4 Reasons Why Musicians Fail

Let's face it, being a musician isn't the easiest route to go. There's no security, usually very little money and a high risk of failure. Yet the market is more crowded now than it has ever been. With all those people out there reaching for the same goals, the chances of failure are even greater. Here are the 4 biggest reasons why most musicians fail at making music their career.



Taking A Risk

Becoming a musician is taking a huge risk. You've probably been told how hard it is to make it or that you have a better chance of winning the lottery than becoming famous. Most of the time you might be thinking "ya, whatever". The fact is that trying to make it as a musician is actually taking a big risk as far as careers, finances and you future goes. That being said, becoming successful takes even more risk. There are some decisions that you're going to have to make that will be tough. Let's face it, it's your career you're dealing with. The good news is that once you get used to taking risks, it gets easier. But to make it, you're going to have to take risks on a regular basis. Marketing, touring and even putting out a CD is a risk. All of these things take time and money, both of which must of us don't have a lot of. Get used to taking risks. The more risks you take, the more chances you'll find new fans and new outlets for your music.

Evaluation and Goal Setting

One thing that musicians rarely do is take a look at  exactly what they want to do, what they have to offer (their strengths) and what's involved to become successful. In short, they don't take time to evaluate their strengths and goals. A lot of musicians start out just pretty much trying their hand at everything and seeing what happens. Even if you're just starting out and not sure what direction to take, you should sit down and make some decisions. Decide what it is you would like to do and what you wouldn't like to do. These goals change throughout your career so get used to putting together these lists. This is a better way to go than just trying your hand at everything. This way you can prepare and plan on a daily basis. If you're just out there seeing what happens next, something may come up that you really want but you haven't taken the time to prepare and end up not getting it. Being a successful musician is about being prepared and showing up. It's hard to really good at anything so it's best to decide on exactly what you want, rather than being mediocre at many things.

Taking Lead

When it really comes down to it, there's only one person that is really responsible for your success...and that's you. Even if you have people on your team or a very supportive community, it's up to you to make the most of it. You have to make sure you're heading in the right direction on a daily basis. Becoming successful takes daily action and goals. it means making the right decisions and taking lead. One poll online recently revealed the one of the top searches made by musicians is 'how do I get signed'. It seems even with the advent of the internet and social media, most musicians are still looking for someone else to take care of their career. You have to be responsible for your career. You have to take the lead and make some decisions, take action, and do a follow up. If you're waiting for someone else to come in and do it for you, wait in line. Their is a couple of million musicians in line ahead of you.

Failing to Market

Yes, I left the best for last. Marketing is like songwriting and playing an instrument; it must be done everyday. It's all too easy to lock yourself away writing and recording just to finally get that new release out and see nothing happen. There's an old saying about making sure you put a certain percentage of funds right marketing or it'll be doomed to fail. The same goes for you. It's about taking time everyday to figure out how to get your stuff out there. There should also be a budget as far as how much (and where) to spend your money. Make no mistake, a lot of musicians are reluctant to spend money on marketing. Mostly because they may not have funds available but also because they aren't informed about the how's and why's of marketing. Even if your marketing is just setting up a website and Facebook page, there is time and money involved. There should be lots of other things involved in marketing. If you're not sure about what to do, start with Google and go from there. There are more than enough websites and free information out there about how to market your music. Start with one or two strategies and go from there. You'll find that the most successful musicians seen to be marketing all the time. You should be there too.

1-2-3-4

Becoming a successful musician isn't easy. You're going to have to take charge of your career if you want to make it anywhere. This is true for most careers but all the more important for musicians. Decide on what you want, plan for action, evaluate the market and your strengths and weaknesses, then market yourself and your music on a daily basis. Follow this regimen and you will succeed. I'm not saying you'll become famous, but something will happen.

How Musicians Can Deal With Stress

It's not a secret that the life of a musician isn't easy. There are tons of things to deal with, lots of ups and downs and always unexpected things cropping up. The hardest part of all of this is the fact that you're pretty much alone most of the time. You're trying to get things going in your career as well as trying to be creative the rest of the time. It's important that you learn how to deal with the daily grind of trying to get your music career going (as well as keeping it going!). There are a few things that you can do to keep your focus thereby saving yourself some stress.


Your Community

One of the best sources of both information and help is your community of fellow musicians and industry people. While not always free from it's own source of stress (politics and gossip), other musicians can help dealing with problems and finding solutions. It also helps to have a community of like minded people who are pretty much going through the same type of things you are. Just getting together with fellow working musicians on a regular basis can ease some stress and allow you to get some steam off your shoulders.It helps to vocalize your problems even though you may not be actually doing something about it (at the time, hopefully you will do something about it). Other parts of your community include various support groups (not necessarily for musicians), your PRO, musician organizations. musicians' writing and recording groups, forums, various local music interest groups,  and any people you have working with your band (agents, managers, lawyers etc.) 

