In this episode, John Kozicki (Michigan Rock School and RockSchoolProprietor.com) and Mandy York (Music Time of Milford) share two of their latest book recommendations for private music instructors and lesson studio owners.

Mandy's pick: Play: How it Shapes the Brain, Opens the Imagination, and Invigorates the Soul by Stuart Brown, and as the extended title suggests, all the benefits of play-based learning.

John's pick: The Infinite Game by Simon Sinek, which examines the concept of viewing your business as not a game to be won or lost, but something to play indefinitely -- an infinite game.

Both books that approach growth, learning, and long-term thinking from different angles but land in surprisingly similar places. The conversation connects both books to the day-to-day reality of running a music school and makes a case for why the ideas inside them are worth your time as an instructor or lesson studio owner.

In this episode:

Why play is not just for kids, and how it drives creativity, resilience, and emotional development at every age.
What Stuart Brown's research reveals about the role of play in learning and how it applies directly to music education.
Simon Sinek's concept of the infinite game and why running a music school with no defined finish line is actually a strength, not a problem.
How play strengthens relationships between students, parents, and teachers.
How the infinite game mindset shifts the way you think about growth, competition, and success in your studio.
Why integrating play into your teaching and your business culture fosters the kind of engagement that lasts.

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Looking for a simple and effective guitar curriculum that includes FREE instructor training and support? Consider John's book, Complete Guitar Strumming.