If you’re feeling like your studio has fallen into a bit of a rut, or you feel that *something* just isn’t working, I suggest you carry out a business assessment. Taking a step back and assessing what’s worked and what hasn’t worked, why some things have been better than others, can help you make that necessary change.

Sounds scary? Don’t worry. Read on as we guide you through a business assessment. 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. When Should I Carry Out My Business Assessment?
2. How To Begin The Business Assessment
3. Goals, Goals, Goals
4. ‘One Thing To…’ List
5. ‘One Thing To…’ List With A Twist
6. I Have My Answers, Now What?

When Should I Carry Out My Business Assessment?

Whenever you want! 

Personally, I use this business assessment twice a year – once in December or January, and once again in June or July. It just depends on what’s happening in the schedule. Maybe there’s a big launch coming up in December or January, or in June or July there’s a vacation booked. But whatever’s happening, I make sure I carve out time during these months so I can do a big assessment, ready to set myself up for success for the next several months. 

The timing also depends on the length of time you’d like to assess. I recommend either the last six or the last 12 months, but feel free to use whatever works best for you! 

How To Begin The Business Assessment

Start by asking yourself the following questions: 

• How do I feel about the last six or 12 months? Excited? Defeated?
  Write it all down and make sure you ask yourself how you really feel. Be honest. Honesty is important in moving forwards.
  
• What am I excited about? Have you got an event coming up that you’re looking forward to? Have you made the decision to include group lessons and you’re excited about what that may bring? Or are you lacking excitement?
  
• What’s overwhelming me? Are your lessons not going the way you planned? Are students not understanding concepts? Or is it something bigger? Or maybe you’re not overwhelmed (please share your secrets with us!)
  
• What were my top four-six biggest accomplishments? Did you fill that tricky time slot that was niggling you? Did you crack a student who was struggling with piano? Did you create a studio website?
  There will always be big accomplishments. Even if you’re thinking ‘I didn’t do anything,’ you did! Maybe you’ve learnt some new things. Maybe you’ve spent time with your family making memories you’ll cherish forever. There are always accomplishments.
  
• What’s a big thing I learnt this past year? Maybe group lessons aren’t for you. Maybe that recital venue won’t work for you anymore. We’re always learning! 

Goals, Goals, Goals! 

Now I want you to think about the previous six months and ask yourself these questions:

• Did I set myself goals? Remember, you may not have directly thought of them as ‘goals’. Maybe you wanted to incorporate more games in your lessons. That’s a goal!
  
• Did I accomplish those goals? Celebrate if you did! And don’t feel bad if you didn’t. Life happens!
  
• If not, how far did I get? Did you come close? Or do you need to set more achievable goals? 

Now ask yourself the same questions but with a focus on your finances. 

Related content: How to Strengthen the Value Perception of Your Music Studio

‘One Thing To…’ List

By this point, you should be thinking deeply about your business, going down trains of thought you’ve never gone down in a while. That’s great!

Let’s move onto something I love doing. I call it the “One Thing To” list and it’s going to see us using our previous answers to delve deeper. 

Ask yourself these questions: 

• What is one thing I really want to keep up moving forwards? Think about those accomplishments – what’s one thing that you definitely want to keep up?
  
• What’s one thing I want to tweak? Is there something that’s almost working for you, but that needs changing a little bit?
  
• What’s one thing I want to add? Maybe you want to enrol in a social media course to help you with advertising.
  
• What’s something you want to subtract from your life? Revisit your answers for what’s overwhelming you. What could you take away that would ease that feeling? 

If one thing you’d like to tweak or add is a better way of organising your to do list, check out How To Organise Your Studio (And Your Life)

‘One Thing To…’ List With A Twist

You don’t have to reserve asking these questions just for business assessments. I personally ask myself these questions regularly, for different aspects of my life. 

You could ask the questions with a focus on your lessons.

1. What’s one thing you want to keep in your lessons? What are you students loving doing?
   
2. What’s one thing you want to tweak? Maybe you want to add more games because your students enjoy them but you always forget about them until right at the end of the lesson so you only have a couple of minutes to play.
   
3. What’s one thing you want to add? Perhaps you’ve been contemplating composing with your students.
   
4. What’s one thing you want to subtract? Are you feeling like you do too many recitals per year and you’re wanting to cut down on one? 

I Have My Answers…Now What?

Hopefully by now your brain is buzzing as you realize you’ve accomplished way more than you thought, and you’re excited you can see the changes you need to make. 

But this is just the beginning. 

There are SO many more questions to ask yourself, SO many more avenues to go down, and SO many changes you can make.

Excited? 

Me too!

That’s why I created the course “Assess, Plan, Execute: How To Do It All with Tara Wright”
I want to help you assess your business, set goals, make plans, and achieve your goals – all while still having a life outside of work. If my questions have already got your brain whirring, then this course is for you!

The course “Assess, Plan, Execute: How To Do It All with Tara Wright” is available to all Studio and Evolution members of TopMusicPro.