What You Leave Behind Is More Important Than What You Take With You

     Not too long ago, Mike Grande came out with a book called, “From Teacher to Coach.” This intrigued me as I have spent my career teaching both music and English as a Second Language. When I came out with my online piano brand, I named it Piano Coach. I have often felt like more of a coach than a teacher, but was curious as to how Mike defined the difference.

     According to Mike, teachers follow a given lesson plan with the idea of imparting knowledge. This isn’t a bad thing, however, being a coach really takes it to the next level. As a coach, you get to know what drives people individually. It’s paying attention to their individual needs, and then putting them in learning situations that will help them discover their own path and abilities. Sometimes, this involves being brutally honest, in a nice way of course. This can mean pushing them to do more and better when they think they have reached their limits. This last bit takes some finesse. Getting people to dig deeper when they think they have exhausted their innate abilities can be a delicate balance between getting them to push outside their comfort zone and figuratively shoving them into the unknown.

     One of the most important aspects Mke points out is the fact that as a coach you can have a real impact on how people come to see themselves. Showing people that they can reach a goal they thought was impossible is hugely rewarding. I, as a coach, may not get a medal or trophy for doing this, but I get the satisfaction of seeing someone genuinely improve and more importantly, grow in confidence.

     Helping others to reach their potential is one of the most satisfying things I can do as a human being. Knowing that this person will go one with their head held a little higher, feeling more confident in their abilities, and more likely to in turn encourage someone else is a great feeling. In some small way, I am hoping that I am leaving the world just a little better than I found it. 

     I’m not sure if I am remembering this 100 percent correctly, but I believe it was the Iroqois that looked ahead at each decision they were making, and carefully considered how that particular decision would impact the next seven generations. I believe this is where the brand, Seventh Generation comes from. Of course, it is highly unlikely that anyone would live to see the full impact of these decisions seven generations later, but taking the time to think about the possible impact is really taking the time to think about what they left behind.

     Teaching any student, child or adult, is like leaving a little something behind. I hope that in my teaching what I leave behind is a sense of being able to do hard things, a willingness to step outside the comfort zone, and finding confidence where there was once uncertainty. Playing piano, in and of itself, may not affect the world in such a dramatic way. Learning to grow and expand one’s comfort zone by trying new things is a great something to leave behind. I can’t take the piano with me, but I can leave behind something that might just make the world a little better.Title