The Victoria Clark Show for Music Teachers

Victoria Clark
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  • Self-Improvement
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The Victoria Clark Show is the podcast for music teachers who are tired of chasing payments, saying yes when they mean no, and feeling like their teaching life is running them rather than the other way around. Hosted by Victoria Clark, a piano teacher with almost two decades of experience and a full studio with a waiting list, each episode digs into the real challenges of the teaching life and how to make things work better for you. 

  1. 1d ago

    Not Every Enquiry Is Your Next Student

    Earlier this year, a keen new adult student told me in his trial lesson which of my policies he wouldn't be following, and I heard myself say, "That's fine." After 19 years of teaching, and with a waiting list of over 50, I still said yes. This is about why we do that, and how to spot the red flags sooner. In this episode, you'll hear: Why saying yes to every enquiry is a normal stage, and what it cost meThe reasons for saying yes that sit in us, not in the studentThe red flags I look for now in enquiries and trial lessonsWhy your gut feeling deserves to be taken seriouslyMy enquiry reply, word for word, and why my waiting list isn't first come, first servedHow to be selective when you're not full yetMentioned in this episode: Episode 7: How I Built a 50-Person Waiting ListFree Studio Policy TemplateFocus Sessions, one-to-one mentoring (£67 an hour)Know a teacher who says yes to everyone who asks? Please share this episode with them. And if you've enjoyed it, a rating or review helps other teachers find the show.

  2. Oct 7

    It's Not A Side Hustle. It's My Job.

    When I started teaching in 2007, I called myself a piano teacher in training, charged £10 a lesson and let every cancellation go without a second thought. Nobody told me piano teaching wasn't a real job. I just ran my studio as if it wasn't, and it took me years to see it. In this episode, you'll hear: The expectations I grew up with, and why teaching never felt like a proper jobHow music gets treated as an extra, from school budgets to the GCSE yearsMy rates and policies then and now, and the change that made the biggest differenceWhy "I'm lucky it's not my main income" affects every music teacherWhat my CertPTC did and didn't changeHow a teacher friend swapped 70 school students for 21 private ones, with only a small drop in incomeMentioned in this episode: The Piano Teachers' CourseISM Music Teachers' Fees Survey Results 2026Episode 6: Stop Chasing Payments: My Monthly Billing SystemEpisode 8: I Don't Work Late and I Don't Work Weekends: Here's HowEpisode 10: You Are a Professional Music TeacherEpisode 11, What Makes a Good Music TeacherEpisode 12: You're Not an Average Teacher, So Stop Charging an Average RateFocus Sessions (£67/hr)Access the show notes here: Episode 14 Show Notes Know a teacher who'd love to make teaching their living? Please share this episode with them. And if you've enjoyed it, a rating or review helps other teachers find the show.

  3. Sep 30

    When A Student Quits, It's Rarely About You. Here's What To Do

    A teacher friend messaged me recently. He'd lost eight students this year, and not one of the reasons had anything to do with his teaching. And yet his question was still: isn't that quite a lot? That gap between what we know and what we feel when a student leaves is what this podcast episode is all about. In this episode, you'll hear: Why a student leaving feels so personal, even when it isn'tThe most common reasons students stop lessons, and when a pattern is worth a closer lookHow my one-month notice period works, and the email I send when a student gives noticeWhat to say when a family leaves without paying their notice periodHow I make the final lessons count, for children and adultsWhy a waiting list changes how a departure feelsMentioned in this episode: Free Studio Policy TemplateMonthly Billing Transition Toolkit (£12)Episode 7, How I Built a 50-Person Waiting ListEpisode 11, What Makes a Good Music Teacher (where I first shared the festival story)Rock Out Loud Live, for online lessons (affiliate link: I may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you)If this episode helped, I'd be so grateful if you left a rating or review wherever you listen. And if you know a teacher who's feeling the sting of a student leaving, please share it with them. Access the show notes here: Episode 13 Show Notes

  4. Sep 23

    You're Not An Average Teacher, So Stop Charging An Average Rate

    I share how I set my very first teaching rate using a national average survey, and the moment, two and a half years later, that I realised I wasn't an average teacher, and shouldn't be charging an average rate. I talk honestly about the fear of raising a rate on an existing family for the first time, the framework I now use to work out what to charge, and the objections that hold so many teachers back from pricing properly. In this episode: Why benchmark surveys like the ISM teacher fees survey are a ballpark, not a ceilingThe moment I realised I wasn't an average teacher, and what that meant for my rateWhat your rate actually communicates to prospective families, before they ever meet youA practical framework for working out what you should be chargingThe very first time I raised my rate on an existing family, and what actually happenedThe most common objections to charging properly, and honest reframes for each oneResources mentioned: Focus Sessions (£67/hr) The Sustainable Studio (coming soon!) ISM (Independent Society of Musicians) annual teacher fees survey Vibrant Music Teaching Industry Report Episode 5: How to Raise Your Fees and Secure Your Studio For September Without the Guilt Access the show notes here: Episode 12 Show Notes

  5. Sep 16

    What Makes A Good Music Teacher?

