The Randal Osché Podcast: Season 1 | Episode 13
Join us on The Randall Osché Podcast as we sit down with Olivia Silva, a composer and language teacher from Porto, Portugal. We explore Olivia's journey in music education, discussing the challenges she faced and her philosophy on teaching and learning. Olivia shares her insights on resilience, collaboration, and setting long-term goals, emphasizing how these elements have shaped her educational career and personal growth.
What You'll Learn:
The importance of resilience and collaboration in music education.
How setting long-term goals can drive personal and professional growth.
The cultural dynamics of competitive environments in music education.
Strategies for becoming fluent in multiple languages.
Olivia offers practical advice for anyone interested in music, education, or personal development. She emphasizes the importance of cultural awareness in fostering a supportive and inclusive learning environment.
Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Youtube, Podcast Index, Podcasts Addict, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.
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Highlights
Resilience and Persistence: Despite financial constraints and a competitive environment, Olivia's dedication to her music career demonstrates the importance of perseverance.
Value of Collaboration: Olivia believes in the power of working together, emphasizing that collaboration often leads to better outcomes than competition.
Early Inspiration: Inspired by her brother's music lessons and concerts, Olivia's story shows how early exposure can shape one's career path.
Adaptability: Olivia's ability to switch instruments and navigate different educational settings highlights the importance of flexibility in overcoming challenges.
Mentorship and Support: Positive mentorship played a crucial role in Olivia's success, illustrating the impact of supportive and understanding teachers.
SHOW NOTES
Questions this conversation has Randall Pondering
"Does having limited access to resources help or hurt those that want to excel in a given discipline?
What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments!
And that's it for today's conversation here on the Randall Osché podcast. Thank you so much for joining us and we hope that you've enjoyed listening as much as we've enjoyed recording it.
Many many thanks to our guests today for sharing their knowledge, their experience and their life lessons. If you found today's conversation insightful, interesting, inspiring, please join our growing community by subscribing. Randall Osché podcast on your favorite podcast platform, and never ever miss another episode.
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The Randall Osché Podcast - Olivia Silva (Episode 13)
[00:00:00] Olivia: There are not a lot of memorable moments in the process of teaching, but seeing them succeed when they don't need my help anymore. That is probably the most memorable part of teaching. Because I see, well, I did my best, and now I see them succeed. And that's, I think that's the best part.
[00:00:18] AI: Hello, and welcome to the Randall O'Shea podcast, where we create a safe space for meaningful and thought provoking conversations. We have long form interviews with entrepreneurs, thought leaders, artists, and change makers in order to deconstruct their journeys and to pass out valuable life lessons and life changing perspectives for listeners like yourself.
[00:00:42] AI: So that you can, as Randall says, learn their lessons without their scars. So, whether you're tuning in on your daily commute, or during a workout, or cooking dinner, we are happy to have you join us. So, take a seat, relax, grab a cup of tea, and join the conversation. Now, let's dive into this week's episode.
[00:01:07] Speaker: You made it.
[00:01:23] Randall: Olivia Silva, welcome to the show. For the people out there who don't know you, why don't you go ahead and take a quick moment to introduce yourself.
[00:01:30] Olivia: Hi, Randall. My name is Olivia Silva. I am 28 years old and I am from Porto, Portugal. I'm very happy to come on your podcast.
[00:01:40] Olivia: It's quite a challenge for me, but an honor. And I am. I'm a composer, a musician, and I also teach music subjects and also teach European Portuguese to foreign students. And that's how I met Randall actually.
[00:01:57] Randall: So artist, composer, and you teach European Portuguese.
[00:02:02] Olivia: Yes. And I teach music subjects, of course.
[00:02:05] Randall: Why did you decide to pursue those paths?
[00:02:07] Olivia: Well, ever since I was very young, I was maybe six years old. I saw that my brother. Got to have piano lessons and then two years later he got in at our local conservatory to learn the organ so he became a musician at some point in his life and I was six years old at the time and we got a small piano at home for him to study.
[00:02:36] Olivia: And I thought, wow, this is amazing. I want to learn how to play. So, I asked my oldest brother one of my oldest brothers, see if he could teach me, you know, and he said, yeah, he, you know, he could teach me once in a while. And I started doing a lot of it by myself. So I had always had this inner motivation to learn an instrument.
[00:02:59] Olivia: And at the time, it was very difficult for my family to afford a private teacher. But that's how it was done at the time, for the most part. There were no, not a lot of public options. And it was like very limited access. So, music had always been like a very expensive hobby. So I thought, you know, I'm gonna start, teaching myself how to play this instrument, and I, stayed like that for years, until I was, like, 15.
