๐Ÿฝ๏ธ mPower Monday: The mPower Method โ€“ Meals

Tired? Low energy? Frequent headaches? Feeling sluggish? Having trouble sleeping or sleeping too much? Dealing with less-than-stellar physical changes that are draining your zest for life?

How much easier would it be to get through your busy day and make decisions if you didn’t have the brain fog and aches and pains draining your mental and physical energy?

As music teachers are acutely aware, having an expensive high-quality wooden clarinet in excellent shape contributes to a beautiful sound, ease of playing and better response than a crappy plastic clarinet. Imagine your life as the clarinet – and imagine for a moment that your life is like the best quality wooden clarinet made.

Now imagine that the only reed you have is old, a little moldy and chipped. Even though the clarinet is top-notch, it will be nearly impossible to get it to respond favorably if the reed won’t facilitate the necessary response.

What if you now think of your life as the clarinet and the reed as your fuel – your food. No matter what kind of shape you are in, if you are not consistently consuming the kind of fuel that supports your physical and mental needs, then it’s like trying to play a fantastic clarinet with a nasty reed. It just doesn’t work very well.

The same is true for you. You must have your fuel, which is food, in order to function. There is a direct correlation between the type and quality of food you consume and every aspect of your health. Period.

For fifty-one years, I firmly believed it was healthiest to stick to the traditional food pyramid, which was built on a diet of starches and carbs and low in fats, but look where that got me. I also fell for the rationale that my weight was a direct result of the number of calories I consumed. I had no clue that the quality of the calories played a bigger role in everything from my weight to my quality of life than the number of calories. Once I understood and embraced the truth that what Iโ€™d being doing for five decades wasnโ€™t working for me, my life changed.

My initial goal when I began the healing part of my journey was just to feel well enough to work without getting sick again. Feeling great wasnโ€™t even on my radar. I had hoped to be on a fraction of the medications I was on at the time, never dreaming that I would be weaned off all of the pharmaceuticals Iโ€™d been on for decades. And being 5โ€™7โ€ and 200 pounds when I was sickest, it never dawned on me that within months I would weigh 135 pounds and wear a size 4 โ€“ and that I would have abs and a toned body simply through the gentle practices of yoga and walking.

If I had been told that my ADHD symptoms would be gone and my memory would be sharper than it had been in twenty years, Iโ€™d have laughed at the ridiculousness of that possibility. I had no idea what was in store for me, but Iโ€™m certainly glad I hit rock-bottom so I could begin my journey out of the downward spiral into which I had fallen. It was through this experience that the four cornerstones of my mPower Method evolved, the result of my own assessment and discovery of what was causing me to feel so horrible and what was helping me feel and function better. Once I finally figured out what had been such a mystery to me for so many years, I knew I had to share it with others who were going through the same suffocating experience.

The first component of my mPower Method is meals. The meals you eat are the basis of everything from how you feel to how you function. What you put in your body literally becomes your body. Our cells are regenerating constantly. Think about it โ€“ if you are eating foods that have been treated with pesticides, are filled with artificial ingredients, and have antibiotics and other hormones added to them, then those things are all going into your body. Your body isnโ€™t meant to use these things in productive ways that help you grow, heal, think, and function, so many of the processes your body goes through become impeded and donโ€™t work like they should.

Years and even decades of eating stuff that didnโ€™t benefit my body took its toll in the form of excess weight, acne, memory loss, brain fog, ADHD, pain, repeated infections, infertility, and dozens of other ailments. I had gotten to the point where I figured I was so far gone with such a long list of health problems that there was no turning things around, so I was about to settle for just โ€œnot getting any worse,โ€ but eventually I realized that option really sucked. Why should I succumb to being sick, tired, overweight, in pain, and feeling like crap when there might be a different possibility out there? After all, I was only fifty-one at the time. I wasnโ€™t ready to throw in the towel, so I figured it was now or never and I took a leap of faith and never looked back.

We have been taught in the past that we should be eating lots of fruits, veggies, and nonfat foods and avoiding fats. Our diets are inundated with sugars, grain, additives, preservatives, added hormones, and all kinds of other things our bodies werenโ€™t made to process, so our bodies respond with aches and pains or brain fog in hopes of getting our attention and letting us know what we are doing isnโ€™t working. When we ignore those symptoms, our bodies have to do something more drastic to get our attention so we will stop doing the things that are making us sick. I didnโ€™t get the message until my body was riddled with all kinds of ailments, including painful arthritis due to swollen joints, migraines, difficulty sleeping, difficulty staying asleep, a lack of energy, and brain fog that was so bad I actually went to my doctor, afraid I had early-onset dementia.

