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I am reading "The Art of Possibility" by Rosamund and Benjamin Zander and like to recommend it to those who love to teach and those who consider themselves students.
The book addresses the road blocks we create for ourselves and others, either through existing fears of failure, negativity or wrong perception of the way things are and offers ways to think outside the box and see the possibilities that are abound.
It teaches that even as accomplished professionals, rather than assuming a role of the "know it all" , the instructor can learn great insight from those waiting to be taught. Examples are given in the book.
Furthermore, by becoming a participant in the students growth, rather than a domineering leader, the teacher is able to break the wall of fear of failure that exists for almost every student. Once the student is no longer hampered by the need to conform to the teachers ideals, he/she is able to learn on their terms and experience what it means to be creative.
This does not mean there should not be expectations that have to be met in order to achieve a certain skill level, but rather a shift in the way the instructor teaches and relates to students.
The student in turn, when given too much freedom to pursue their studies tends to get lazy, but by being presented with a challenge such as " paint x number of paintings and show how you solve this problem" is more bound to learn from their mistakes. It allows the student to use his/her skill at the time and come up with new possibilities, thus allowing them to learn on their own accord and surprise us with new innovative ideas.
This book is also great for those who are looking for ways to market themselves, but I won't get into that subject on Steve's thread.
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