When I Knew I Wanted To Be a Guitar Teacher
Recounting the experiences
that inspired me to become a guitar teacher
When I was a kid and just beginning to learn to play musical instruments, it came time for "career day" at my school. A lot of kids I knew were planning to go to work with one of their parents that day; I had already been to work with each of my parents by that time, but I was also already aware that I wanted to be involved with music in my career (whatever that might be). Then I came up with the idea of spending the day with the band director at my school (who was kind and gracious enough to agree to do that for me), even though music education wasn't really something that specifically grabbed me—yet. But I knew the band director also played in various ensembles and was involved in music outside of school, and so I really kind of just hoped that I'd get to hear some stories about those sorts of things in between classes. I figured sorting through sheet music for a day was worth that, so I was excited.
And so career day comes, and then to my surprise—and honestly, to my great horror—right when one music class was coming in the door and getting set up for their class, the music teacher very casually and matter-of-factly tells me that he has some stuff to take care of in his office during this period and that I would be teaching this class, the music is on the conductor's stand, and he'd be in his office if I needed him. I was too dumbfounded to protest as he turned and shut his office door, and I was also determined not to let him down. So, I went right over to the conductor's stand and got to work.
I was incredibly nervous, and really had no idea what I was doing—it was a beginner's music class with students a few years younger than me, so I suppose they couldn't tell that I was out of my element. But we got started with the music they were working on, and struggled through a few areas together; then I started working with individual sections, and I was ultimately able to get several students to really understand some new concepts, and to make a noticeable difference in the sound of the music they were playing. It was just about the coolest feeling I had ever felt by that point in my life, and I knew right then that I wanted to teach music.
Of course, being an independent music teacher can be a difficult thing to succeed in, and it took me a little bit before I was able to launch Stephen's Guitar Lessons and begin teaching full time...but once I did, I instantly knew that it was a perfect fit for me. Now that I have been doing it for almost 15 years, I know that how I'm doing it is resonating with my students—because many of my students continue with lessons with me for many months, and often years (sometimes many years; the current record is about 8 years). Most of my students have also taken lessons from others in the past, and so they have another experience (or set of experiences) to compare with, and they choose Stephen's Guitar Lessons.
Ready to get started? Give me a call (or send me a text) at VIP-PLAY-GTR (847-752-9487), or contact me through the website to set up your FREE intro lesson today, and see the benefits for yourself!
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