The bottom line as to why I felt so crappy and was constantly sick was because I wasnโ€™t giving my body the kind of nutrients it needed to work properly, so it simply couldnโ€™t get or stay healthy. It really was that simple, and I found that out after just a week of eliminating gluten from my diet. (I had done lots of research and asked a lot of health care professionals questions to help me figure out where to begin. This was what made sense for me. Your first step should be based on your particular needs.)

That one small change was eye-opening, so I added another by eliminating grains as well. Within a week of completely avoiding grains (which is not an easy task), I noticed that I had lost five pounds without even trying, my joints werenโ€™t quite as painful, and my brain fog didnโ€™t seem as bad as it had been. It was a real wake-up call and it motivated me to try another change โ€“ and when that made a difference, I tried another and another. I became addicted to feeling good, and when I brought my awareness to how I felt after every meal, I was able to identify things within my control that I could do to change my health. And when I ate foods that my body needed, I eliminated fatigue and found myself energized. Food was proving to be the absolute building block of everything. I could control what went into my mouth, so I could control much more of how I felt than I ever realized. That was empowering!

My husband, George, was witnessing first-hand the power of how changing a few of my eating habits was impacting my body and how my health was improving. He, too, began incorporating more awareness with his food choices and at the age of 58 is trim, fit, and playing ice hockey on a regular basis!

I have spent the last couple of years paying very close attention to the impact food has on how I feel, think, and function. Iโ€™ve also read everything I can get my hands on to learn more about how and why food is such an important component in how we function because I now see the clear correlation. It comes down to the simple fact that food is the building block of every cell in your body, so doesnโ€™t it make sense that the quality of what you put into your body impacts the quality of your body and what it can do? Every cell in your body regenerates on a regular basis, so you are making new cells 24/7. If you use high quality materials (the foods that your body needs to perform at its most efficient and best self) then youโ€™re going to have a better quality of life. Period.

My lists of symptoms and the foods that trigger them is long. I had no idea that the root cause of so many of the ailments that had plagued me for so long came down to each decision I made about what to eat. I didnโ€™t need to go on a particular diet, like Keto or low-fat. Instead, I needed to find out how my body reacted to everything from the types of food (dairy/meat/grain/etc.) to the quality (grass-fed/organic/hormone, antibiotic free, processed, added sugars, etc.) I was consuming. Once I understood this information, I could then make choices as to what I wanted to do. If I wanted to eliminate the symptoms that were making me so sick I couldnโ€™t go to work and function any more, then I had to change my behaviors. If I wanted to continue down the path that I was on, which was pretty miserable at that point, then I could just continue eating the way I had been and I would have undoubtedly progressed even further on the unhealthy track Iโ€™d been on.

Society has made it super convenient for us to grab cheap and handy meals and snacks just about everywhere, but most of those options donโ€™t support the needs we have for sustained energy and stamina or to keep us at a healthy weight. We get so busy with jobs and other life events that our default mode often falls into picking up meals that are readily available even if they arenโ€™t serving our bodyโ€™s needs. The suggestions in this book will help you rebuild your gut, which is your โ€œsoilโ€ from which everything else in your body is run. Once you get your gut in better shape, youโ€™ll feel the results throughout your entire body.

When flowers and leaves wither and die, we prune those parts away so they donโ€™t suck precious energy away from the parts of the plant that are trying to thrive. The same is true for your life โ€“ we must release from our lives the things that are no longer serving us well, and that means having a heart-to-heart talk with yourself and deciding you are ready to conquer your health problems once and for all. This involves reevaluating what you are putting in your body based on how you know it makes you feel. If that feeling (outcome) is what you desire, then you can make the choice to support it by eating the foods that help your body attain and maintain health that allows you to do everything you need to do.

The most effective way I found of figuring out what worked for me was to deliberately monitor a specific food or food group and its impact on my health. When I finally came to this realization, it was hard to know where to start. I needed some kind of systematic way to learn which foods were possible culprits for my health issues so I could stop eating things that might be making me sick. I had to do a lot of research and visit a lot of professionals to come up with the information I needed in this process.

Once I compiled everything I learned about how food impacts our mental and physical health, I created the Mojo Meter as a way to assess my clientsโ€™ biggest health challenges. I based it on the process I used to figure out what I needed. Just like me, my clients need and expect to see results, and they need to see them fast. I had run out of patience and time for doing more of the same old treatments, and since they hadnโ€™t worked before, I finally realized they werenโ€™t going to work again, no matter how many times I repeated them. If I wanted different results, I needed different input. There was simply no getting around it. We will use your results from the mPower Meal Self-Assessment to help you figure out where to start your meal modifications.

I learned that the joint pain Iโ€™d experienced since I was a teenager wasnโ€™t actually a lifelong sentence โ€“ once I eliminated the foods that caused excessive inflammation in my joints, I was addressing the root cause of the swelling, and I went from being dependent on anti-inflammatory and pain medications and a cane to needing no medications and no longer hurting! Not only has the cane become a thing of the past, but because of my yoga practice, my body moves in ways it never has before (more on this part later).

