Meet Sergei Panov | Music educator, self published author, and entrepreneur.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sergei Panov and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sergei, what led you to pursuing a creative path professionally?
It’s a family business I suppose, my mother is a piano teacher, my sister is a math teacher, and my father builds musical instruments, so naturally I gravitated towards a creative career in music.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
Being born into a family of educators, it’s sort of a family business. Growing up, I had a lot of issues with how I was educated myself and I made it my life’s mission to change that. Most hated answer from teachers and adults growing up was, “Do it because I told you so and I’m the teacher”. My passion is music and education, so I made it my goal to teach in a student centered way, and develop method books and resources to help students want to become better, and not because someone told them to.

Figuring out self-publishing has been one of the most challenging undertakings I have ever faced. I suppose it’s the case for anyone who chooses to carve out their own path and start their own business. You have to become a Jack/Jill of all trades. So you end up wearing a lot of hats. I had to learn how to use music notation software, graphic design, copywriter, editor, lawyer, social media marketer, accountant, I mean the list goes on and on. At the beginning you have to do it all, with the hopes of, once you scale your business, you can hire others to do some of those jobs. But it’s a lot to do. Although it’s very frustrating and overwhelming at the beginning, learning about all aspects of your business really helps to make better decisions, and helps to avoid costly mistakes. I still have a lot to do and learn on my journey, but undertaking starting my own business has made me a better human. I have a lot more empathy and understanding of others, as well as myself, which really helps to take a breath, re-examine and regroup, and keep going.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I live in NYC area. A walk or run in central park, followed by some hanging out and reading. I get a lot of ideas for food places from gastronomically focused bloggers and influencers, so depending on the mood, try to find a local low-key gem for some grub. A museum or art gallery for some inspiration is a must. Dinner followed by a one-off cool show from places like So Fast Sounds or the Philharmonic would top of all of my senses that would add up to the perfect day or weekend. At the end of the day, it’s the quality of the time you spend with others. Whatever it is or where ever I am, I try to be present and positive.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My shootout is to everyone who makes a choice to share their story and success in a transparent and down to earth manner. When success is shared as a form of bragging, without transparency, it doesn’t inspire, but rather brings others down. More so recently, I feel there has been a plethora of success stories being shared, in part thanks to Shoutout LA (shoutout to your shoutout) where people share their journey in order to inspire others, what and how they achieved their version of success, which makes it real and doable, for others to follow their dreams and work on their aspirations. Honest and actionable success stories are the seeds that grow into trees of success stories. I want to recognize all who opened themselves up, and in that place of vulnerability, inspired others to work on their dreams. It’s not all rainbows and butterflies, but a lot fo hard work. Reading about others successes and struggles, is the impetus of change for good.

Website: https://violinexplained.com/

Other: https://www.amazon.com/Sergei-Panov/e/B08SJLW4N4?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1&qid=1659192877&sr=8-1

Image Credits
Photos: SergeiPanov.jpg & SergeiPanov2.jpg Credits: Jessica Priscilla Caceda SergeiPanov3 and BooksSergeiPanov, are taken by me.