A Music Mentor?

It may seem odd, but it's not enough to be a teacher or an educator. In and of itself, teaching and educating is inspirational and praiseworthy (we might even say note-worthy), but to effectively teach, educate, and perpetuate the desire to continually progress and improve requires mentoring, both as a mentor and in being mentored by mentors of our own. We must continually learn and grow and not only teach, but we must be taught on a regular and consistent basis.

There is an interesting parallel between mentoring and success. Teaching can be done (and somewhat effectively) without much mentoring, but learning and wanting to continually progress cannot exist without mentoring.

As a mentor, we must do everything with the attitude of leading by example. Telling someone to do something we personally would not do or have not done in a while or at all, but think is a good idea for those we mentor is a false form of teaching. We are telling those we mentor that we want them to do as we say and not as we do. We convey the attitude that we may have learned this skill or performed this technique when we were younger, but no longer feel the need to continue because we perfectly demonstrate that we are textbook teachers in word only and not doers (this of course does not apply if we are not physically capable of doing what we did when we were younger because of physical limitations with our bodies).

As mentors, we must use every means available - both conventional and non-conventional - to make a difference in the lives of the individuals we mentor. We must be examples and role models not only in what we say, but also in what we do. We must push those we mentor to continually be better, do more, learn more, try more, and even fail more (yes, I said fail more).

People are too afraid of failure. It prohibits them from progressing because the fear of failure prevents them from being productive. It instigates procrastination because, as a whole, we would rather continually put off what we fear doing and do nothing than fail or appear to be less than perfect in any area. We value our performance and fear giving a less than perfect performance regardless of what it is, or is not. Failure is merely a stepping stone to success - a way to turn our failures into strengths.

As mentors we must also not be afraid to show those we mentor our weaknesses and our limitations. We must not convey the perception of perfection because even though we mentor others, we are not true mentors unless we are learning and being mentored by our own mentors in the process.

Being a mentor is life changing. Those who have been mentored realize the importance of mentoring. We must think of ourselves as a teacher regardless of what we teach. A coach views himself or herself as someone who coaches an individual or a team to focus on the main objective (playing the game and winning). As mentors, we help those we mentor focus on playing the game of life. We may use our talent or mastery of a particular instrument as a means to help them, but we are giving them much more than a musical talent. We may say we are piano teachers, voice teachers, violin teachers, guitar teachers, and any other "instrument" teacher available, but we do not merely teach them how to play an instrument. We teach discipline, self mastery, practice habits, conditioning, dedication, goal setting and achieving, determination, confidence, strength training, optimism, perseverance, self worth, and every other worthy and uplifting attitude and aptitude. We are helping them be the very best they can be. We use an instrument as our vehicle to help them master a skill, develop a talent, and get in touch with their musical side.

Written by Jerald M. Simon
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