There are a lot of resources out there with one-size-fits-all health plans and diets. Those donโ€™t take into consideration your particular health needs, environment, family, job, and other variables. Itโ€™s really hard to sift through everything and know what will work and what wonโ€™t, but I will walk you through some resources I found to be particularly helpful to help you discover what makes you function at your peak.

You are always one decision away from getting closer to your goal. You donโ€™t have to make a million decisions about how to change everything all at once. Just one decision at a time. Donโ€™t stress about your next decision or what you will do tomorrow. If you keep this principle in mind, youโ€™ll find this to be much more manageable and sustainable for the long haul, and isnโ€™t that what you are finally seeking to do?

At first it felt like modifying my diet was all about โ€œtaking awayโ€ everything I loved. My comfort foods, the things I could make in a hurry or meals I could pick up on my way home from work were ingrained in every aspect of what my family and I did, so making major changes that required a lot more thought, time, patience, and often money (yes, better quality food is more expensive than stuff that can be processed quickly and with inferior ingredients) was daunting, especially since I was tired and felt crappy. It wasnโ€™t long, however, before I noticed how powerful the tradeoff was โ€“ if I took the time to plan, prepare, and eat the types of foods that supported my brain and body, I became invincible. It was crazy amazing โ€ฆ and addicting. It felt good to have the weight melt off. It amazed me to see how quickly my skin cleared up, to the point where I often go out in public without make up on because I now feel so comfortable. The more attention I paid to what I was eating and how it made me feel, the more control I had in changing my destiny. That was empowering and I was hooked.

Now that you are ready to turn your health around, itโ€™s time to start with a self-assessment so you can begin the transformation you desire and deserve. I can tell you about what I did to get healthy, but I canโ€™t do the work for you. I can do it with you and share the resources I used, and if you follow the advice, youโ€™ll experience a freedom that comes with being well that changes your entire life. It becomes easier to do the things you have to do, and you find yourself feeling good enough to do the things you want to do (how long has it been since thatโ€™s happened?). There will be challenges, but you have the tools you need to overcome them. And if you want to jumpstart your wellness with a free self-assessment, I’ve got your back…

You wonโ€™t be changing all your habits at once. Instead, you want to find the ones that will have the biggest and most positive impact. Once you see and feel the connection between the food you are eating and the way your body responds, you’ll be amazed. Then decide if you like those changes. If you do, great. If not, then make a different change.

I was skeptical that food had anything to do with things like brain fog and arthritis pain, so I approached this with a suspicious but desperate mindset. Until I actually felt the incredible changes in my body, I hadnโ€™t believed the meals I ate could be that powerful and have such an impact on every aspect of my mind and body. Boy, was I wrong!

I highly recommend keeping a food journal, even using an app to track what youโ€™re eating โ€“ I know youโ€™ve heard it before and itโ€™s a drag, but it is an excellent tool for helping you see where you are making progress and where you still need help. It also makes it easier to make good food choices when you know you are holding yourself accountable in writing!

The food groups I suggest eliminating are based on research done from various medical practitioners, the resources listed at the end of this book, and what Iโ€™ve learned through years of practice with my own body. Your body will react differently than anyone elseโ€™s, so be sure to pay attention to how you feel. Write down not only what you eat, but how you feel before, during, and after your meals. A simple happy face, word, or other indicator is all you need to start seeing patterns in the relationship between your meals and how you feel.

As you begin to make one change and then another, youโ€™ll be blown away by the results. By taking time each day to deliberately make choices about the meals you are using to fuel your brain and body, you are investing in a new and improved you, and thatโ€™s why you are here in the first place.

In a nutshell, from what Iโ€™ve found in my own practice and with those with whom I work, there are some key food groups that have a huge impact across multiple areas youโ€™re trying to address. If you are struggling with weight, for example, your most effective way to address it is likely through the elimination of grains. Think about it โ€“ when farmers are fattening up their livestock, what do they feed them? Corn and other grains. Those grains do the same thing to your body that they do to the cows and pigs โ€“ they add weight and bulk you up. Donโ€™t believe me? See what happens if you eliminate grains from your meals for just one week. Not only will weight begin melting off, but you might also be delighted to discover that your brain fog is clearing up, along with the painful swelling of your joints. The benefits will become evident and you will quickly come to feel the correlation between what goes in your body and how you function.

By now, you may be a bit worried about what you can eat. It may seem like all Iโ€™ve focused on is elimination of food groups. Thatโ€™s because a huge part of getting and staying healthy is resetting your gut biome, and the only way to do that is to change what goes in your gut. But in addition to eliminating what isnโ€™t serving you well, you must also be vigilant about providing high quality meals that support brain and body health.

