Fulfillment Continued

It is Saturday, January 23, 2016, and I am sitting in my office at home thinking about the presentations I would have been giving at UNCG's Southeast String Festival and Conference had we not experienced this huge intersection with winter weather this weekend. Sadly, the conference was cancelled for this year and those of us that were slated to speak have been booked for the 2017 conference already. I look forward to that experience and to offering my session at that time. Meanwhile, I had solicited participation in my informal survey as part of my preparation for that talk. I promised that I would provide some information here regarding the session following today's conference. That said, I want you all to know that I also hope to present this session in the future at an ASTA conference, and continue to develop it for presentations at NAfME and perhaps Midwest Clinic conferences if proposals are accepted. My colleague, NCSSM Music Instructor Philip Riggs, and I intend to develop this further and add a few twists to it for future presentations.

With that in mind, I will simply outline a little bit of what I put together for the session here, and give a more detailed look at the model that I have created on Finding Fulfillment in Your Career in String (music) Education . For the session, I have pulled together six different models of fulfillment from a variety of resources. One of those models was a Venn diagram that made its way around Facebook several months ago. Another is detailed in the book Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell. Still another is outlined in the book, Crazy Busy, by Kevin DeYoung . Another is drawn from the CNBC hit series the Profit. Finally, there are two others that grow from a variety of personal perspectives: one that I call the Organizational Model and another that I call the Teacher/Artist/Performer Model.  The Teacher/Artist/Performer Model is the one that I can really take individual credit for. So, let me outline that model for you here.

My life, experience, and career in string education has certainly been an interesting journey. I definitely feel that I have had one of the most fulfilling experiences that I could possibly have had. I don't know that I set out to be fulfilled in the beginning. But, I do know that over the years I've made a number of decisions and developed a number of philosophies that have led me to be able to look back over the past 30 years with a sense of true fulfillment. When I began working on this session, I sat down and thought about the areas of my professional and personal life that I find most fulfilling as a music educator. After all, if I feel fulfilled, perhaps there is a model here that I can share with others. I began jotting down various criteria of fulfillment that I have experienced. Over the ensuing weeks and months, I have tested this model out with my experience on a day in and day out basis. At this point I feel pretty confident that I can share the model that I've come up with as a sort-of personal story.

To set this model up just a little bit, I'd like to tell you a bit about my week last week. I came home on Friday night and said to my wife, “I just finished one of the most fulfilling weeks that I have ever had as a string educator.” How could that possibly be? It wasn't a particularly special week. There were no major performances. I wasn't given any awards. And, I really don't think there was any major recognition for me other than my own recognition that it was a great week. What could possibly have been involved?

On Monday I had taught my regular classes of two sections of Classical Piano and Guitar and my Recording Technology class. In each of these classes I felt like I was really connecting with students. They were meeting their personal goals and enjoying the interaction that we shared. As part of my Piano and Guitar class, I had encouraged students to consider the music theory assignments they were working on and apply the information to performance on their instruments. This became a catalyst for some wonderful conversation and interaction as well as some real “aha” moments. A number of the students thanked me for drawing their attention to this concept and I really appreciated their remarks. In my recording class, we were working on creative recording projects and there was a good spirit of energy in the room as kids prepared for this exciting assignment and sharing it with their classmates. On Tuesday, we had another round of Piano and Guitar with similar results and an evening orchestra rehearsal focusing on Dvorak’s Symphony No 8, 4th movement. everyone was in seats early for rehearsal , participated fully, and at the end of the evening we were ready for our performance scheduled for the following Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day. On Wednesday in rehearsal, I took some time to tell the students about this session that I was preparing and their reactions were very favorable. Then, I invited a student who had attended a master class the evening before, missing rehearsal, to share what he had learned with the rest of the class. This was a springboard to a wonderful conversation about the Alexander Technique and how many of the topics covered intersected with concept I had outlined in orchestra in the previous months. This again made for an amazing class. Finally, I shared this session with my colleague, Adam Sampieri, Drama Instructor at my school and he really affirmed my work.  We had a deep and meaningful discussion as a result to end to the day. Thursday was similar to Tuesday in Classical Piano and Guitar. My recording students presented their projects to the class and were involved in a really cool self-assessment activity. Then, after school I attended a teacher award ceremony and celebrated the accomplishments of several distinguished colleagues at NCSSM.  Following that, I was involved in a strategic planning meeting where we had an invigorating discussion about real world experiences and the future of our institution. Friday brought another wonderful orchestra rehearsal and some opportunities for me to finish up some paperwork in my office and reconnect with a colleague who had been out the previous week.  I also moved a ton of furniture and prepared for a variety of events that were scheduled that weekend in our facility.  I also heard several individual students play their regional orchestra audition piece for me prior to their upcoming audition on Saturday.  Incidentally, I spent all day Saturday at Regional Orchestra Auditions as did many of my colleagues.  There were many great collegial conversations and reconnections throughout the day.  I came home on Saturday evening exhausted but invigorated from a very fulfilling week of work.

