The Power of Celebration

"What are you celebrating this week with your piano practice and progress?"

I asked this question of my adult piano student, Rebecca, today, and her initial response was a list of the areas she was not happy with her playing.

I paused and, with a smile, asked the question again. This time she responded with one positive reflection and a new list of challenges.

The Challenge of Celebrating Success

Why is it so difficult for our students to celebrate themselves?

Most students have a desire to grow and improve, after all, this is why they are taking lessons.

While the pursuit of excellence is admirable, students can become discouraged if they think they must achieve perfection before celebrating.

A Commitment to Celebrating Progress

Our role as teachers is to inspire our students toward excellence and provide them with the tools to develop habits and rituals of self-celebration.

Celebrations can be as small as practicing for a certain number of days or minutes, accurately playing one beat of music, enjoying the process of making music, gaining new musical insights, or building greater self-confidence.

Reaching mastery in any area requires time and effort. Therefore, we must be willing to have fun in the journey by celebrating every success, big or small.

Cultivating a Habit of Celebration

At the end of the lesson with Rebecca, when I asked her again, "What are you celebrating in your music?", she was able to provide me with a list of five moments from her thirty-minute piano lesson.

Pausing to celebrate these accomplishments brought a smile to her face and, I hope, encouraged her to tap into her inner confidence and joy as she continues her musical pursuits.

As music teachers, let's remember to help our students pause and celebrate every step of the way. By doing so, our students may find greater motivation to keep reaching their goals.

And music teachers, don't forget to bring the daily habit of celebration into your own lives, both inside and outside of music. There's so much to celebrate!

Catherine Sipher is a remote piano teacher at Blossom Piano Studio, located outside Boston, MA, and author of Notes to Self: A Guided Mindful Practice Journal., With over 20 years of piano teaching experience, nothing brings her more joy than sharing the beauty of music with her students. When not teaching, she can be found spending time in nature, writing, practicing yoga, and enjoying time with her 6 children.