The Lost Piano Book

In my home office, there’s a piano that now serves as a piece of furniture holding pictures of the past. But it wasn’t always this way. There was a time when the piano was alive with the sounds of my 3 daughters practicing their lessons with their piano teacher, Mrs. M., on Tuesday nights. Back then, the office was filled with repetitive melodies and starts and stops of piano practice throughout the week.

Right before a lesson, my daughter Kat, who was 8 years old at the time, couldn’t find her “Easiest Piano Course: Part Two” lesson book. We searched everywhere but had no luck. For that lesson, Mrs. M. had Kat play music from her Part 1 book.

The next day, we bought a replacement Part 2 book, but Kat’s enthusiasm for piano had seemingly vanished. Her practices became shorter, and she grumbled about learning new songs. Within a couple of months, she begged to stop taking lessons. Kat had lost her motivation to learn.

The Keys to Development

Desire, motivation, and readiness to learn are essential for development. That’s why the best learning has some clear relevance and some ‘heat’ under it.

This reminds me of the saying, “There’s no comfort in the growth zone. And no growth in the comfort zone.”

Think about your work today. Are you in the comfort zone or the growth zone? Do you feel inspired to learn and develop? What is holding you back?

Coaching and Development

Here is where coaching comes in. Powerful coaching helps you get clear about your desired goals and gets you out of your comfort zone. By getting anchored in your values, fulfillment, and goals for your future, you gain clarity on where you want to go and what it will take to get there.

You also challenge yourself through deep self-discovery. You may uncover a critical inner voice, a hidden blind spot, or a hairy challenge that is holding you back from reaching your goals.

These insights get you out of your comfort zone and build your desire, motivation, and readiness to learn.

Is Coaching Right for You?

If you’re considering working with a coach, reflect on your motivation:

• What drives you to seek coaching now?

• What changes are you hoping to achieve?

• How will your life be different after coaching?

• What would happen if you didn’t make a change?

If answering these questions spur you to make changes, then coaching may be a good fit.

Piano Book Mystery Solved

When Kat was 11, my husband found the original “Easiest Piano Course: Part Two” book on the top of my office cabinet, covered in thick dust. Kat sheepishly admitted she had thrown the book up there before her lesson 3 years earlier to avoid learning a new song.  Apparently, she didn’t see the relevance of piano to her burgeoning soccer career. 

This book now has a proud place on my bookshelf as a symbol of the need for desire, motivation, and readiness to learn and develop. If you have these, then achieving your goals is within reach.