Recently, at the Texas Music Educator’s Association convention in San Antonio, Texas, I had the pleasure of meeting Mimi Butler. Although I can highly recommend her policies, I am not sure that this book would benefit anyone who didn’t have the management skills to operate a studio in the first place. Her first book is called “The Complete Guide to Running a Private Music Stduio.” In the book, Butler goes through various ideas, all of which are practically necessary for running a studio. She covers fees, communication strategies, teaching strategies, and much more. I find that many of the ideas are ones that have already been addressed in my current studio.
In my current situation, I have to schedule 40+ students each week, teach, find locations, have necessary equipment when I travel, book recitals and group classes, and much more. It’s not an easy task, but with good organization skills I am able to manage quite well. This book discloses no secrets. This is what successful studios have to do. Teaching music is a business, but it’s not cutthroat. You have to be careful with your time and energy as a busy studio teacher.