As a former teacher, the end of a half term seems like a good time to reflect on
my first two months as a Musical Moments musician and franchisee. The
training in York in August already seems a long time ago, but I will always
remember it as such an exciting day, learning how to run the sessions, set up
the business and hit the ground running, not to mention the excitement
(especially after being a primary teacher!) of opening the giant props box with
all the kit and our ukuleles. Each session has a similar structure of types of
activities, with different music and sometimes themes, so as a musician it is
always exciting to look at the future session plans to see what music is coming
up. You also have the pleasure of deciding what to play on your instrument for
the live performance section.
The first few weeks were a mixture of running the first few sessions, and
visiting all the care homes and centres on my territory to encourage them to
try a session. It was lovely to be out and about, and to be welcomed into so
many, by the amazing staff and activities co-ordinators who work so hard to
give their residents fulfilling day-to-day experiences. Two months on, I have
already built up a relationship with several care homes who are now booking
me regularly, and every one of them feels like another family, as you get to
know the residents and staff very quickly.
Every session brings joy to so many, but there are also the unexpected
moments which can be really special. Yesterday, in the middle of a song, a
gentleman took a harmonica out of his pocket and joined in, then did a brilliant
duet with another lady playing my ukulele! Also, one of the residents told me
the activities coordinator was getting married that weekend, so we added
‘Congratulations’ to the session. One care home always ends up turning the
session into a dance party at the end!
A couple of weeks ago, we had the annual team day, when it was wonderful to
get to know the whole team of franchisees and experience training together,
before enjoying a games afternoon and a meal together whilst sharing ideas
for growing the business and receiving a goody bag of new props.
There are so many reasons to love running a Musical Moments franchise; the
music, the relationship with clients, the flexibility of running your own business
whilst enjoying all the support you need from Maggie and your colleague
franchisees around the country. I would highly recommend it!