Getting Organized

A great way to deal with stress is to eliminate it right from the beginning. Being organized is helps kill stress by not having to worry about missing appointments, knowing that details are taken care of, and that you are following your plan. If anything comes up, you're more likely able to deal with it effectively since you have a system in place. If you have any new ideas or things to do, being organized allows you to deal with it and make sure something gets done. As a working musician, things are going to pop up and you have to be organized to deal with them. Plus, being organized allows you to follow your goals with focus a lot easier. Research some of the 'getting things done' programs. You'll end up tweaking it and making it your own but it has to be something that you do on a regular basis.

Planning

Always take time to plan. It's important that you take time on a regular basis to make plans and just as important, to review these often. Planning eliminates stress because it gives you some control over what direction you're heading; even though this is never clear cut and requires constant updating. If you take the time to plan on a regular basis, you feel good about your career and tend to feel that you are in control and heading in the right direction.

Keeping Notes

Most of the time you'll end up getting the best ideas at the most inopportune time. Always keeping notes helps keep all of these ideas organized. Most musicians have a workbook of some sort (i.e. lyrics, music ideas, career ideas, etc.). It's good to keep all of these in the same place so that you can come back them and reexamine them at a later date. Also, if you have a notebook with all of your ideas, it's easier to come back to them and add notes and develop these further.

Getting Help

If it gets to the point where you're unable to perform effectively, you may want to seek some help. The first place that you may want to go is your music community. Most musicians are aware of and have gone through something similar at one time. They may have first hand experience on how to deal with the problem you're going through.  There are also numerous other places that musicians can go for help of all sorts. Most of these may not be music specific but helpful otherwise. There are support groups for public speaking (for performance issues), networking, planning, business practices (all for help with career development), depression, and creativity groups to name a few. Even these don't necessarily deal with musicians specifically, a lot of the problems that you may be having with stress could be helped by one of these groups.

Onstage Jitters

One thing that some performers have a hard time with is onstage jitters. Everybody gets a little nervous before going onstage but for some people, it's a huge deal. Symptoms range from jittery nerves, stomach sickness to debilitating headaches. Even some well-known seasoned, professional performers go through these on a regular basis. There are a couple of ways to deal with this. First off, one of the best ways is to simply be really prepared. It takes a load off your mind when you know that you've done everything you can to make your performance shine through. Make sure you have your set down. If you've gone through the entire set and are familiar with all of the material, then that's one thing that can ease your mind. Another thing that can help is having a pre-performance ritual. A lot of performers have a ritual that they go through before each performance. This would include some breathing exercises, warm-ups and scales, going through a tune or two, and maybe some meditation. Some performers don't like to talk to too many people before a show whereas others don't like eating too soon before a performance. Another big helper is to get to the gig early. Once you've been there a while, it gives time for your nerves to settle down and get into the vibe. Besides getting tons of experience onstage, these are the best for trying to get over your performance jitters.

Bad Practices

There are numerous things that musicians do on a regular basis that creates stress. One of the worst is simply trying to deal with all of your issues by yourself. Musicians spend a lot of time alone and are usually alone in managing their career. Whenever things get tough instead of going deeper inside of yourself, try reaching out and trying to find some solutions elsewhere. It takes a lot of stress off your mind when you know that there are people just like you out there that may be going through the exact same things. Like mentioned before, just talking to someone about these things may ease the stress tremendously. Along the lines of some good practices to do before a show, there are a number that are bad. Of course not being prepared is a big source of tension. Getting to the gig late with no set up time is another source of stress. Not warming up is also a bad idea especially if you're one of these people (like me) that needs a good warm up before they're 100% effective.

Dealing With It

Everybody has to deal with stress. Musicians and artists arguably have their own issues to deal with. Start off right by getting organized and stay organized. This way you have some control over where you are heading. Update and check your plans regularly so you know that you're getting things done and haven't gone off course. Create good practices as far as your work schedule, doing shows and anything else that may be causing you stress. Try to communicate with people on a regular basis. Your music community can be a source of help but just keeping touch with people, family, friends and fans helps keep your head in the right place. Most of all, know that if you're doing all of these things that when you lay your head down at the end of the day, you've done everything you can to move your music career in the right direction. At the end of the day this is music, and it should be fun!

