How do I become a music teacher? (5 simple steps to become the BEST damn music teacher out there)

I launched my first music coaching business (a guitar coaching studio) in 2001 - and I know you're expecting an overnight success story, but the truth is, that first coaching business absolutely FAILED in such a spectacular crash 'n burn way that I actually never went back to teaching guitar again.

It wasn't just a professional loss for me, it was a massive PERSONAL loss for me too.

I'd turned my lifelong passion of playing guitar into a business.

... and it failed.

What the hell was I supposed to do now?

After many years in the wilderness not really knowing what to do with myself, or even who I was after losing my 'guitarist' persona to the burning vortex that became of that first coaching studio - I finally regained confidence to put myself out there as a music teacher again.

Over the many years that I simply couldn't pick up a guitar because of the heartbreak that came with a failed business and the loss of passion for guitar that ensued - I developed a keen interested in being a singer, and started taking serious, professional training with just about every damn vocal teacher I could find/afford.

I launched my first brick-and-mortar voice coaching studio in Sydney Australia in 2010, and since taking the studio online now brings in $30k a month.

Did I mention I do all of my own coaching myself, and have no employees?

It works out to around $250+ a year profit after all expenses, tax etc.

Not bad for a guy that went broke with a guitar studio in 2001, right?

I've since launched IO Studio System as a platform to share the systemized program that I used to grow my own coaching studio, and that of dozens of my music coaching clients to multiple six figures a year WITHOUT trading my time, WITHOUT running paid ads and WITHOUT running myself into the ground with 12 hour coaching days like I was doing in that first coaching business.

If I had to start again, and I was personally asking "hmm, how do I become a music teacher?" all over again, I'd start with two simple questions - and from there, I'm going to give you a super simple starting point for exactly how to get started as a music teacher TODAY.

Yep, this afternoon you will have taken your first step towards becoming a real music teacher.

First up, you need to work out exactly WHO you're going to teach.

I know, I know - you teach piano, or you teach guitar, or you teach sax, right? So, people that learn piano/guitar or sax are your audience, right?

No.

The reason why my first music coaching business failed is because I had no idea who I was actually teaching - it was literally anyone and everyone that came my way.

This meant that I wasn't truly leveraging my own true skills as a guitarist and as a teacher - and ultimately my students were overpaying a seasoned rock and metal guitarist to teach them the C chord.

On the flipside, this meant that I was also spending my days TEACHING people the C chord.

Never mind that I could play Midnight by Joe Satriani without drawing a breath - it was total nightmare to teach people the Smoke on the Water riff over and over and over again 8 hours a day 7 days a week.

It really took me to breaking point.

The reason WHY the business failed, is because I'd created an unscalable situation where I couldn't charge any more than what I was charging (ie: teaching people a C chord or Smoke on the Water simply isn't worth $300 an hour, right?), and I couldn't work any more hours than I was already working - I was working sunday mornings, nights through the week already just trying to keep the lights on in my studio while hating my life all at the same time.

If you can't charge any more money, and you can't work any more hours - and you're not reaching your financial objectives, what the fuck are you supposed to do?

My business imploded at this point, but yours doesn't have to.

By identifying your ideal student, your unique and special skills will be in hot demand - and people will pay accordingly.

Think about it, if you want to learn Iron Maiden guitar solos, and your local guitar teacher teaches Flamenco technique - how much would you be willing to pay to work with him?

Not much I'd venture a guess - it's just a bad fit and you're not going to reach your goals, and the teacher is going to have a pretty shitty experience trying to learn all of those Adrian Smith guitar solos for you when all he wants to do is play Al DiMeola, right?

Now, if there was a guitar teacher who specialized in classic heavy metal guitar solos - you'd pay a hell of a lot more for that experience, right?

It would also be awesome for you, and awesome for the teacher too.

I bet you'd reach your goals a hell of alot sooner too...

Here lies the magic secret to my coaching studio earning $30k a month as a voice teacher - I simply work with the right students who are aligned with my own true skills and unique experience.

They have an awesome time while knocking their goals out of the park, and I have an awesome time while helping them achieve those goals.

And they pay me accordingly for the RESULTS that they reach while working with me.

Not time, but results.

Think about it - you want to spend LESS time at the gym with your personal training, right?

Why do students want to spend MORE time with you, however?

It's because your coaching model sucks - I'm sorry to say.

Hourly coaching just sucks as a model for achieving serious student results - and if you're working with every random that walks through your doors, even if they're looking to learn something totally out of your wheelhouse and expertise, then your business is about to go the way of the dodo just like mine did.

Identify that correct student, and then ask yourself the next question;

HOW am I speaking to this person?

I'm serious - how are you speaking specifically to that guy who wants to learn Iron Maiden guitar solos? Or those left handed piano players that want to learn jazz? Or those sax players obsessed with Clarence Clemons?

You need to speak to your ideal student with a clear, strong and SINGULAR message.

"Are you a rock guitarist that's taken lessons before, but you weren't able to nail those Iron Maiden solos properly? This video is for you!"

That kinda thing.

Who is your ideal student, and HOW are you speaking to them.

And here we get to the first step you're ever going to take as a music teacher;

Write an article for this exact student.

You don't even need a website or anything fancy, just write something in Word or Notepad for this specific student, and the ideas and process for HOW you're going to help them will start appearing on the page.

Use this tutorial as a template if you want - introduce the topic, give your experience and background, then knock 'em dead with a solid solution.

As you write more of these tutorials, you'll find a stronger and stronger voice as a teacher - to the point where you can finally take those initial steps of getting a website and releasing these tutorials as a way to introduce yourself to your ideal students.

But identifying your ideal student, and writing an article for them is a far cry from running a multiple 6 figure music coaching business, right?

Lucky for you I've written all of this out for you.

Add your details below to download my ULTIMATE guide to growing/building/scaling a music coaching business and I'll show you the exact framework and blueprint for my own 6 figure coaching studio and how you can build a coaching business in the exact same way!!