October = PERSEVERANCE

Congratulations! You have survived the start of the school year and October has arrived. The students are aware of expectations and heading towards demonstrations of goals. Whether you're making music indoors or outdoors, October can be hard! When I was teaching we used to call this month "PERSEVERANCE"! The term perseverance is defined as the continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failures or oppositions. As part of the student leader training, we would define the term then select the top 5 phrases or descriptors to focus on throughout the month.

Some of my favorites:

• Leave no stone unturned.
• Stay the course.
• Go for broke.
• Keep going. 

One of the most impactful aspects of perseverance is grace. Do not forget what you have accomplished and give everything time to develop. We were constantly reminding the team that it is okay to make mistakes; to fail IS to grow. No matter what, you just can't give up. Don't make excuses; have a plan and stay focused. As a leader you have to give yourself some grace and recognize what is going well. So I challenge you, the music educators and makers of musicians, give yourself some grace. Look around and recognize all the good things that are happening. It is okay to make mistakes; it is okay to get frustrated, tired and have the feelings of "Octoberness". As long as you Leave No Stone Unturned, Stay the Course, Go for Broke and Keep Going, you will persevere in October! You have this!