The list of what you can and should eat is long. For example, high quality lean meat serves to provide you with protein thatโ€™s necessary for helping you function. Grass-fed beef and grass-fed dairy provide excellent sources of healthy fats that keeps you going longer and at a steadier pace than any carbs and sugar can do. If you are not able to process or choose not to eat meat, your protein sources could include tofu, eggs, and nuts.

Many people turn to salads and other raw foods in an attempt to get healthy. Kale and other dark green veggies are full of vitamins, but if your body has difficulty processing them, they may cause you distress. Simply cooking them in a small amount of broth or high quality oil (olive, coconut, or avocado) for a few minutes to wilt them begins the digestion process and makes them gentler on your belly while still allowing you to access the nutritional benefits. 

ACTION PLAN:

Use a food journal or app on your phone to track your progress. Keep track of every food choice you make for the next twenty-one days. It takes that long to establish a new habit. And notice how you feel as your body adapts to the new changes. Sometimes the first few days our bodies actually feel worse before feeling better, so donโ€™t let that get you down. Just acknowledge it and know it will get better. Donโ€™t try to change everything at once โ€“ just the one thing you are focusing on at first.

Make a commitment to do your best to incorporate one new habit at a time because you are investing in your well-being so you can regain your energy, health, and vitality. You are worth it, so be as insistent on taking care of yourself as you would be if you were taking care of a loved one.

Be well!

Will You Stay or Will You Go?

Happy New Year –

๏ปฟAfter all we’ve experienced as teachers recently, it’s probably not a stretch to assume you’ve found yourself wondering if you should stay or if it’s time to let go of teaching. But wondering is different than taking action.

That’s why I’m offering a free self-assessment exclusively for teachers who are asking themselves what their next move should be. The assessment is called “Should I Stay or Should I Go? The Teacher’s Guide to Gaining Clarity on Your Next Career Move.”

This 6-minute quiz guides you through some key questions that will provide you with a better understanding of the best choice for you and what your next steps should be.

I understand how making a decision about your career can be a daunting task, especially

when you have so much on your plate already. However, I want to stress the importance of taking the opportunity to figure this out now, as contracts for next year will need to be signed soon.

By completing this self-assessment:

  • You’ll have a better understanding of the best role for you at this time in your life/career.
  • Youโ€™ll get clarity on what your next steps should be.
  • You will be able make an informed decision about โ€œshould I stay or should I go?โ€ and move forward with confidence.

Whether you’re looking for a change in career or simply want to reaffirm your commitment to teaching, this assessment will give you the clarity you need to make an informed decision.

Don’t let this opportunity pass you by.ย Takeย the quiz nowย nowย and gain clarity on your next career move before you have to sign a binding contract for next year.

To Stay or Not To Stay, That was the Question

Last year at this time I was struggling. A lot. So much so that I invested $10k in an agency to help me find a job outside of education. I just couldn’t do it anymore. Years 33 and 34 nearly broke me.

We were back in the building after 18 months of online teaching and everything was supposed to be “back to normal.” But it wasn’t and I found myself in a really sad and dark place.

A week before schools shut down at the beginning of the pandemic, I finished my manuscript for Love the Job, Lose the Stress, and as we found ourselves thrown into everything that came with teaching during this time, I felt like a fool for having written a book with a title like that!

I found myself no longer loving my job. It wasn’t the stress that was the problem, it was that I found I’d lost my joy in the very thing that used to light me up. Being in the same space where I’d had decades of growth and incredible memories became a different place after Covid disrupted everything. I found that just walking into my bandroom became a trigger for sadness, grief and despair.

The trauma of teaching during the pandemic is real. In my work with teachers who are in the same situation, they are trying to figure out if they should stay in the profession or if it’s time to find a new path because they’ve felt this same struggle.

I knew that if I was going to successfully go into a non-educational field, I would need help with everything from getting my resume updated so it resonated with companies for whom I wanted to work to preparing for interviews and getting clarity with the kind of role I was seeking.

I found a company that specializes in career transitions, made a huge financial investment and dove in to the process with the intent of finding a job that would allow me to walk away from teaching and into something where I could once again find joy and purpose.

I diligently showed up to all the coaching calls. I did the homework. I spent a lot of time asking myself hard questions. I began to get clear on my goals and narrow down the kind of work I needed to do in order to thrive.

And then I found it.

The result wasn’t at all what I expected. After all, when I dropped that kind of money, I fully anticipated I’d be making a change into a corporate role working year-round at something like education or performance travel, curriculum design or arts advocacy.

The process I was going through helped me gain clarity on my goals:

  • Find a role where I could have a positive impact on others
  • Make a difference for youth who have experienced trauma
  • Make at least the amount I was making in my current teaching role
  • Have generous time off
  • Love what I do

Once I got real clarity on my goals, I found the perfect role that fulfills all these goals (and more) and it wasn’t at all what I expected it to be.