How To Find Your Musical Goals

There was a comment recently about tips for trying to figure out your goals. This seems to be a tough thing for most people, especially musicians. There are tons of articles out there about how to get things done and succeed. They start off with you making a list of your goals and then move on from there. Unfortunately, figuring out your goals is usually difficult and timing consuming. Some people go through their entire life not knowing what they're goals are. Yet you're supposed to figure this out in a short time and then move on from there. Figuring out what your goals are like asking you what your favorite color is. It's all personal and one person's answers are going to be different than another. The key to figuring out what your goals are is all about asking questions; tons of them. Once you start asking yourself the right questions it will become easier figuring out what direction you should take.


Where Am I?

This should be your first question because all of the others stem from this. If you're just starting out, in the middle of your career, changing directions or trying to look for something new., this will impact all of your other decisions. For example if you're just starting out, you will have tons of options as far as where to start but be limited by your experience whereas if you're in the middle or your career, you will have different priorities. Part of this question relates to other things going on in your life. If you're in your 20's, you'll have different responsibilities than if you were in your 40's. You will have different resources available and different opportunities. For example; you might be in your early 20's, just out of school, not much money but no responsibilities. You are willing to travel and don't need much to get by. Your goals would be different than somebody who was in their 30's who may have experience touring and teaching, newly married and thinking about staring a family. You can see that their goals would be different just based on these few factors. It's important to start here is because any decisions you make are going to affect the rest of your life in some way. Looking at all of the variables allows you to make better informed decisions.

The first step in figuring out your goals is to brainstorm. It's important that for this first session you just let it all go and not think too much about details or even if the goal is realistic or not. It's all about just seeing what moves you and what you want out of life.

The Big List

We're going to start with the big list. We're just going to let it all out here. One exercise that I did when I was going to college was a 'where do you see yourself in 5 years' paper. I still remember what I wrote and to this day most of what was on that paper applies. I was thinking in general terms of all of the things that I wanted to do with music and wasn't worried about being realistic or even succinct. I put down everything that I wanted to do. I'm amazed at to this day how accurate this list was. The only thing that was off was my timing...I was only off about a decade.

Just start writing. Don't worry about how or even why, just write. You may find yourself not believing what you're writing but do it anyway. There are no limits here. Start with your biggest dreams and aspirations and go from there. Don't leave anything out.

You may find that when reviewing this list that it's all over the place. Some of the goals seem to go in a completely different direction than others. While others seem very doable and achievable others seem impossible. Let it go, don't dismiss anything yet.

Long Term Vs. Short Term

There are two sets of goals that you have to create and they all depend on the size and importance of the goal. Generally, the bigger the goal, the longer it will take to accomplish that goal. Also, once you have decided on a big, long term goal, you will have to break it down into smaller, more manageable goals.  One important note, think big. Decide what you really want. These will usually be big dreams and that's perfect for our initial session. We do this because we want to make sure we're aiming for something that we really want and not something that we're willing to settle for. All too often we base our goals on smaller things that we assume will be easier and much more realistic. There are two problems with this; first of all things are rarely as simple as they seem and two, we may end up spending a lot of time and reaching a goal that we weren't all that crazy about in the first place. If you're worried about being realistic and creating manageable goals, wait until the next part of this process.

Keep Em Separated

There's a famous story about Walt Disney who used to keep all of the 'creative' people (artists, writers etc) separate from the 'realistic' (managers, accountants, lawyers etc) people. He would let the creative people roam freely with their ideas and creative output. He would later put the ideas through the administrative people to see what was possible. You want to do the same with your goals. When deciding what you want to do, wait until later before you work out the details. After all you're a musician, it's all about possibilities. Once you've got a good idea of the direction you want to head, then you can sit down and see what's realistically possible in the next year or so.

Direction

You may notice that throughout this post I've used the word direction when describing your goals and career. That's because being a musician is about trying different things, taking different routes and figuring out what to do next. A musician's career is rarely straightforward and simple. You should get used to this process because you're going to have to do it on a regular basis. There are going to be wrong turns, great runs and a lot of not knowing what to do next. Get used to it.

Reality Check

Ok, it's about that time. Time to go over your list and make some decisions. These are usually tough because we're bent on making the right ones first. Let me tell you straight off...you won't make all the right decisions. In fact some of your decisions are going to be completely wrong. But of course, you won't know that until you've actually done them, so don't worry about it.

Keeping Track

It's a good idea to just get started. It's a bad idea to keep doing something just because you started and made some personal investment. It's important that you step back periodically and see if you're happy with the way things are going. Are you getting any results from your actions? Is this something that you feel that you should keep on pursuing? People are really reluctant to give something up once they're put enough time and energy into it...no matter how fruitless the endeavour seems to be. Once again I'm speaking from experience here. I don't know how many times I've stuck with a band simply because I've made such a huge investment in time and effort. It's really important that you step back on a regular basis and take stock at where you are.