[00:03:30] Olivia: And then, maybe around that time, there was this change, there were, like, these changes in government, or, I don't remember quite well now, but there was this change where the conservatories became public schools, and the students could have their music lessons, and and their normal, school subjects in the same school.
[00:03:54] Olivia: So, basically, the government gave now people this option of having a public school that has also, professional musicians teaching the music subjects, all at the same time, all in the same school. And I thought I should apply for that I should do the tests. I did, and I failed. And Itried, you know, a couple of times during the year since I just, I didn't get in.
[00:04:20] Olivia: But then, at 15, I got a private teacher, a piano teacher, and he prepared me for these tests, for a school that I was trying to get into, because they had these professional courses, for high school students. And I decided to try for that. And I ended up getting in. So, throughout the years, I always had this desire of I want to be a musician, you know, I had this inner motivation and it was something that I couldn't explain and there was a lot of resistance not from my family or, you know, particularly from people around me, but the, the circumstances were just not the best, you know, optimal.
[00:05:02] Olivia: And I had to fight for what I actually wanted, which was music. And there was a point where I had kind of given up on the idea because I was getting too old, too old, to learn an instrument, you know, to be as good as the others, my age, right? So, to get into this official music school, in the official learning of the instrument and all the other music subjects, I was getting too old for that, at that point, and I thought, this is my last chance, if I don't get this I'm just going to move on with my life in another direction, but I did get in.
[00:05:42] Olivia: So my very first motivation to be a musician or to be in the music field was just seeing my brother play and going to his concerts. And I thought, wow, I would love to be in this field. I would love to be able to play an instrument and make concerts for people and just, you know, receive the applause at the end and just making music together with other people.
[00:06:08] Olivia: It's just, it's one of the best feelings, you know? So I think. What kept me going was just this inner motivation that I always had.
[00:06:16] Randall: There's a lot I want to get into there, so don't mind me if I, if I jump around.
[00:06:21] Olivia: A lot to unpack, right?
[00:06:22] Randall: Right. Yeah. I guess I'll start with, do you think that, Initially having limited access to the conservatory right before it was private and then it became public. I guess the best way to say that is, did the limited access to the resources, whatever those resources would be, do you think that that fueled your desire to pursue music even more?
[00:06:48] Olivia: In a way, yes, because I always saw music as this, not like unattainable dream, but, as this, very, difficult path, right? It was like an unattainable dream. So, because I had limited access to the resources and the resources were teachers and an instrument for the most part, or like a good instrument, let's say I think that probably also fueled my interest.
[00:07:16] Olivia: But I would say that It was probably just, I always had this inner motivation, regardless of having the resources or not. Maybe the limited access was part of it, but, I don't know, I don't also, I don't know how to explain it very well because I was also very young, so, at that time, between I was 6 and 15, this was a dream, okay?
[00:07:43] Olivia: And at 15, it started becoming a reality, and then at 16, from 16 years old until now, it was like I was living that dream, you know?
[00:07:54] Olivia: So, maybe the limited resources had a little to do with it, but I wouldn't say they were, you know, the main reason.
[00:08:02] Randall: Fair enough. And you were 15 years old when the private conservatories became public conservatories, right?
[00:08:09] Olivia: Around that time, yes, yes.
[00:08:11] Randall: Um, And then you initially failed. The like, entrance tests.
[00:08:15] Olivia: The entrance exams, yes.
[00:08:17] Randall: Then you hired a private teacher, right?
[00:08:21] Olivia: Mm hmm.
[00:08:21] Randall: The private teacher then helped you pass those exams?
[00:08:26] Olivia: Yes, he helped me pass. Like, of course, most of the work was done by myself.
[00:08:31] Olivia: Right.
[00:08:32] Olivia: What he helped me with was with the preparing the pieces that I wanted to play. At this entrance exam. So. I applied for piano to, become a pianist, right? Then I ended up going in a different direction once I got in the school, but yes, that's what he prepared me for, for piano exams.
[00:08:54] Randall: I can think in my adult life of failures I've had and then the persistence and stamina that I developed to like achieve a thing that I failed at initially. I don't necessarily know if I would have had that at 15 years old. So at 15, how did you have the persistence or stamina to be able to fail at something that you wanted so badly and then continue to pursue it?
[00:09:22] Olivia: Well, it was not the first time I failed. I had failed before at twelve, maybe. I tried to apply to a certain school that was private at the time. AndIt was not, very difficult, because at the time, I was supposed to already have two to three years of studying the instrument, right?