    What makes someone a good music teacher? I used to think there was a right answer to that question. In this episode I share the story of a parent's email that stung more than it should have, and what it taught me about the difference between being liked and being respected. I also unpick why student numbers, retention and exam results are tempting but flawed ways to measure your own worth, and what to look at instead: how you communicate, how you adapt, and who you're truly a good fit for. If you've ever privately wondered whether you're good enough at this, this episode is for you. In this episode: Why “good teacher” means something different for every studentThe flawed metrics teachers reach for: student numbers, retention, exam resultsWhat predicts whether you're a good fit for a studentThe pull between wanting to be liked and needing to be respectedA personal story about a student who was never the right fit, and why losing her cost nothingOne small exercise to help you measure your own value more honestly Resources mentioned: Episode 7: How I Built a 50-Person Waiting ListAccess the show notes here: Episode 11 Show Notes

  6. Jul 15

    You Are A Professional Music Teacher

    Do you feel like a "proper" professional, or does part of you still feel like you're just teaching piano on the side? In this episode, I share the story of the night I agreed to something I never wanted to do, and what it taught me about self-respect and boundaries. From there, I unpick what professionalism really means for a self-employed music teacher, why it has nothing to do with qualifications or years of experience, and how it shows up in the everyday systems, habits, and small decisions that make up a working studio. Whether you have been teaching for months or decades, this episode will help you see your own studio, and yourself, as the professional you already are. In this episode: What professionalism really means for a music teacher, and what it doesn'tWhy qualifications and years of experience aren't the whole pictureHow continuous professional development supports a professional mindsetHow policies and systems either reinforce or undermine your professional identityWhat a professionally run studio looks and feels like from a family's point of viewThe small, everyday habits that signal to families that they're in good handsResources mentioned: Piano PlannersTeacher Piano PlannersFocus Sessions (£67/hr)Access the show notes here: Episode 10 Show Notes

  7. Jul 8

    Do You Even Need A Website? Here's What It's Costing You

    Do you even need a website, or is word of mouth enough? In this episode I answer that honestly, for teachers with no website, an outdated one, or one that has never quite earned its place. I talk about what most music teacher websites get wrong, why trying to appeal to everyone appeals to no one, and what changed when I stopped writing generic copy and started writing the truth about who I am and who I teach. I cover what families are looking for when they land on a website, the mistakes that turn ideal students away without you realising, why your pricing page is telling people something whether you mean it to or not, and the specific story of how I rewrote my own website, and what happened afterwards. In this episode: Whether a music teacher really needs a website, or if word of mouth can be enoughWhat families are looking for when they land on a music teacher’s websiteThe common mistakes that make a website feel unprofessional or uninvitingWhat your website should say about you and your studioWhy your pricing page, or the lack of one, is telling families somethingThe simple changes that make the biggest differenceMy own website rewrite story, and what changed when I told the truth Resources mentioned: Episode 7: How I Built A 50-Person Waiting List How To Attract Your Ideal Piano Students Access the show notes here: Episode 9 Show Notes

  8. Jul 1

    I Don't Work Late and I Don't Work Weekends: Here's How

    If you feel like your teaching week runs you more than you run it, this episode is a realistic look at what really changes things. Not a productivity system or a colour-coded calendar, but an honest conversation about what time management means when you're self-employed, why so much of the generic advice misses the point, and what has truly made a difference in running a full studio. I talk through why most time management advice is built for a different kind of work, the difference between being busy and being productive, and how I design my teaching week around my energy rather than simply my availability. I'm specific about what that looks like in practice: why I teach Monday to Thursday, why I finish on Thursday just after lunch, and what made that possible. I also cover the systems and habits that have genuinely given me back time, and I work through the four objections that tend to stop teachers from making changes to how they work. In this episode: Why most time management advice doesn't account for the reality of a teaching weekThe difference between being busy and being productive as a self-employed teacherHow to design your teaching schedule around your energy, not just your availabilityAdmin tasks that expand to fill available time, and how to contain themThe systems that have given me back real hours in the weekFour objections that keep teachers stuck, and honest reframes for each oneResources mentioned: Time-Saving Quiz Teacher Piano Planner (launching summer 2026) Focus Sessions (£67/hr) Access the show notes here: Episode 8 Show Notes

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The Victoria Clark Show is the podcast for music teachers who are tired of chasing payments, saying yes when they mean no, and feeling like their teaching life is running them rather than the other way around. Hosted by Victoria Clark, a piano teacher with almost two decades of experience and a full studio with a waiting list, each episode digs into the real challenges of the teaching life and how to make things work better for you. 

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