As a guitar teacher in Aberdeen it is maybe pretty obvious that patience is a required skill to do the job well. You’d be right in thinking that – I wouldn’t be a very good teacher if I didn’t have the patience to listen, observe and encourage my students as they strive to reach their goals.
I’ve found myself reminded more of this recently – not just through my job as a guitar teacher but also in everyday life. We live in a world where patience and grace seem to have been lost in our makeup as human beings. Surely our ability to be gracious with one another and our ability to show patience with others is what allows us to function successfully as a race? OK, so things have got a bit heavy for what is meant to be a blog about guitar lessons so let me bring it back to point.
One of the most rewarding parts of my job as a guitar teacher is seeing others learn and thrive as guitar players. To do this requires the utmost patience and the ability to be gracious when a student is struggling. There will always be times when, in our learning, we find things more difficult than others. There will be times when learning feels like a chore and things feel impossible to grasp. This is all part of the journey of becoming a phenomenal and disciplined guitar player.
I wouldn’t be where I am if it wasn’t for the patience and grace of my teachers. It was their dedication to me, their commitment to the cause and their ability to be gracious when required which gave me the space and opportunity to succeed as a guitar player.
My job is to be patient and gracious not just because I have to be to do what I do well but also because I want to be, because it’s the right thing to be, with everyone at any time. I encourage others to do the same – what a fantastic world we’d live in if we all took a little more time to practice patience and grace. Keep rockin’.
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