[00:09:43] Olivia: And I did have those two to three years already, so I was already playing pieces that were suitable to that level at that age that you're supposed to have, right? I could have gotten in if my parents had the money. They did not. The tuition was extremely expensive for us. So that is why I failed.
[00:10:06] Olivia: So I didn't actually fail. I just couldn't get in because of the circumstances.
[00:10:12] Randall: Right.
[00:10:12] Olivia: Then at 15, I kept dreaming. So I kept practicing and the, you know, music was not just a hobby for me, it was a way to really create my own world, be in my own world, and relax that way.
[00:10:28] Olivia: At 15, I tried again, 14, 15, I think, I failed because this was a very high stakes entrance, and I did not apply for the instruments that I should have applied for because I was a pianist, right?
[00:10:47] Olivia: I was studying the piano at the time and I applied for a completely different instrument.
[00:10:51] Olivia: There was this limited number, even though I thought it was very big at the time, over a hundred students would, would get in, right? So I thought, well, there's all these openings, so I'll just try for this new instrument that I want to learn how to play.
[00:11:08] Olivia: Because, you know, for piano, there's a lot of people learning how to play the piano. It's one of the most famous instruments to learn how to play, right? So, I thought, you know, for piano, I don't stand a chance, at all. Because there were over 300 people applying.
[00:11:24] Olivia: So I was like let me try something new, right? So I didn't get in again. And then, well, this private teacher was a bit of a not a coincidence, but it was an opening that I saw. And I thought, well, I'll give it a try, you know, it will be my first teacher.
[00:11:42] Olivia: Then, a couple months later, I saw this this advertising for this school that I had applied to previously, when I was 12, and they were saying, we have these professional courses for high school students, and the enrollment process is open. And I thought, wow. It was actually my parents that saw the advertising, and they were like, well, why don't you try, you know?
[00:12:06] Olivia: Why don't you try again? So. I thought, yeah, actually, why not? I don't have anything to lose if I, if I don't get in, I will continue on my path because I was studying humanities, I was already in high school and I was going, my plan was to go to college to study languages. And I thought, well, why don't I just try now?
[00:12:27] Olivia: Again for music school. So I have always been a person of very specific goals. I've always been very persistent with those goals regardless of opportunity or resources. I have this vision, it might take a while to get there, but once I see an opening. I have to try for this and I'm going to give it my one hundred and ten percent. I'm going to do my very best and then we'll see what happens. That has always been my approach.
[00:12:59] Randall: Those struggles and failures as a kid at 12, failures at 15 and then the successes that you had from refining your approach. Seeking help from a teacher and then passing the exams. How has that experience at all influenced how you move through your adult life with challenges that you might face?
[00:13:21] Olivia: You know, my path in music from the very beginning was very rough. Okay. So it was not just the failures of not getting into music school. Once I got in. I was not prepared at all for the kind of environment that I was about to face, you know? It was just extremely competitive. That has never been my approach to life.
[00:13:43] Olivia: I don't get to a certain place and then I think, wow, these, all these people are competition. I am not that just that kind of person. I look at other people as how can we collaborate, to achieve a specific goal. But once I got into music school, people did not have this mentality at all. It was a rough environment because of this competitive nature, right?
[00:14:08] Olivia: Not only in the people, but in the field. There was a lot of competition at the time and I think it was this high school environment because once I got into college, I did not have that experience at all. So it was just the three years of high school the environment was extremely competitive.
[00:14:26] Olivia: The teachers were extremely demanding. People have no idea what it is like, and I had no idea what it is like because I was used to a completely different field, which was, you know, humanities languages or dealing with other high school students from other courses like sciences or it's completely different.
[00:14:46] Olivia: The relationship between student and teacher is completely different in the music field. It's much closer, and You know, you can develop friendships with your teachers, or it could be the complete opposite. There were instances where I had piano licensing in high school, and I left the room crying.
[00:15:05] Olivia: Because the teacher was just so rough. I found a lot of resistance from teachers and other colleagues, they did not believe because I got in at 16 and I was not at the same level as the others that had, you know, already been studying since they were 6, 7, 10, you know, they had been studying instruments for all those years.
[00:15:26] Olivia: And there was kind of another setback in the beginning because I got into music school. I did the exams for piano to become a pianist. And then they said, well we are not going to have enough students to form a class for piano and string players.
