focus Archives - Music Studio Startup

Developing a Studio Vision and Mission

September 10, 2018

I’m in the process of completely re-branding my studio and part of that process, for me, means coming up with a new vision and mission statement. The value of mission and vision statements is a heavily debated topic. The more cynical among us might say they’re just marketing fluff for faceless corporate entities or cheesy…

Online Productivity Hacks for Google Chrome

July 23, 2018

automation, Chrome, focus, organization, productivity, studio management, systems, time management

Last week I shared some of my favorite computer productivity hacks. Today I’m sharing web browser productivity hacks. Most apply to Chrome, but I know some (if not all) of the Chrome extensions I mention also have versions for other popular browsers, such as FireFox and Edge. 1. Turn off browser notification requests If you…

Summer Reading List for Entrepreneurial Music Teachers

July 9, 2018

books, entrepreneurship, focus, goals, online marketing, productivity, studio management, systems, time management

If you want to up your game as a business owner and your summer schedule affords you some extra reading time, check out five of my favorite entrepreneurial books: 1. The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber I first read this book in high school and it’s been a huge influence on how I’ve thought about…

Increasing Income Through Other Business Ventures

June 11, 2018

entrepreneurship, focus, goals, increasing income, introspection, lifestyle, passive income

We’ve been focused on the music studio startup phase, but now I want to fast forward to when your studio is at full capacity. What’s next for the motivated music teacher? At this point, most teachers I coach are looking for ways to increase their income through other business opportunities. The Natural Next Step? Many…

Sizing Up the Competition

April 30, 2018

branding, competition, focus, marketing, niche

If you’re trying to start or grow your music studio in a crowded market, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with the other teachers and music schools in your area (geographic or virtual). These are your competitors. In this post, I walk through how to do a competitive analysis AND how to use the insights you glean from it…

Three Questions You MUST Answer Before Designing (or Redesigning) Your Studio Website

February 12, 2018

branding, focus, marketing, new students, website

There are two kinds of “bad” studio websites: the ones that are bad because of poor decisions (color scheme, typography, font size, etc.) and the ones that are bad because of indecision. The first is becoming less common since we have website builders and templates that take a lot of the guesswork out of the…

My Business Goal-Setting Process

January 22, 2018

focus, goals, introspection, productivity, studio management, systems, time management

In my last post, I talked about some of the questions I reflect on when evaluating my previous year in business. After I’ve finished looking back, I get to do the fun part…looking forward and planning the future! When I threw out the idea of starting new year’s goals on January 1, I also threw…

Reflection Questions for Music Studio Owners

January 1, 2018

focus, goals, introspection, time management

Let’s talk New Year’s resolutions. Most people know me as a very goal-oriented person (and I suspect you might be, too, since you’re reading this blog), so it often surprises them that I don’t make New Year’s resolutions. The truth is, with all the holiday craziness in December, I never felt like I have the…

I Quit!

September 18, 2017

focus, introspection, productivity, time management

All my life, people have praised me for being “determined” like it’s a good thing. And it can be. Being determined has helped me achieve a lot. But sometimes, it holds me back. Sometimes it’s good to quit. To give up. To move on. And I’m really bad at that. The Side Project Earlier this…