[loretta-o-driscoll]

I’m beginning to think I shouldn’t do it. I think you are right on…they need to learn from the music.

Thanks everyone for your input!

[loretta-o-driscoll]

Thanks so much!

[loretta-o-driscoll]

Thanks so much!

[loretta-o-driscoll]

Thanks so much!

[loretta-o-driscoll]

Saul-

I am a perfectionist. I have learned to overcome this as a harpist and a person through the years. What I learned is that I will make mistakes. What matters is how I recover from them.

I now tell this to my students all the time. Some of them are perfectionists, and I can usually spot it right away. I gently help them to overcome that from the beginning.

When I first began teaching, I found that I was expecting a level of perfection from my students. I have since come to realize that everyone has different strengths and weaknesses. I spend a lot of time choosing repertoire based on this. I now look at each piece as having one or two key focus points for that student. As long as they master them, I don’t worry about making sure the piece is “perfect”. I have realized it is better to expose them to more music and maintain a certain momentum rather than overworking a piece. It also keeps them more interested…this is especially true with beginners.

I guess the overall message or lesson for me has been to maximize each student’s strengths. This translates to overall confidence and then the weaknesses are not as important.

Loretta

[loretta-o-driscoll]

Saul-

I am a perfectionist. I have learned to overcome this as a harpist and a person through the years. What I learned is that I will make mistakes. What matters is how I recover from them.

I now tell this to my students all the time. Some of them are perfectionists, and I can usually spot it right away. I gently help them to overcome that from the beginning.

When I first began teaching, I found that I was expecting a level of perfection from my students. I have since come to realize that everyone has different strengths and weaknesses. I spend a lot of time choosing repertoire based on this. I now look at each piece as having one or two key focus points for that student. As long as they master them, I don’t worry about making sure the piece is “perfect”. I have realized it is better to expose them to more music and maintain a certain momentum rather than overworking a piece. It also keeps them more interested…this is especially true with beginners.

I guess the overall message or lesson for me has been to maximize each student’s strengths. This translates to overall confidence and then the weaknesses are not as important.

Loretta

[loretta-o-driscoll]

Saul-

I am a perfectionist. I have learned to overcome this as a harpist and a person through the years. What I learned is that I will make mistakes. What matters is how I recover from them.

I now tell this to my students all the time. Some of them are perfectionists, and I can usually spot it right away. I gently help them to overcome that from the beginning.

When I first began teaching, I found that I was expecting a level of perfection from my students. I have since come to realize that everyone has different strengths and weaknesses. I spend a lot of time choosing repertoire based on this. I now look at each piece as having one or two key focus points for that student. As long as they master them, I don’t worry about making sure the piece is “perfect”. I have realized it is better to expose them to more music and maintain a certain momentum rather than overworking a piece. It also keeps them more interested…this is especially true with beginners.

I guess the overall message or lesson for me has been to maximize each student’s strengths. This translates to overall confidence and then the weaknesses are not as important.

Loretta

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