[00:15:45] Olivia: So you're going to have to join the winds and percussion class because this is the only one that we will be able to open this year. So are you going to stay or not? I decided to stay. Because music was my goal, I did not care about how I did it. I just thought I wants to be in the field and then later I will decide what I actually want.
[00:16:08] Olivia: So I had to change instruments, which was a challenge that I was not expecting. And because I was a pianist and I had to switch. To another instrument, a wind instrument or percussion. And I chose the flute. I studied the flute there for three years. I was completely behind everyone else because I had never played the flute before in my life. So. yes, it was harsh, you know, it was very harsh. And then there was all this competitive sides that I was not expecting at all. But then I guess I got used to it, I got used to just being by myself and studying alone.
[00:16:48] Randall: Do you think that environment for those three years of high school.
[00:16:51] Randall: Knowing what you know now, looking back on the culture of that school, looking back on how the teachers approached teaching, looking back on how because of the culture and that environment, how other students treated other students, do you think that that was the best approach?
[00:17:09] Randall: Or do you think that they could have approached it differently and gotten the same or better results.
[00:17:15] Olivia: In my opinion, the competitive route is not the best one in my opinion, collaboration achieves, you know better results. And because when you are in an environment with the musicians, you do a lot of work.
[00:17:30] Olivia: You have to do a lot of work together, play together. And we have common goals, right? We all want, we all wanted at the time to go to college. We all wanted to become musicians, right? Even though we were competing for the same schools in principle, you would compete for the same schools. So knowing what I know now.
[00:17:49] Olivia: I think, maybe when you are a high school student, when you are at that age, you're not really aware of how your actions impact other people, like really aware of what you're doing. So maybe, when you look back and I think about that environment, well, I hope it was different. Of course I hope it was different. But it wasn't. it was what it had to be, you know?
[00:18:12] Olivia: I still have the same approach of, I prefer collaboration instead of competitiveness.
[00:18:18] Randall: One of the reasons why I ask is, I have an interesting relationship with education. And I think education is good. And if everybody has the opportunity, you should, you know, always be educating yourself.
[00:18:33] Randall: But educating, to me, isn't necessarily going to a school, like that's part of it, but it's going to a free public library and getting a book and reading a book and learning something new or watching some YouTube videos about something that you want to learn. I Think that at least in the United States, that the education system could be much better and that's, I suppose, the reason why I asked the question out of curiosity.
[00:19:00] Randall: I would agree with you, I think collaboration is always better. And I think environments you know, that school created the culture knowingly or unknowingly
[00:19:08] Randall: Where the premise was that opportunities are scarce. You have to protect your talent and you can't help other people win. My thought is that everybody can win and how you better yourself. I think collaboration is the key to everybody getting better.
[00:19:25] Randall: Collaboration is the key to everybody winning because you collaborate, you share, you pressure test your thoughts and principles and techniques and how you play an instrument with against like other people. And then you all evolve from there. But if you sit in a bubble of everybody sitting in their own bubble everybody's only having like a limited amount of inputs to improve on instead of that, collaborative collegial
[00:19:50] Randall: environment.
[00:19:51] Olivia: Yes. And in music, I think collaboration is extremely important because you have to work together with other musicians, with conductors. You do music together. You do chamber music, you do orchestra, you know, you don't just play solo, nobody does just solo work. That's almost impossible.
[00:20:12] Olivia: You have to work with other people. And I don't think it was the purpose of this school at the time to create this environment. It was created by the students. The teachers did not push us to it, to be this competitive. It was the students themselves created this competitiveness. So I didn't fit in because of that.
[00:20:32] Olivia: I never had that goal.
[00:20:34] Randall: I guess my thought process is. You know, organizations, like thinking from a, company standpoint.
[00:20:39] Randall: You can either choose whether it was, I guess I would say good cultures or bad cultures are created nonetheless, right? And I think what you're talking is about is a cultural issue that didn't align with your personal values and maybe that aligned with other people's personal values. But I think we would both agree and argue that a more collaborative environment would have been better for everybody.
[00:21:01] Randall: And if you let 15 year olds create the culture. I don't think that that's the best case scenario for a company, a business or a school. I think that there needs to be some adults in the room that say, Hey, this is the environment that we're going to create.
[00:21:18] Olivia: There were those adults, but Those adults were with us for a limited amount of time, you know?
[00:21:25] Olivia: Then there was the environment in the halls and playing together, like I don't know, it was just, it was not my favorite part of the process. These high school years, because I had to work triple the hours the others did, you know, I was so behind everyone else.It would have been much easier if everyone had this, or maybe not everyone, but most people had this idea that collaboration is more important than competitiveness.