The job that came to the surface for me showed up because it checked all the boxes in my goal list:

  • I make a positive impact on others
  • I work directly with youth who have experienced trauma (pandemic and more)
  • I make the same amount of money I made in my former role
  • I work 183 days a year
  • I LOVE what I am doing – it’s fresh and new but still familiar

After gaining clarity on my goals by working with someone who guided me through the process and helped me identify the right choice for me, the answer became crystal clear.

Last June I was shocked to find myself asking my middle school feeder director if he’d switch jobs with me. I realized that I still found passion and purpose in teaching music, but all of the additional evening and weekend commitments that go with being a high school band director, expecially since the pandemic hit, no longer brought me the joy it used to. I needed the connections with students and being a teacher is in my blood, but after 35 years of doing this work, it was time for a change, and the change that turned out to be right for me was literally right under my nose.

Since making the decision to swap jobs and move to the feeder middle school, I’ve found renewed happiness in my life’s work. I truly thought leaving teaching was my only option, and for many people that is the right choice, but for me, going through this process guided me to the right place for me to be.

Are you at a crossroads? Are you questioning whether or not you can or should continue down the path of teaching or pursue something else in order to find your joy? Do you wonder how you’d even begin looking for a job outside the education field?

Well, I invested a lot of time and money in figuring out how to find a role that is right for me and I’m sharing what I learned with you!

Join me for Should I Stay or Should I Go? Gaining clarity and making a plan for career fulfillment. I’ll host this informal session for free and share a few key things I learned from my $10k investment to save you some time and money!

At this interactive discussion on Thursday, January 6 at 4:00 pacific time, you’ll learn:

  • How to identify whether your current situation is a healthy and appropriate place for you to be
  • Important timeline and steps to take to transition from teaching to another career
  • How to edit your resume so it appeals to employers you’re targeting
  • How to get yourself out there on LinkedIn and other places where you can be discovered

As a FREE BONUS, attendees will receive a copy of my “teacher” resume and the “corporate” resume created by the company I hired so you can create your own resume by translating your teacher skills into verbiage that resonates in the corporate world. (Save yourself thousands of dollars by using this tool!)

We are at the time of year when teachers need to think about next year’s contract. Right now there’s time for you to look at your options, but soon you’ll have to sign a contract and be locked in for another year. Or you need to get some clarity on what you want and take the steps to make it happen. I can help.

If you’re like a lot of the music teachers I’ve worked with over the past several years, you’ve been through a LOT of changes and now is the time to pause, reassess and move forward in a way that supports your mental and physical health.

I hope you’re happy and fulfilled in your current role, but if you’re not and you’re wondering what to do next, you should come to this conversation.

With you on this strange journey –

Lesley

From Stressed-Out to Streamlined: Making Music Education Sustainable in the Modern Music Classroom

I don’t need to tell you about the challenges we’ve faced on personal, professional, and an even bigger levels in the past couple of years and how those things have made being an effective music educator even more time-consuming as we have had to constantly adapt to change and circumstances that are not conducive to in-person ensemble music making.

Have the past couple of years put you in multiple teaching modes? Have you had to pivot and create (and then re-create) lessons and plans that can be adapted and accessed when students are out in quarantine or when new restrictions come up?

At the end of the day, are you mentally and physically just plain done?

What about your energy for your own interests or quality time with your family at the end of a workday? Have you expended all your creative juices and find yourself too busy mentally preparing for your next day instead of feeling fully present with your family?

This. Has. Been. Exhausting.

As music teachers, the constant adapting to new situations while trying to deliver high quality music experiences for our students in ways we have not been trained to teach has required all kinds of mental gymnastics. The way we always have done things aren’t always working with students or circumstances now days.

You’re busting your butt…are you getting the results you want?

  • Are your students on-task and focused when you are teaching?
  • Are students retaining the content you’re teaching?
  • Are students actively engaging with the activities you present or in rehearsals?
  • Do you have a way of planning lessons that is efficient and effective?
  • Do you have systems in place that help your classroom community run smoothly?
  • Do your lessons and activities support your and your students’ social and emotional needs?
  • Are your students demonstrating interpersonal skills that support a collaborative environment?
  • Are you enjoying your job?

Would you like to be able to shout a resounding HELL YES answer to each of the questions above? I’d like to help you!

Like you, I’ve been navigating these weird times in music education. I was about to begin the manuscript for my third book where I plan to share the five key pillars I’ve found that have made it possible for my students and me to navigate these changes and grow as artists and musicians.

But people don’t want to wait six months to a year to get their hands on this. They are asking for the information now so they can (re)build their music program in a way that is sustainable and doesn’t suck all their time and energy and leave them depleted at the end of the day.