As I reflected on my week, I realized that my week had encompassed all of the criteria in the model that I had created and had been sharing with students and colleagues. What an amazing revelation. I was living my model. So, what is involved in the teacher artist performer model of career fulfillment?   Fulfillment in this model is based on the following criteria:

•             Individual Relationships (with students)

•             Ensemble satisfaction (Team climate)

•             Ensemble satisfaction (Performance Caliber)

•             Professional Growth

•             Personal Artistic Satisfaction

•             Professional Relationships

Each of these criteria had been met during my week. My interaction with and relationships with individual students had been off the charts. I have built my Classical Piano and Guitar class in such a way that individual relationships are the foundation of the class. And, I realized many years ago that at my institution, individual relationships really have to come first. I was completely satisfied with the climate in my ensemble throughout the week. We had productive rehearsals, students were invested, and there was a real satisfaction in this for me. Also, the performance caliber of my ensemble was wonderful. I love the repertoire that we are working on and I believe the students do as well. I had numerous opportunities for professional growth, including working on this session. I felt really good about the work I was doing and the things I was learning, and how I can apply them to my classroom. While I didn't have any violin performances during the week, I was finding strong artistic satisfaction in my conducting throughout the week and knew that there would be conducting opportunity on Monday, right around the corner. Finally, through discussions, regional orchestra auditions, and celebrations, my professional relationships with colleagues were extraordinary throughout the week.  I felt fulfilled.  My model held up. 

In the days following the week, I had several conversations with other colleagues about their level of fulfillment. It is been interesting to learn that I can pinpoint each of these criteria after talking with a fulfilled colleague. I can also pinpoint the criteria that are missing in a colleague's experience if they are less than fulfilled. How about you? How do these criteria resonate with you? Or, is there another criterion that I have missed? Think of your most fulfilling day, week or year of work. Have you met each of these criteria? Think of your least fulfilling day, week, or year of work. Which of these criteria was missing? Can you work to enhance that which is least fully met?  I do believe that I have built a career on this factors, albeit unknowingly.  These are the things that I care about on a daily basis and have pursued. (Obviously there are others, but these jump out.)

I value your reaction. Please don't hesitate to leave a comment. And, I wish you all a fulfilling day, week, year, career. I hope to see you at a conference in the future!

Peace.

Scott

Flight Delayed - Time for a Book

Hi all. This summer, I find myself doing a good deal of traveling and, as a result, I am pleased to be catching up on some long overdue reading while on flights. My reading list for the summer is pretty long and it includes a number of books that have been recommended to me over the past several months, as well as some new potential gems that I have discovered.

Last night, as I sat on a flight from RDU to JFK that lasted much longer than it should have, I cracked open the NY Times Bestseller, Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell. Many friends that know of my reading habits and general thought life have recommended this one to me and I was long over-due to pick it up. I read his previous efforts, The Tipping Point and Blink, several years ago and knew that this would be one that I would enjoy and find several useful points within. As it turned out, I was able to go cover to cover as a result of crowded air traffic over NY City and a slow ground crew at JFK. Fortunately, I had a good book to occupy my time.

This book has been the topic of many a conversation in recent months and I am sure that many of you are familiar with two of the primary topics of the book. First, there is the 10,000 Hour Rule. This is the notion that in order to truly be an expert at anything, one must invest a minimum of 10,000 hours into the activity. Secondly, the Matthew Effect, which centers on the Canadian youth Hockey Leagues and the fact that the vast majority of kids that make it to the pros were born in Jan, Feb, or March! As an instructor at a school for academically talented kids and as a Dad, both of these concepts are fascinating and well worth the time spent reading the book. I had been in conversations with friends and colleagues on several occasions this year about both of these issues and must admit, I didn’t realize that they were from this book. I believe that these two concepts are certainly the two that resonate with the American public today and have driven the book’s popularity.

These topics, however, were not the primary points for me. There were two ideas in the book that really resonated with me. The first was a result of some studies on a community in Pennsylvania where the incidence of heart disease was exceedingly low. Researchers sought explanations for this health anomaly, seeking some explanation for the fact that this community was full of “outliers.” The best way to summarize the findings is to simply say that they were healthier due to their community. This was a place where three and four generations of family and friends lived together, in work and in play, in a nearly perfect world that they had created for themselves, in a “powerful, protective social structure capable of insulating them from the pressures of the modern world.” Now, those of you that know me well, or read this blog regularly, know that I believe in the power of community. I believe that our best work gets done when we are happy in the social structure of our environment. We are absolutely at our best, most creative, and most productive when our community is strong. This study of a group of outliers seems to support this idea in a very strong way.

A later chapter of the book presented data on a variety of trends among Jewish immigrants and the garment industry in New York in the early 1900’s. It is quite involved and I won’t go into all of the details here. (You can read the book for that!) But, as part of that chapter, Gladwell notes three qualities that lead to satisfying work, and ultimately, success. They are autonomy, complexity, and a relationship between the effort and the reward. He goes on to make the point that money is not one of the three “drivers” of this concept, although many that find these three criteria as part of their work make a great deal of money. Work that fulfills these three criteria is meaningful.

Think about these three criteria. Autonomy: My son is 13 years old. He is mowing 4 lawns this summer for spending money. He gets to decide when he does his work. He can do it early in the morning, before it is too hot, he can go to soccer practice in the morning, rest in the afternoon, and do it later in the day if he wishes. He can do all four in one day or spread them out over a week’s time. He has autonomy. It sure beats being tied to a summer schedule that is rigid and inflexible. Trust me; the same is true for adults. I see it all the time. Complexity: Humans want to be challenged. Humans need to be challenged. We want to find careers that are interesting and engaging in a variety of ways. I think this is one of the reasons I love conducting orchestras. I never do the same thing twice. Every rehearsal is different and unique. I am continually challenged by the complexity of the activity. Relationship between effort and reward: Simply stated, the harder we work, the greater the reward. When we burn the midnight oil, we see a palpable result. Gladwell sums this all up nicely when he says, “if you work hard enough and assert yourself, use your mind and imagination, you can shape the world to your desires.”

So, for those who are choosing careers right now, or coming to NCSSM in the fall, or in the midst of summer vacation, or just surfing the blogs, give this a little bit of thought. I highly recommend the book, Outliers. It is a quick read and provides some really interesting food for thought. I wonder what I will read on my flight back home.

Peace.
Scott