[00:21:55] Olivia: After these three years, we're all going to apply to the same schools, but wouldn't it be just much better overall if there is a friendliness among us instead of this toxic competitiveness?
[00:22:08] Randall: I would agree.
[00:22:08] AI: Let's take a quick break from today's episode. If you're enjoying the conversation, please take a moment to look us up. You can find Randall on Instagram at Randall O'Shea, that's spelled at R A N D A L L O S C H E.
[00:22:27] AI: And you can catch the show notes and other resources at randallosche.com and now back to the episode.
[00:22:34] Randall: Um, you mentioned when we were speaking earlier that you've always had specific goals and you've always been persistent.
[00:22:42] Randall: And while it might take you a little bit to make progress towards those goals or achieve them. You always stay focused and you have this vision for yourself. So when did you get started thinking like that? And maybe what's your process look like for setting goals and refining that vision of what you're pursuing?
[00:23:03] Olivia: It's an interesting question because it is because I,
[00:23:07] Olivia: I also don't quite know how to answer that because I've always been a planner kind of person. And I, from a young age, right? I had these almost like 5 to 10 year plans, right? But things don't always go like planned, right? Um, for example, when I was very young, I had this purpose of getting married at 18.
[00:23:30] Olivia: That did not end up happening, thank goodness. Because I would not have been prepared at all to get married. Um, What I mean is, I'm a very goal oriented person and I have these long term plans, but then how I actually get there that obviously changes, right? I have these like very big pictures and how I get there is just not as important as actually getting there, you know what I mean?
[00:24:01] Olivia: So, I have always been like this. I have this big picture in my head. For example, I want to get married. But then how I actually get there? You know, it doesn't matter if it is at 18 or at 30 or whenever it is, you know what I mean? And for music, for me there was this age thing, right?
[00:24:23] Olivia: Where people could have said, Oh, you're too old to do this already. You do not have the necessary skills to do this. But it's you know, once I had the opportunity, I just had to grab it. But music was this very big picture in my head. It was a dream, right? Every day I took the necessary steps.
[00:24:44] Olivia: Now when I look back I took the necessary steps to just ensure that when I had the opportunity, I had some skills. That would help me just get into music school. Right? I knew music theory. I knew how to play an instrument. Now it was just a matter of opportunity. You know what I mean?
[00:25:04] Randall: Yeah.
[00:25:04] Randall: Do you have any processes that you follow for your plans or your goal setting, do you do like January 1st, do you write down your goals for the year or January 1st, do you write down your goals for the next five years? Or do you just have like a mental image of what you want to accomplish?
[00:25:21] Olivia: I have a mental image. I am not the kind of person to just get to the 1st of January and then my goals for this year. Are finishing college, whatever. There are things that are given, for example next year, I'm going to finish college that is just how it is. But there are things where I don't really know. Like, this year, I am going to fall in love, like, it doesn't happen like that, you know, it depends on your goals, it's just, my thought process is, okay, there are things that I would like to do this year, so, that can happen at any time in the year, so, for me, for this year, my goals were to do my driver's license.
[00:26:04] Olivia: Travel and start my internship. Those were like main goals that I had. There are other goals that I put more into the future, like in a 5 10 year plan. I would like to start a PhD at some point during this time. Or, I would like to get married at some point during this time. But these are big goals.
[00:26:23] Olivia: I don't set a specific year or a specific date for when these goals are going to happen. Because a lot goes out of my control, you know?
[00:26:32] Olivia: There is only a limited amount of things that I can control. So, That is how I think about it, you know, about these goals. I like the five to ten year plan, but I do vision boards, I also like that, where I just select a bunch of pictures that fit this vision that I have for myself.
[00:26:52] Olivia: But then, it is what it is, these are just, mental images and then I try to live every day in a way where these things might happen.
[00:27:03] Randall: Yeah, I mean, it's a process, right? Vision board each day, you're either taking a step closer to that or step further away.
[00:27:09] Olivia: Exactly.
[00:27:10] Randall: So, not only are you a musician, but you also speak multiple languages. And the reason I had met you is because I needed a European Portuguese teacher.
[00:27:24] Olivia: Exactly. Yes.
[00:27:25] Randall: So,
[00:27:25] Randall: how many languages do you speak?
[00:27:27] Olivia: Interesting question. No.
[00:27:28] Olivia: Okay.