So here’s the deal – I’m releasing an ONLINE CLASS specifically for MUSIC EDUCATORS who meet a few criteria:

  • They love their job (at least most of the time)
  • They know the work they do impacts students and makes a difference
  • They want to continue to do this important work for a long time and are looking for proven ways to make this a sustainable career
  • They see the importance of the wholistic approach – not just teaching a student to play the clarinet, but nurturing the social and emotional needs of the student so they can successfully participate in the music community
  • They are looking for strategies that help them do this important work with more ease, joy, and grace

If this sounds like you, I’m inviting you to be part of my BETA COHORT for this NEW COURSE! What does that mean?

  • You’ll get access to new content each week
    • There are five units that take you through the key elements of assessing your current practices and how to implement them in your own classroom
  • You can work at your own pace, moving as quickly or as slowly as you need to in order to be successful in understanding and implementing it.
    • The investment of time varies, but most people have spent an hour a week on content (videos / journaling / activities) and an hour once or twice a month on our live group Q&A calls
  • You’ll earn The mPowered Music Room Level 1 Certification upon successful completion of the series.
  • You’ll have a powerful system for planning, implementing, and teaching that will make your job much easier and more efficient.
  • BETA BONUS: As part of this Beta Cohort, you’ll be invited to LIVE Q&A with me twice a month for the first two months you are in the program – a $200 value for FREE!

How does this work?

  • You receive access to new recording each week that outlines one of the five components of The mPowered Music Room
  • The videos (15-30 minutes) come with journaling and/or reflection activities that help you assess your own practices and learn the five key elements in a successful music classroom:
    • The “F” Word – Focus: What is YOUR focus and intention as a music educator?
    • The SOCIAL needs of your students and why addressing these needs is so critical to a successful and well-rounded music education
    • A daily protocol for tuning your students’ brains and bodies for music class to get their attention and focus where it needs to be for optimum learning
    • The key to planning effective CONTENT for your students so they’ll remember and connect with what you are teaching them
    • A proven way to quickly and effectively assess individuals and groups of students every single day for feedback about anything you need, from comprehension of content to a mental health check-in so you can more easily plan follow-up lessons
  • When you’ve completed all the units and activities, you’ll earn a Moffat’s mPowered Music Room Level 1 Certification and you’ll have a plan that becomes your blueprint for a streamlined music classroom that leaves you with plenty of energy for yourself and your family at the end of the day!

If you’d like to join this Beta Cohort, all you need to do is click the SIGN UP BUTTON below. When the course is officially launched, it will be offered for $199 with optional live coaching for an additional $100 per month, but the total investment for the Beta Cohort is $99 and includes all the course content AND Live Q&A with me on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month during January and February! This is a $500 value!

What are you waiting for? Won’t it be nice to know you have a plan and support in place to help you do this important work in a more sustainable way? Think of the relief that comes with knowing you’ve got someone there to help you figure all this out!

I look forward to helping you find your groove and making your life’s work a little easier in 2022 and beyond. ๐Ÿ™‚

Lesley

๐Ÿ‘‰Do I know anyone who can introduce me to Lin Manuel Miranda? ๐Ÿคž If thatโ€™s you, hereโ€™s why I need your help…

My 90 second video explains why I need 10 minutes of Lin-Manuel’s time.

If you’re the person who can help me make the connection, I’ll make sure you’re invited to the Zoom when it happens!

If you can make an introduction, send me an email at Lesley@mPoweredEducator.com and let’s make some magic happen!

THANK YOU!

Lesley

From Classrooms to Concert Halls, the Music Industry and the World of Music Education Have Been Turned Upside Down. How Do We Survive?

In many cases, decisions are being made to cut programs and give up because it’s difficult to see how we can continue to teach performing arts in our current situations.

My former student and Music Director of the Colorado Symphony, Brett Mitchell, and I discuss the future of Music Education and how music educators can support students during these challenging times (without it being a physical, mental, and emotional drain on us as educators!)

There is nothing normal about our current situation, even for those teachers who are teaching in person. There’s no way to recreate the kinds of ensemble situations we’ve had in the past during a pandemic, and the frustrations and disappointments that come with the loss of these important opportunities feel insurmountable.

How do we keep our students engaged when everything is SO hard so they’ll still be around to take our classes when we can return to “normal” rehearsal situations?

Who better to take a situation that seems impossible and create a new and more innovative way to make music than the very people who have been trained to improvise within a given structure when soloing with a jazz band or scatting over the blues?

The future of music education is up to the music educators of today!

It won’t be easy, but WE CAN DO THIS. We MUST do this.

Join Brett and me as we talk about the challenges and opportunities we face and how as a community we can help kids become the best version of themselves through the magic of music education. <3

How Do You Engage Teenagers In “Online Band?”

Story time, of course.

There was SO much information they needed to know on that very first day, but the most important lesson of all was that it will all be okay. The kids needed to hear that they are not alone and that I’m here to walk this walk with them.

This will be a hard road, and if they don’t get the chance to build relationships with one another while we are in a 100% virtual environment, it’ll be pretty hard to keep them engaged when they no longer get to play in ensembles with their friends in their band classes.

