The Business of Owning a Business

Did you know that a lot of private music teachers, at some point in their career, develop an entrepreneurial skill set? Here are a couple of skills we learn to develop:

billing

advertising

bookkeeping

lesson planning

scheduling

recital planning

correspondence with parents

printing

event planning

marketing

website design

Some of these skills might be covered for us, depending on if we're teaching in a public school, music school, home studio, college, or through a third party company like Musika.

So, after teaching in all of these arenas and dreaming for years of owning my own business, I decided to make my dream a reality. I have always felt trepidation when thinking about the growing pains that new business owners go through... building the client base (or, in

my case, the student base), not making an income for awhile, spending money (wisely) to make money. Now, add a global pandemic and this lunatic thinks, there's no time like the present!

So far, I have filed as an LLC, started researching business insurance, kept feelers out for a commercial space I will rent or buy (hopefully sooner rather than later, but that all depends on COVID 19), opened a business account, registered for a certification to become a dance studio owner (because I want to offer music and dance lessons), taken partner dance instruction lessons, signed my business up with my local chamber of commerce, started to market myself and my studio to anyone and anything that's free or cheap to market to, worked on my mission statement, signed up for a course on creating a business plan, and, of course, taught lessons.

These are my initial thoughts while I'm still in the thick it:

It's worth it. It's so worth it. I'm terrified everyday that I'm going to wake up and realize I made some catastrophic overlook that plummets this dream of owning my own business to the ground, but I go to sleep every night feeling like I'm closer to to making a monumental impact in many lives.

Although I feel like I've been working my whole life toward this moment, there's still a lot more work to do. I don't think I will ever feel like I know enough to be comfortable running my own business. But I feel like constant discomfort is the best motivator for development. (I mean, I'm a performer for goodness' sake. We crave that discomfort!)

I will most likely be taking an online business course in the near future. I don't regret my double major in Anthro and Music in the least bit, but I do wish I would've taken the credits to major in business in the two year gap between undergrad and grad school.

I'll continue to update, especially when I reach an income and when I start to offer dance lessons, but if you'd like to visit my Keeley Hookten, soprano page @HooktenHarmony, please do!