[00:27:29] Olivia: I speak, no, I mean, fluently, I speak English and Portuguese because Portuguese is my mother tongue. I also speak German. So I would say three languages that I speak well. And then there are others. Like, Spanish and French, where I have a good comprehension, but I don't speak them particularly well, even though I have classes.
[00:27:52] Olivia: Yeah.
[00:27:52] Randall: Yeah, I don't speak European Portuguese particularly well, either, and have classes. So maybe tell me a little bit about your language and learning journey, or how you see your relationship with other languages.
[00:28:05] Olivia: My language learning journey has been quite long now. I started learning English when I was eight years old in school.
[00:28:14] Olivia: So the school where I went to had this, optional English subjects, and I started taking lessons there in 3rd, 4th grade. And then, in Portugal, from 5th to 9th grade, you have mandatory English lessons in school. And then from 10th to 12th grade, it depends on the schools. So I had English lessons in school from 3rd grade to 10th grade.
[00:28:39] Olivia: And I had them in 10th grade as well because I was in the Humanities course. So Humanities is Geography, History, Languages. So, I had English lessons then, as well. Then, when I changed my course to music, I stopped having English lessons. But I was already quite fluent by the time I was 13 years old.
[00:29:01] Olivia: And that is because I watched a lot of movies in English.
[00:29:05] Olivia: Because, movies and shows and interviews are not translated like that in Portugal. Everything is shown in the original language with subtitles, except for kids movies. So, and in kids movies, we are given the option, do you want to watch in the original or dubbed. So I watched a a lot of movies in the original language, which were like English or French with subtitles.
[00:29:31] Olivia: And then I watched them over and over again because I also had a very limited amount of movies at home. So I watched them over and over and I got to a point where I memorized the scripts and I would just kind of compare. I knew the original version by heart, almost. And then I would read the subtitles as well, so I could make a lot of connections, right?
[00:29:55] Olivia: There was one way where I learned English very easily, and I also had it in school, obviously. So school was more like to fill in grammar I know I'm just reminding, only the German words are coming to my head now, I'm speaking a foreign language, now I just, just German words coming to mind, but I had these gaps, that's the word I was looking for, I had, grammar gaps that were filled, By school, by what I learned in school.
[00:30:22] Olivia: I am not a big fan of the way languages are taught in school. Because it's heavily focused on grammar. It's not focused on in real life, you know. So, what I try to do in my lessons is to make it as real as possible. I am still not perfect because I still speak a lot of English in class because I feel bad, you know, when students don't understand at all what I'm saying. So I still keep putting a lot of English in classes, but that's something that I really have to change. It's just Portuguese from the beginning, just like shock, shocking the students.
[00:30:56] Randall: Yeah, let's let's not do that for my lessons.
[00:31:00] Olivia: No, but yeah, that, that's it. Like my language learning journey has been mostly with English.
[00:31:07] Olivia: Then I started learning German when I was already in college, even though I always wanted to learn German. I just didn't have the resources again, or the opportunity in school. So I started learning German already in college when I was in my last year of my bachelor's degree. So that was maybe five, six years ago.
[00:31:25] Olivia: And I had this teacher there in school, in college, and she was German, and that's why she taught German. So she was a native speaker. And I got the basics from her. I had lessons with her for a year, then I had a couple of tutors, one of them was my friend another one was my aunt, my aunt and uncle actually are German teachers.
[00:31:47] Olivia: And then, well, I just continued by myself, so I watch a lot of YouTube in German, I watch shows in German and I just, I don't get to have a lot of practice. That's something I'm also working on and I listen to podcasts in German as well. I do a lot of listening. So yeah.
[00:32:04] Randall: You teach languages and you teach music, correct?
[00:32:07] Olivia: Yes.
[00:32:08] Randall: Is there a teacher or mentor that inspired you to pursue that path of, you know, teaching others?
[00:32:15] Olivia: There was, I guess maybe two or three teachers that influenced me a lot in my path, but it has also been very much of an inner motivation thing from the start.
[00:32:28] Olivia: I started teaching when I was 18 doing private tutoring and I continued until now. And like I said, there were a couple of teachers that were really good role models for me. One of them was one of my teachers in college. One of the best teachers I've ever had.
[00:32:43] Olivia: And because what I got from them was just being a friend to your students, connecting with them on a human level, you know, that's extremely important from a teacher, especially in the music field, it's really important to connect with your teachers and you don't have to necessarily view them as friends. But, it's important that they become a role model for you, or that they connect with you on a human level, you know?