By the time they go to register for classes next year, they’ll be burned out and disconnected from the band kids unless we intentionally spend time building the kind of culture online that so organically occurs in our classrooms.

When kids listen to stories as children, most of their memories involve feeling peaceful and being interested in what’s happening. Story time is usually something children love … no matter how old they are.

So we connected on our first day of virtual high school band for the 2020 school year with good old story time.

As soon as my voice fell into the familiar beat of the rhyming patterns they’ve heard so many times before and they saw pictures of the very people they made memories and music with in past years, I could see their faces visibly relax as the stress dissipated and smiles began to appear.

The kids are as overwhelmed as we are and they said over and over again how grateful they were that we are taking the time to do this before jumping into content.

As you move through your school year, remember why you are pouring so much love and energy into an impossible job. It’s hard. It’s never enough. And people still complain.

Know that you are making difference in kids’ lives every single day. I am hearing stories about the conditions under which you are teaching and I am in awe.

Music teachers are incredibly resilient – but that can also be our downfall because we (and others) expect ourselves to just figure out how to do the impossible because we always seemed to solve unsolvable situations in the past.

I, too, am feeling the strain of trying to teach huge classes online without being able to see most of them while monitoring the chat room and breakout sessions and internet issues and screenshares and the list goes on and on. I have to plan out my classes with the same level of detail I did my first year…and this is my 33rd year!

I decided that there’s just too much stuff out there right now. Lots of great apps. Tons of great platforms. A million pre-designed lessons.

We’ll get to that later.

None of that matters until my kids and I connect and we create an online classroom truly worthy of being called a “band room”, that magical place where students thrive through music, relationships, and love.

“Connecting Through Music” is the theme my students selected for this year. We will use music to connect us as humans, but it’ll be in new and innovative ways. The delivery and some of the content changes. The fact that we are teaching little humans remains the same.

I wish you a year of growth and grace.
Lesley

That is the actual Kaypro computer I got when I started college in 1983! They sure didn’t tell us we’d eventually be teaching high school bands using computers back when I was at Indiana University!

If My “SEL in the Modern Music Classroom” Webinar Resonated with You, I Want to Know…

As I’ve talked to hundreds of music educators over the past few months, it’s been exciting to see how many of you recognize the positive impact that intentionally teaching students how to focus and pay attention has on their individual success and for the entire class.

When I knew it was time for me to write a book, I struggled with how to do it. Should I start with a title, or do I write the chapters first? Do I write them in order? How do I decide what’s important to include and what not to include? I had SO many questions that I became paralyzed and almost didn’t move forward.

I knew that if I was going to be successful in writing a book, I needed help from someone who had successfully done that before AND who had taught other people to do it before, so I found a mentor. That was the best investment I could have made.

I signed up to work with Angela Lauria on August 17, 2018. With the guidance of someone who had plenty of experience doing what I wanted to do, I not only wrote a book, but I’ve published TWO #1 International Bestsellers – and in just two short years, I have gone from dreaming of writing a book to publishing two of them and teaching the contents of the books at conferences, webinars, podcasts, and through the groups I coach.

My ability to achieve this dream in such a short amount of time came because I had the support of a mentor and a tribe of other authors who supported one another through the process. We were all writing different books, but we faced many of the same challenges, and by hearing one another share our victories and difficulties, we all learned how to become successful authors.

If you know that incorporating SEL activities will help your students be more prepared to be engaged and focused but you aren’t sure how to set it up, introduce it, and successfully implement it when it gets hard, then I’d love to talk to you.

If you watched my webinar and are ready to take your students to new heights and would like to find out more about the support I offer, I invite you to set up a call with me to see if we’d be a good fit to work together. Just click the button at the bottom of this email to set up an appointment.

Here’s a little info – Let me know if I can be of service.
Lesley

PS – If you missed the webinar, you can check it out here. Just scroll to the August 6 webinar called “SEL in the Modern Music Classroom”.

๐Ÿ“• The Print Book was Supposed to Hit Bookstores in April, but COVID …

Now that bookstores are opening, I’m thrilled to have my book available in print nationwide!

THANK YOU to all of you who have already read the book, sent me notes about the changes you’ve made in your own life as the result of what you’ve learned, and helped make this a #1 International Bestseller in multiple categories!! ๐Ÿ˜๐Ÿ’ช

Teachers have always dealt with stress, that is nothing new.

Over the past several months, I have spoken to hundreds of educators.

The anxiety they are experiencing with not knowing what to expect in the coming months and year are showing up as insomnia, worry, fear, and depression as we see all of the obstacles we are facing magnified as the level of stressors we are experiencing seems to be skyrocketing.

There are a lot of things we cannot control.

