As I've worked with various clients in my music teacher coaching business, I've noticed a few trends emerging that don't always serve us well. As we strive to build our music businesses, we sometimes get in our own way without meaning to.

Here are 3 common pitfalls for music teachers and some steps you can take to avoid them.

1. Overreacting to relatively small things. 

   
   

   The problem: We sometimes spend too much energy on distractions rather than staying focused on those things that best serve our long-term goals. Maybe you spend way too much time jumping through hoops trying to please one difficult student. Or you decide to re-write your lesson policies because of a few parent complaints when the policies you already have in place serve you and most of your students just fine. Overreacting can be especially difficult to avoid when we work by ourselves and don't have another co-worker's perspective readily available.

   
   

   The solution: What’s helped me is getting better at recognizing when I’m reacting to something in a state of anxiety and fear (cue flushed face, tight throat, a desire to lash out). I then deliberately step away from the problem and take some time. I only allow myself to address the issue after I’ve had a chance to calm down and clear my head.

   
   

2. Confusing a single strategy with the larger goal. 

   
   

   The problem: I saw this particular issue with a client I’ll call Sam. Sam thought his goal was to enroll as many new students as possible. But our work together revealed his true goal: to have more money, which in this case meant both protecting his net income and increasing revenue. It turned out that what he thought was his goal was actually one tactic among many that would help him achieve his true goal.

   
   

   The solution: Working alone means we sometimes get so invested in a course of action that we lose the forest for the trees, as the saying goes. To ensure goal/task alignment, I recommend taking the time to revisit (and revise as necessary) your business goals once or twice per year. Write a list of strategies you’ll use to achieve them. Develop a plan to put the strategies in place and gauge results. Make changes to your daily tasks as necessary to align with this broader, longer-term plan.

   
   

3. Failing to change course when what we’re doing isn’t working. 

   
   

   The problem: Doing something differently than we’ve done it for years is hard; this is why so many business owners don't change, even when not doing so goes against their own self-interests. Here's an example: There are teachers who want better quality students, but haven’t changed their recruitment practices. They simply use the same old tactics and hope that fate will eventually send their ideal students to their door. The constant churn of this approach is an exhausting way to run a business - one that leads straight to burnout. But it’s easier in the short-term than thoughtfully changing our recruitment practices, so…

   
   

   The solution: As the saying goes (boy, I’m big on sayings today…), the only way out is through. If you’ve been frustrated with an aspect of your business for a while, it’s time to figure out a new way of doing things. Maybe you need an improved recruitment strategy; or new lesson policies that better protect your time and align with your values; or a payment system that makes billing more simple. You don’t need to do it all at once: Simply start by identifying your biggest, longest-term business stressor. Then, slowly develop a step-by-step plan to address it and implement it one step at a time. I promise this will be time well-spent, and your future self will thank you for it.

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