[00:33:12] Olivia: I had absolutely terrible teachers in my school years, also in music because they didn't see me. They did not care to know me, my personality, you know. So they did not adapt to the kind of person that I am and that I was at the time. And it's really important for a teacher and these teachers that I had that became role models for me, they had this, they saw who I was and they adapted the way they spoke to me.
[00:33:42] Olivia: The way they taught me, not just me, but other students as well, they made an effort to see the person. To know the other person, the person they are teaching and try to connect with that person. For me, I don't feel comfortable when teachers yell at me, and it used to be a very common thing in the music field.
[00:34:05] Olivia: That to me is not connection. It does not create a good connection between a student and a teacher. Because I am a sensitive person. For me, a teacher has to really empathize with me, so that I can really create a good connection with this person, right?
[00:34:22] Olivia: With this teacher.
[00:34:23] Randall: Connecting with students, I don't necessarily know if there's been studies, but maybe I read a book recently that talked about the education system in Finland. How Finland, evolved their education system. And one of the points in the book, I forget what they called it.
[00:34:38] Randall: Maybe they called it looping. I'm not quite sure. But they found that when teachers, say like in elementary school would spend more than one year with that group of students. The students would learn better. And it was because that the teachers were afforded the opportunity to spend more time with the students, thus connecting with the students and understanding their personality and how they learn so they could adapt the lesson and teaching methodology to how each student learn best.
[00:35:11] Randall: So they realize that having students be taught by the same teacher for a longer period of time created a better learning environment for the students, right? And that's one of the things Finland did to evolve their education system. So it's just not my opinion, your opinion. Organization, schools that do that, get better results.
[00:35:31] Randall: From your teaching journey.What's your most memorable moment of teaching a student or helping somebody learn an instrument or, teach them music or teach them a language? Is there any memorable moment for you that sticks out?
[00:35:44] Olivia: That's an interesting question. I think the most memorable moments are the moments where, first of all, the students come to me desperate. That's always memorable because it happens very frequently, where they just want my help because they're desperate and then the other memorable moment is when I see them succeed.
[00:36:06] Olivia: So, there are not a lot of memorable moments in the process of teaching them, but seeing them succeed when they don't need my help anymore. That is probably the most memorable part of teaching. Because I see, well, I did my best, and now I see them succeed. And that's, I think that's the best part.
[00:36:26] Randall: What advice would you give aspiring composers or artists based on your own experience so far?
[00:36:34] Olivia: You have to have a lot of resilience, a lot of persistence in this field. You have to believe in yourself, to trust your abilities, to trust your goals, right? You have to trust other people. You have to be able to connect with other people, have a good network, okay, and cherish that network. You have to believe that the country you live in is going to give you the opportunities as well, because the music field and in particular composition is very, is a very difficult field because there are a lot of composers and not a lot of funding. Uh, you have to do a lot of work.
[00:37:14] Olivia: You have to work a lot of extra hours. You have to give a lot of yourself to the profession. To not be paid what you deserve, you have to do it. It has to be a passion. You don't do it for the money, you know You have to believe in the opportunities that you are given as well Doesn't matter how much you're paid.
[00:37:33] Olivia: You have to do your best every time and what is for me also very important. You have to have faith.
[00:37:39] Olivia: For me, as for me, I have faith in God, right? I am a believer. For other people that can look different, right? But you have to have a solid faith and trust in yourself, in other people, and for me as well, in God, and that, that's what works.
[00:37:57] Randall: Looking back on your musical career so far, what achievement are you most proud of?
[00:38:03] Olivia: Probably, there are a few. There are a few, but I would say the moment I knew that I got into the college that I always wanted to go to, and when I knew what I actually wanted to do in the music field. One of my most important memories, like one of my most cherished memories, is when I knew that I got into music school. After all that hard work, after, all those tears and sweat, and after all that resistance. When I knew at 16, that I was at the time that I got into music school, that was like, now my dreams are coming true.
[00:38:39] Randall: You know, I just ran up to my room. I grabbed my pillow. I cried into my pillow. I was like, heck yes, I'm doing this. And one question I always like to ask people is, what's the most influential book you've ever read?
[00:38:53] Olivia: Yeah there are a few, but I would say, well I have, if I can name all of them.
[00:38:59] Randall: Yeah, please.
[00:39:00] Olivia: There are a couple of them by the same author that I have right here. I have this one The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale and also The Power of Positive Living.
[00:39:12] Olivia: I have the Portuguese editions, of course.
[00:39:14] Randall: Right.
[00:39:14] Olivia: These books were extremely important to me. They do not talk about how to achieve happiness in itself, because that is not what you should aim to achieve. Happiness should not be the goal itself. But what you can do, the steps you can take to get a fulfilled and positive life, right?
