All The Things I Didn’t Know

I spent a lot of time as a young band director worrying about all the things I didn’t know, and worrying that my students would find out.

This led me to make some bad decisions, like being hesitant to bring in a clinician because my students would surely see how inferior I was.  Or not even sight-reading a piece of music because I didn’t know it and might make mistakes.

Of course, I learned later that my students didn’t care at all about what I didn’t know.  They cared about how much I cared!  They realized that I was always doing my best and giving them everything that I DID know.  If you are working your hardest and really care, your students will follow you anywhere!

Students want someone who is there for them, working hard for them, and giving them their best.  They can tell if you’re being sincere and authentic.  And they can smell a phony a mile away.

If you really DO care about your students, give them your best and don’t worry about what you don’t know.  Just answer “I’m not sure but I’ll find out.”  Then call your smart friends and mentors and go from there.

You don’t have to know it all.  But you really need to care and be doing your best.

Tim Hinton

July 7, 2024

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