One of my goals with Music Studio Startup is to help music teachers have the confidence to think of themselves as entrepreneurs. Not just as business owners, but as innovative trailblazers who are forging creative careers for themselves.

Global Entrepreneurship Week

Next week is the 10^th annual Global Entrepreneurship Week (GEW). You’ve probably never heard of this worldwide celebration, but that’s about to change. ????

In college, Global Entrepreneurship Week was kind of a big deal for those of us in the entrepreneurship department. My university sponsored a regional business plan competition for students. Another school sponsored a city-wide local business scavenger hunt. Guest speakers were brought in, workshops were held…it was big.

But it’s not limited to college campuses. In fact, from November 13-19^th there will be over 25,000 Global Entrepreneurship Week activities happening ALL over the world.

So What?

Often we limit ourselves to interacting with other music teachers. This definitely has its place, but I think we’re selling ourselves and our profession short by keeping our professional circles so small.

In honor of Global Entrepreneurship Week, I want to challenge you to step outside the music bubble. Take yourself seriously as the small business owner you are and explore some of the opportunities for entrepreneurs where you live.

You don’t have to commit to ongoing monthly meetings. Just pick one event that sounds interesting and check it out.

Organizations & Events

Global Entrepreneurship Network – You can find all the “official” GEW events on the Global Entrepreneurship Network website.

Meetup.com – If there isn’t a GEW event near you, try searching Meetup.com for “business” or “entrepreneurship” to find a group of small business owners or entrepreneurs that meets in your city.

Small Business Administration (SBA) – If you’re in the US, you can also check out an event or class through your local Small Business Administration office.

Tip: If you have any anxiety about going to an event just to meet people, classes are a nice low-pressure option because there’s a purpose to the event other than just mingling. Plus, you might learn something that will help your business!

You Belong Just as Much as Anyone Else

Don’t feel “business-y” enough to attend an event like this? Let me assure you, you will encounter a variety of entrepreneurs at events like these.

I was at an event last week where one attendee was just starting a nail salon from her home, another had a team of 12 people working in her decades-old business, and a third worked with census data and I didn’t know about half of the words she used to describe what she did.

There will be people you can learn from and people you can teach. Even if you don’t consider yourself an entrepreneur right now, you are one. The fact that you’re reading this blog post tells me you belong!

You Have an Automatic “In”

I’ll let you in on a little secret: Even when I’m not going to these events as a “piano teacher” I often let it slip that I teach because it is an amazing conversation starter!

The minute people hear this, they open up. They tell me stories of their childhood music lessons or they start talking about their kids. People LOVE talking about their kids. If you can get them talking about the people they love most in the world, they will leave with all sorts of warm fuzzy feelings about you and will immediately want to recommend you to all of their friends.

So go. Learn. Participate. Tap into these resources. Join the larger entrepreneurial community.

How will you celebrate Global Entrepreneurship Week?