I don’t give up control because my students can make better decisions than me.
I give up control because I want my students to feel confident making decisions after me.
We can teach helplessness by holding too tight to a sense of control. And I’m conscious that that helplessness can lead to my musicians not making music on their own.
I’d rather give my students power to consider, debate, and make decisions – even if it takes extra time – and empower them to be able to make decisions for the rest of their lives.
If I hold on to all control, my students will still leave and need the tools to succeed afterwards. If I don’t let them practice now by giving up control, I’m setting them up for failure down the road.