[00:39:34] Olivia: And faithhas a lot to do with it. Not just, like, I'm not saying faith in God, even though I believe that is one of the main things in life, but he talks specifically about changing, your life in a way that.
[00:39:50] Olivia: I don't know if I can explain this very well, but basically he wanted to help people realize their potential, right?
[00:39:57] Olivia: And if they had faith in themselves and they have the capacity to change their lives, in a huge way.
[00:40:04] Olivia: And if they had faith in other people and well, that they could really achieve whatever they wanted. Right. He was a very people oriented person, this Norman Finch and Peale.
[00:40:15] Olivia: So he wrote a lot of books, but these are the only ones I've read and the ones that I really recommend because they really have changed mentality, my perspective. And these books are very much based on his own experience, his own life experience. And because he also used to talk and he knew a lot of people, he knew presidents. He talked to many, many people throughout his life. So, some of those experiences are also narrated in the books, but they are essentially about that and of course faith. Faith in God was a part of his life as well. So I also connectwith it on that, on this level.
[00:40:54] Olivia: The other two are completely different books. I have here Atomic Habits. Again, Portuguese edition because, you know, there is a lot you can do really by changing tiny things about your life and changing tiny things in your habits. So I would say I don't even know how to explain it, but this, this book really, I only read it last year for the first time and I thought, wow, I had never seen a book explain things just so easily as this one does, you know? So, yeah, I also recommend that.
[00:41:30] Olivia: And the other one is The Little Prince, Antoine Saint Exupéry. This book is a book for adults written in child's narrative, you know? There are so many life lessons in this book, and just, like, I cry every time I read this book. Especially when it gets to that part where the little prince dies. So when he says goodbye to the pilot. I don't know, I just connect with this book on so many levels.
[00:42:02] Olivia: And, I don't know, it's just It shows this perspective that a lot of adults lose when, you just stop being a child and you become a boring adult. This brings back what it feels like to be a child, and what it feels like to think like a child. So, yeah, these are my most influential books, books that really have influenced me deeply.
[00:42:28] Randall: Thank you. And one of my final questions, and I appreciate your extra time here. I've been to Portugal, I love Portugal, you live in Portugal, Porto, Portugal what's your favorite part or parts or favorite things about Portugal or Porto?
[00:42:44] Olivia: My favorite thing about Portugal is not just the obvious things like how warm it is, how beautiful it is, the food.
[00:42:52] Olivia: But how passionate people are. Not necessarily optimistic. We love to complain, especially, especially we love to complain about everything about football, about the government, about everything, but I just love how passionate people are here and how friendly, this is a very, very friendly country. Especially in Porto.
[00:43:13] Olivia: People are not necessarily the easiest to get to know, at first. But once you get a friend from Porto, you get a friend for life. You know what I mean? So, this is what I love the most. Apart from, you know, what I've already said. The food is amazing. One of the best foods in the world, it's like, one of the best cuisines, the nature, the beaches but I think I would say my favorite thing about Portugal is definitely the people.
[00:43:41] Randall: A couple of things before we do wrap up where can people go to find you or find your work or reach out for you to, teach them music or a language?
[00:43:51] Olivia: Yeah. If people want to reach out for lessons for tutoring there's my Fiverr page.
[00:43:57] Olivia: And if you want to know about my work, what I do in my, composition field, or if you want to listen to some of my pieces there's YouTube and SoundCloud. And also I have my Instagram page and my Facebook page.
[00:44:11] Randall: We'll include links to all that in the show notes. And with that, any final thoughts from you?
[00:44:18] Olivia: Well, it was very Nice to be here. And I thank the invitation. I thank you for it. And just, I hope this was, this is going to be helpful for somebody that actually needs to hear it.
[00:44:30] Randall: I certainly think it will be, I mean, that's the part of my thought process for the podcast is interviewing people who I think have a interesting story to and hopefully through this telling those stories, people who listen can learn from their journeys as well and maybe avoid some of the pain that you've had and avoid some of the pain that I've had in getting us to where we're at today.
[00:44:51] Randall: So, Olivia Silva, thank you so much for taking the time. I know that we went over quite a bit here, but I appreciate it.
[00:44:59] Randall: I am positive that this will come across somebody and you'll impact their lives and how they move forward.
[00:45:05] Olivia: I hope so. Thank you.
[00:45:07] AI: And that's it for today's conversation here on the Randall O'Shea podcast. Thank you so much for joining us.
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