What the best teachers and coaches believe

As a freshman voice student, I was in trouble: I was supposed to sing opera, which I was terrible at.

My first teacher was an older man with a brisk, condescending demeanor. Our lessons together were bearable, but something was missing. By January or so, I didn’t feel that I had made a lot of improvement, and I’m sure he felt the same way.

One day, I asked him, “Do you believe that anyone can learn to sing?”

“Not everyone has the ability,” he said. He went on to tell me that some people are just tone deaf.

At that moment, I knew I had to switch to a different teacher. The man’s credentials gave him the ability to work with professionals at a very high level, but he had no idea what to do with someone like me.

Not everyone is cut out to work with beginners. Some people prefer to shape existing talent rather than develop potential. On the other hand, one of my colleagues, Erin, is a gifted artist who, despite her expertise and accomplishments, has the ability to see the artist in anyone and everyone. The inventive projects she assigns are designed to encourage students to think and perceive the way professional artists do, and she is constantly finding aspects of her students’ progress to highlight as evidence of their growing skill as artists.

Erin isn’t looking for talent or its absence; she’s helping students expand their talent. Unlike my freshman voice teacher, she believes that anyone can be an artist and anyone can improve.

Students can tell. Kids thrive with Erin. Over time, they begin to trust her, sensing that they will not be judged. They take risks, fail, and try again. All the while, her gentle support is constant, her belief in her students unwavering.

Students can tell. They know when a teacher believes in them. It changes the way they respond. That belief has even more impact when the teacher is able, like Erin, to hold a clear vision of that student’s success, even when it seems impossible.

Likewise, students know when that belief is not present. They can sense when the teacher has given up and is just going through the motions, even if the teacher is saying all the right things.

This isn’t just a Disney version of reality. Belief changes things. A teacher who believes that her students will succeed is on a mission to make it happen. She will keep seeking new ways to reach and teach. She’ll constantly be adding to her toolkit through investigation and experimentation.

Meanwhile, the student experiencing this kind of support and encouragement will be less likely to quit. Then, as the teacher offers new strategies and tactics, the student’s results improve, leading to a virtuous cycle and eventual success.

If we all had mentors who truly believed in us, so many lives would be transformed. And as a teacher of teachers, I do indeed believe that anyone can learn to be this kind of mentor.