets & bookshelves. In today’s studio, we need digital information that can be accessed immediately. Today’s students & their parents are used to finding information with a quick search online. As a studio owner, if you have to search your shelves or file…
A curriculum plan gives guidance to your teaching. But, when you individualize programming that is when the magic happens in your studio. This is when students & parents rave about how your studio fits them exactly. And, when students feel like they have a part in their piano lessons.
One of the hardest parts of being an independent instrument teacher is creating a curriculum plan. When you know what to teach, it is so easier to guide students throughout the year so they make consistent progress. Unlike teaching in a school system, there is no governing board that determines what you will teach each…
Does the idea of giving up control in your studio make you nervous? Giving students choice, with boundaries, doesn’t have to be hard. It means they play the music they love while you teach what needs to be taught. While it may seem like an all or nothing situation, giving students choice in your studio…
We have all heard the argument for more practice during the week. But, how much of the lack of practice is related to a lack of engagement with the music? What happens when you give students choice in repertoire … all the time? One year, I decided to test this out in my studio. What…
One of the most effective ways to get (& keep) your clients on your side is to keep them informed. Especially for families that are already juggling multiple after-school activities for each child. The easiest way to accomplish this is through a studio newsletter. And while you may have visions of clients deleting yet another…
It isn’t enough to rely on word of mouth for our studios anymore. But, you also shouldn’t spend hours on social media for your studio each week. Don’t get me wrong. I still strongly believe that one of the most powerful things you can do for your studio is develop great relationships with your clients. …