When is it enough?

I’ve long been fascinated with the concept of “enough”. As someone who delights in the thrill of possibility, the quest for “enough” often feels unattractive and limiting.

But.

We ALL need to recognize there IS, indeed, a point where we have done enough, made enough, said enough, and prepared enough.

As studio teachers, we often struggle with having “enough” students. I can’t count the number of times I’ve rationalized, “…just one more student…”.

For the majority of my teaching career, I have (mistakenly) believed I would be happier with more students. I wanted as many as my life would allow. And, wow… was I good at pushing those boundaries!

(Let’s be honest: I still am).

But, as stubborn as MY obsession with “more” may be… I am beginning to turn a corner.

I’m beginning to realize our contentment in this work actually hangs on our ability to determine our “enough numbers”.

Numbers can be insatiable. I know.

When it comes to the podcast, I’ll set benchmarks for numbers of downloads I hope to see, and when I reach them (and surpass them, thanks to people like YOU!), it’s astounding how quickly I find myself just wanting MORE.

Our incomes are often the same way, right? We think, “If I could just get X number of students” or “If I could just increase my monthly income by $X”…

But how long are we content at that place?

I know a lot of incredible teachers. They are motivated, efficient, and passionate about the impact of music. They are often tireless, full of ideas, and will sacrifice a great many things for their craft.

Like me, they easily get caught up in the quest for more. More students. More materials. More networking. More advertising. More social media. More content creation. More. More. More.

But that, friends, only leads us into the throes of Burnout (and its cousins, Resentment and Apathy).

We think it’s never going to happen to us. We’re the exception, right?

Hardly.

So – as I type these words (which were NEVER intended to get so lengthy, for the record) – I want you to think long and hard this coming week about what is ENOUGH for you.

When will you have enough students? How will you determine when you’ve practiced enough (oof, that’s tough)? How many side projects are enough? How much income do you NEED to live the life you want to live?

…do I have you thinking, my teacher friend?

I’m sitting here wondering if I’ve totally over-shared, so do me a favor and hit REPLY, telling me what area(s) YOU struggle to find “enough” in. I need to know I’m not alone in this.

...While the search for ENOUGH may still be the missing piece in MY teacher-life contentment puzzle, I do feel like I’ve figured out the other pieces. They are featured in my Studio Foundations Course, which I am SO EXCITED to be offering in a new format this summer.

The Studio Foundations Course explores 14 principles I’ve built my studio upon to keep me happy and effective in this studio-teacher life.

GREAT NEWS: I’m running a NEW 6-week format, beginning the week of June 12th.

If you have ONE HOUR per week to spare this summer, please consider joining me for some reflective professional development.

I am confident the material will set you up for renewed excitement in your work come August.

For those who have already purchased the course, don’t worry; I’ll be sending you a 6-week plan to work through the material with us if you are interested. 😊 The only thing different in this format is the content being “dripped” out over the course of 6 weeks to fight off any potential overwhelm.

Onward and Upward toward the Holiday (at least, for many of you!) Weekend!

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Other Ways I Can Help You:

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Don't forget to HIT REPLY and let me know where your "enough" struggles hit you.

Cheers to determining what is, indeed, Enough.

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