A piano teacher shares her approach to teaching piano, building trust and achieving quick wins. They discuss teaching students of various ages, changing the approach to teaching piano, and the world of pedagogy. The speaker also highlights the impactful teaching of Francis Clark and the long-term nature of piano lessons.
27:03
AI Summary
AI Chapters
Episode notes
auto_awesome
Podcast summary created with Snipd AI
Quick takeaways
Building trust and confidence through a slow and patient process, by demystifying the piano and giving students a quick win in just 10 minutes of the first lesson.
Acknowledging the non-linear journey of learning the piano, with periods of steady progress followed by plateaus, but reflecting on progress to gain confidence and motivation.
Deep dives
Building Trust and Confidence
In this podcast episode, a piano teacher named Christina Whitlock shares her approach to building trust and confidence with her students. Through a slow and patient process, she starts by teaching them the basic concepts of the piano and gradually introduces patterns and improvisation exercises. By providing a safe and supportive environment, she helps her students realize their potential and the joy of making music. With just 10 minutes of the first lesson, she demystifies the piano, earns their trust, and gives them a quick win, inspiring them to continue on their musical journey.
Progress and Plateaus
Christina explains that learning the piano is not a linear journey. While there are moments of steady progress, there are also times when students plateau. She emphasizes that breakthroughs and growth are punctuated, with periods of consistent improvement followed by times of busyness or a shift in focus. However, by reflecting on their progress and acknowledging how far they have come, students gain confidence and motivation to keep learning and pushing their boundaries.
The Impact of a Teacher-Student Relationship
Christina shares the privilege she feels as a piano teacher, being able to witness her students' development from a young age to becoming proficient artists and deep-thinking individuals. She emphasizes the importance of having a teacher who believes in their students and invests in their growth. The relationship between teacher and student can have a significant impact on a student's future success. Christina also highlights the value of adult students who choose to invest in themselves and pursue their lifelong passion for playing the piano, demonstrating that it is never too late to learn.
Delivering the perfect first lesson, working with 89-year-old students, and learning how to charge for your work with Christina Whitlock, a piano teacher in Indiana. How does she help students hear the "heartbeat of music"? And what is it like to teach a student from first grade through college?
NEW BOOK ALERT! You may be aware that I’ve written or co-written five business books, including The Power of Moments and Made to Stick. I’ve got a sixth book coming out in January called RESET: How to Change What’s Not Working. It’s a book intended to help you and your team get unstuck, to overcome the gravity of the way things have always worked. Learn more about the book or preorder it here.
Got a comment or suggestion for us? You can reach us via email at jobs@whatitslike.com
Want to be on the show? Leave a message on our voice mailbox at (919) 213-0456. We’ll ask you to answer two questions:
What do people think your job is like and what is it actually like?
What’s a word or phrase that only someone from your profession would be likely to know and what does it mean?
Get the Snipd podcast app
Unlock the knowledge in podcasts with the podcast player of the future.
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode
Save any moment
Hear something you like? Tap your headphones to save it with AI-generated key takeaways
Share & Export
Send highlights to Twitter, WhatsApp or export them to Notion, Readwise & more
AI-powered podcast player
Listen to all your favourite podcasts with AI-powered features
Discover highlights
Listen to the best highlights from the podcasts you love and dive into the full episode