But what if you could take a little more control of a few things and therefore at least reduce your stress and all the negative impacts it has on your health? Wouldn’t NOW be the time to start so you have the stamina you need for whatever the upcoming year brings?

Good news, just in time for a new school year (whether that’s in-person, virtually, or in a hybrid situation), my book and is available in print!

My signature mPower Method helps you identify and then make changes in the areas of your life that are no longer serving you so you can be the best possible version of yourself. Thousands of people have used this book to jumpstart their personal wellness journey. Are you next?

Join me in celebrating the bookstore launch THIS FRIDAY. There will be lots of great giveaways from the publisher, so register today to get the scoop on all the good stuff.

With you on this journey-
Lesley

Admin Heroes Provide Personal Development for Teachers

We talk about professional development all the time. But what about the PERSONAL development of teachers? When do we give educators the tools they need to have the stamina to do the hard work that they do?

There is no doubt that this coming school year will be like no other.

From how we deliver instruction to handling all the new stressors that have been added to our plates (like raising your own kids while teaching a Zoom lesson to your students, having to plan for at least six different ways to deliver instruction, and not even knowing if your subject will be offered, for example), teachers will be under even more stress than ever.

The administrators who are keeping their staff members’ well-being in mind as they talk through the possible scenarios are demonstrating that they understand the connection between healthy teachers (physically, mentally, and emotionally) and student success.

What if YOU could be the hero who provides your staff with the gift of personal development? Do you think they might be able to serve students better if they weren’t so overwhelmed, overworked, and overstressed?

Teachers and administrators are notorious for planning ahead and having backup plans for our backup plans, but nothing truly prepared any of us for the uncertainty, anxiety, and stressors we are dealing with now that there’s a pandemic sweeping the globe and there is so much unrest.

Somehow, staff members across the country are going to meet our students either virtually or in person and support them in a learning environment that will be new, difficult to manage, and full of challenges that go way beyond what we’ve been trained to do.

There are so many unknowns and it has teachers from coast to coast reeling.

In my interviews with dozens of educators over the past few months, they keep asking questions like:

  • Why am I so sad, anxious, and unable to sleep?
  • Now that I’m working from home, my work and personal lives are so intertwined. How can I get a reasonable balance between my professional and personal lives?
  • I’m so overwhelmed, I don’t even know what to do first to wrap my head around all this. What can I do to feel a sense of control again?
  • How are teachers who are struggling with our own emotions supposed to also support students, parents, and their own families when getting through each day is so difficult?

From book clubs and wellness groups to individuals and private clients, thousands of educators have used my signature mPower Method to help them identify the biggest challenges that keep them from being the most effective teacher they can be and what they can do to overcome them. Through the self-assessments and homework, readers are able to pinpoint the areas where they’re struggling, what the possible root causes for their problems are, and concrete steps they can take to finding sustainable solutions that help them function at their best.

Education is the key to success.

And that’s why administrators who recognize the important role teacher wellness plays in the success of students, schools, and communities, invest in the very people who are responsible for the welfare of others. The realize that if the teachers are not healthy and happy, it is very diffiult for them to be fully present for their students.

Supporting teachers in their personal development has never been easier or more effective – or more important!

For a short time only, administrators are eligible for a fantastic offer from my publisher and me because you have enough on your plates to worry about you know this is important to address, so let us help you.

If you are an administrator, I can help you provide staff members with the tool they need to:

  • Identify their biggest stressors and what they can do to reduce the impact of the stress on their health
  • Learn how to effectively balance work and personal lives, whether that’s in-person or virtual teaching
  • Use simple and practical techniques to help them create habits that support them based on their personal and professional situation so they can serve their students and stay healthier
  • Find ways to stay mentally and physically fit for a school year that will require more stamina than ever before

If you purchase print copies of I Love My Job but It’s Killing Me in bulk before July 31, you’ll receive a discount off the list price of $14.95 AND get some pretty cool bonuses. Check it out:

July 2020 Bundle Bonuses

You can reserve your books now (no payment required at this time). As soon as you submit your request, I will be notified and will contact you about delivery and payment. We DO accept POs and credit cards.

Act NOW because my publisher has big changes coming in August, so these offers can’t last.

You will get a link for an immediate download of ebook to share with your staff so they can start any time!

All bonuses can be scheduled upon receipt of payment.

Print books will be delivered from publisher as soon as they are available.

My books are #1 International Best Sellers in a variety of categories because the techniques I teach are practical, effective, and sustainable:

  • Work-Related Health
  • Education
  • Classroom Management
  • Injury Prevention
  • Holistic Medicine

Administrators have important roles to play in the well-being of their staff. The benefits of having teachers who have the stamina to make it through all the challenges that come with the new school year make this an investment that will impact your staff, students, and community…and make your job a little easier, too!

THANK YOU for the important work you do through your countless hours and dedication. I look forward to working with you and your staff!

With you on this journey –
Lesley