Being unable to say no gigs and drum lessons to stress, exhaustion and irritability can hinder your overall health as a drum teacher. Perhaps you fear that by having a better work-life balance you may lose a drum student, miss an opportunity or leave room for someone else to swoop in and take your...
Use these ten questions to help figure out where you need to put in boundaries as a drum tutor, and what might be
getting in the way of you doing so.
Boundaries help us to differentiate where we stop and where another person, or role, begins. They help us to know what is our responsibility and what is within the remit of someone else – helping us to differentiate between work and play and just being a drummer. Boundaries help us to manage...
As a drum teacher spend some time identifying the choices and options available to you – this can help you regain a sense of agency (in that you can feel personally effective towards your life). Remember that there are opportunities out there that you are not aware of yet, so try to be optimistic.
This...
When you are starting to feel better, take a step back, prioritise your workload and consider how much you are taking on. What can wait? Be honest with yourself. If you are selfmedicating with drugs, alcohol, food, gambling, sex, porn or self-harm, it’s important for you to reach for support. Visit...
The third stage of resilience as a drummer or drum teacher is accepting what has happened if things go wrong. This doesn’t mean minimising or dismissing it, but accepting that it cannot be changed. Try to understand what it means to you that this event happened.
How can you make sense of...
It is the result of an unmanageable drum teaching workload and a strong signal that something needs to change. It means that your mind is out of synchronisation with your body – you’ve taken too much on and your body is putting on the brakes.
Burn out is not just an emotional experience,...
Practicing self care means ringfencing time for you to look after yourself, allowing you to decompress and supporting you through the ups and downs of your career and personal life. Self care is important to build in if you are to
enjoy a sustainable career. Incorporating short, manageable bursts...
It’s important to be aware that working as a freelancer in the music industry means that you don’t get many of the benefits of full time employment, like line managers, annual leave, a regular salary, set hours, or a clear boundary
between work and home. Deciding how and when you want...
Research by Help Musicians UK in 2016 in found that 71.1% of drummers had experienced high levels of anxiety and/or panic attacks whilst 68.5% reported experiencing depression, meaning that drummers are three times as likely to experience depression than the national average.
Participants of...
Samuel Bickley is our newest approved drum teacher for the Plymouth area in Devon. He has 10 years of drumming experience and Grade 8 drumming certificate. He can travel to you in Plymstock, Plimpton, Southway, Saltash, Dartmoor, Ivybridge, Manadon, Milestone, St Budeaux, Torpoint, Yealmpton, Carkeel,...
