The people who get my weekly ezine are split between those who’ve never touched a harp, but who see me in concert, listen to my albums, watch me YouTube, saw me on PBS or heard me on the radio.

The other group may have done all that – and they also play the harp.

So every week, when I write the greeting, I’m thinking about where these parts of me connect and interact.

Performing & teaching in last Sunday’s Webinar

The people in the first group experience me as a performer, an artist.  Those

in the second also experience me as a coach and mentor if they take my online courses or mentorship– someone who can help them get where they want to as artists and musicians.

And of course, I’m both … an artist and a creative coach … and a composer as well.

And on a deep level, I don’t think they’re separate.  I learn immensely from art and artists and I’m both entertained and moved by great teaching.  And this is part of my own lifelong challenge: to integrate the two

Apparently I did that a little too well last weekend …

I presented a Free Webinar on Sunday, a LOT of people came from all over the world (I had to upgrade my webinar account so they could all get in!), I got INCREDIBLE comments afterwards – and judging by the emails people sent me afterwards, most people were totally satisfied!

That’s the problem …

I didn’t want them to be satisfied!  I wanted them to see that this was just the BEGINNING!  That I created the full 21-day course to give them the full experience of being able to PLAY this whole piece (Baroque Flamenco) in their OWN way!  

To be fair, some people immediately ‘got’ that the 60-minute webinar was just a TASTE – and that taking the full course  gives them not just the inspired feeling of learning something new – but the skills to actually put that into practice in a big way. Those people used the secret code to get the discount and signed up.

[Oh, you want to know the secret code? It’s printed right below the replay and you can sign up to see the replay here]

But a lot of people took the free training, wrote me how much they enjoyed it –  and stopped there.

But … but … but… this is just the beginning!

This inspired feeling – and what it does and doesn’t lead to – is why I started creating these courses in the first place.  Whenever I go to music conventions, where people like me give one-hour presentations, I see how inspired the audiences are.

I’ve been one of those inspired people in the audience. I read something, or hear something —  it’s exciting, I’m ready to put it into practice, it makes complete sense … yup, I’ve GOT it!  Cool!  Here I go!

And it’s not ‘til I start to actually put it into practice that I hit the first roadblocks.  Roadblocks I can never see until I’m actually DOING it – because they’re my own, personal roadblocks!  And when I’m doing it, that’s when all my questions flood in.

The question is usually, “Great!  I GET it … but… HOW do I actually DO that, step-by-step???”

This is the nature of learning in my personal experience.  Until I actually put something into practice, I don’t see my own roadblocks.

This is why, in my courses, I always encourage students to do the homework – not so they can get it right but so that they can figure out what are the next questions they need to ask in order to find THEIR way IN, THEIR way to being able to DO it.

Because that’s what I, personally, need when I’m learning.

So, hey … sign up here and watch the replay of the webinar – even if you don’t play the harp, according to the reports it’s fun – and you’ll get a window into a tiny artistic niche in the world.

Or better yet … sign up for the course and then watch the webinar!  (OK, OK, the secret code is “Passion” but it only works ’til midnight tonight!!)

Then let me know what you think – I’d love to know.

It’s great to feel inspired — but the real, deep, lasting empowerment comes when you can put that inspiration all into practice.  And that’s what comes – in my experience – from training.

And … OK … I admit it … the course can be entertaining, too (yes, sometimes I dress up in costume for the lessons – but only when I’m trying to embody Marie Antoinnette … and her dog).