How far will you go?

Teachers, I have a theoretical scenario for you....

How far would you go for a student with a bad attitude? Say it's a kid that's very talented, but resistant, even hostile to criticism, and is disrespectful to boot. How far would you go to help and teach them? Where do you draw the line? What if the institution where you teach doesn't support you in your dealings with the student? Are you morally and/or ethically obligated to try to teach them, and to what extent?

I'm really curious to hear everyone's responses!

Thanks, Chris

Analog News

Isn't "analog news" just old news??  Well, actually, not in this case!  I wanted to call your attention to an interesting new project that my friend up in Montreal, Chris Smith, turned me on to... Paul Merkelo, principal trumpet of the Montreal Symphony, has recorded a new album of French trumpet concertos, including the Tomasi Concerto, Andre Jolivet's Concerto No. 2, and Incantation, Threne, et Danse by Alfred Desenclos. There's a great article about it here with a sneak peek playback of the entire Tomasi.  There's a nice interview with Paul that includes some insight into how the project came to be, as well as how he prepared to actually perform all three of these monster concertos on the SAME concert!

Wait, what about the analog part? Oh yeah, right!  The recording will be released on VINYL.  Yeah, baby!

Pre-order Paul's album here.

Cheers,

The Virtual Trombonist

Let's talk about email!

Yeah, that's right... What on earth could be MORE BORING! Well, honestly, not much! The suggested Day 4 topic for the #yourturnchallenge is "teach us something you do well". Since learning to play trombone (even poorly) takes a bit more than a day, I thought I'd address something else that I have at least tried to improve upon over the last few years. Yep, that's email. Not more, but less. Not longer, but short, to the point, and incapable of misinterpretation. I now treat email as a form of almost formal communication. If I need to reply to an email, I strive to do so in a tone that shows respect towards the person I'm writing. That might mean simple things like punctuation, complete sentences, and capitalizing words. Nothing shows me a blasé attitude more than an email with grammar that was modeled after prose on a bathroom wall. I might also use phrases such as, "might I suggest", or "I would like to recommend". Always follow a suggestion with a solution, otherwise your great idea is just a complaint!

I tend to get a fair amount of email, although not near as much as many people I know. I love to have an empty, clean desk. I also love to have an empty email inbox! When I receive a message, I take one of 5 actions:

1. Delete it if at all possible. 2. Unsubscribe: for spam 3. Reply if it can be taken care of in a short format of a few lines or less. 4. File it away for future reference - only if absolutely necessary! 5. Leave it in the inbox if it is something I am currently working on or needs to be done by the end of the day.

My inbox currently contains 3 messages, all pertaining to the same project.

Finally, I strive to not leave my message open for interpretation. I try to be clear and write the message from the standpoint of the reader who has no preconceived idea about what I am trying to say. I avoid humor, as it is very easy to misinterpret jokes over email. Yeah, I know you can use emoticons, but I save that for people who know me well. :)

There you go! Please respond in the comments, NOT via email... :)

Yours virtually,

Chris

Ask for what you need!

I was discussing with some friends and colleagues the other day their need to have more feedback in their own careers and workplace. The subject came up of asking people in their particular organization's leadership for guidance. I stated that I always felt like I work best when I ask for what I need. Whether that need is for guidance, feedback, support, permission, or just plain old perspective, I try not to overthink that process of asking. It's easy to think you will bother people or, worse, come off as a complainer or non team player. I suggested to my friends that asking for what we need, in a diplomatic, solution oriented way, is the best indicator to me of someone who is both confident and truly interested in improving and contributing to an organization.

If you work in a place where you can't ask those questions (or study with a teacher that won't tolerate them, or a spouse that won't support them!), then that's a dead giveaway that communication and leadership is severely lacking. The boat is sinking, it's only a matter of how fast it hits bottom!