There's A Fork In The Road

We do all of this is to give our career some sort of direction. You will want to stick with your decisions and see if they're working. If you've made an effort and see that there's another direction you want to take, then do it. Remember to go through the same process so you don't end up waving all over the place, doing a million things without really getting anything done. Some musicians are guilty of trying to keep all of their options open thinking that this will increase their opportunity for success. In fact, your chances are much better when you have focus and specific direction. Mostly because you're not being pulled in a million directions and not really accomplishing anything. There will come a time however when something unexpected springs up. This happens more when you're doing things right than wrong. For example you may be doing really well with your band when you get approached by another band to do a major tour. This is when your lists really come in handy. What do you do; stick with your band or take the risk and join the other? Of course this a completely personal decision but if you've been regularly checking your goals and making conscious decisions about your career, the decision may be easier to make. If touring is really high on your list your decision would be different if you were bent on getting a new CD released with your current band.

Not A Clue

At this point if you're sitting there and still don't have a clue what you're going to do don't worry, you're not alone. Even with all of this information it still may not be clear to us what direction to take. Either you have too many things you want to do (typical) or no idea whatsoever. The long and short of it is; you're going to have to do something. It's better to do something and get started than to do nothing. Sometimes you may want to put it off and try and figure it out later. There's nothing wrong with wanting to figure out what exactly it is you want to do but you don't want to wait too long. If it's been a couple of months and you're still trying to make out your lists and figuring out the perfect thing to do next is...then stop. Pick something and do it. If you're worried about wasting time heading in the wrong direction don't, remember you just wasted a couple of months not coming up with any ideas of what to do next.

On Your Mark...


This is just the beginning. It's also one step in many. It's important to get into the mindset of figuring out what it is you want to do and how to get there. This list will change. That's typical, especially for musicians. Don't worry about making the perfect moves and decisions. It won't happen. Pick something that you believe in a get going. Stick with it and see if you're getting the results you want. If you aren't, re-examine and start again. Repeat until you get there.

Practicing On Purpose

We seem to set out with the best of intentions. We try and practice everyday. We make sure we're covering the basics. We're trying to improve. Like we've talked about here before, it's important that you set apart some time to try and assess what your goals are. You try to figure out what you want to accomplish on your instrument and what you want to accomplish with music overall. But there's so much to learn. So much to practice. Every new skill seems to take forever to master. How do you know what you're supposed to practice and what not to? Of course having a great teacher is invaluable for this because that should be a prime consideration of theirs every time they see you. But how to do you figure this out on your own? How do you practice with purpose?



Narrowing It Down

When I teach, the first thing I ask is what kind of music the student listens to. I ask this before I even ask any of their goals because their answer to this question lets me know what direction to take in their lessons. If they say they love metal, I will take a different approach as opposed to if they say they love jazz. I then ask them what they want to accomplish with music. Usually it's mostly just about getting better and learning to play songs. But there's more to it than that. I ask them if they play in a band, if they ever perform live or if they ever do any recording or writing. The reason for this is because doing one of these type of activities will have an effect on what their course of action will be. If a student wants to learn metal and is in a band, part of their practice should be directed as what's happening with the band. If they ever book a show, or start doing some recording, this should have a direct effect on what they're practicing.

Why Bother?

You might be thinking 'why bother'. Why not just try and practice really hard each day and go through your regular regimented program? There's two reasons for this. First and foremost, music is an incredibly vast subject. There are simply too many avenues for any person to tackle all at once. Most artists and musicians (even veterans) will usually choose one particular avenue to explore at any one time. Just look at some releases of great artists. They will usually release an album exploring a certain style or sound. Check out the albums of some of the great jazz artists and you'll notice that they go through certain periods where they'll focus on one area. It may not always work out but I find it's the mark of a great artist who always strives to reach further with their art. Secondly, choosing a particular path makes it easier to improve in your development since your not scattered trying to learn too many things at once. It keeps you motivated since you can see your progress and it's not too overwhelming. For example, if you're in a metal band and recording a new CD, learning to write 4 part harmony shouldn't be your prime focus. Not at this time, maybe later.

Pinpoint Focus

If you want to keep your practice sessions interesting, it's good to have some variety, but don't lose track of the primary reason you're there. Make sure that when you sit down to practice you're clear about what you want to do. It's all too easy to pick up your instrument and 'just start jamming'. This is fine once it a while, these sessions can produce some interesting results. But, don't forget about the reason you're there. If you started something yesterday, review it, go back and make sure that it's ingrained in your playing. At the same time, if you have more than one project going, you're going to have to set priorities and keep them. If the projects or your interests collide, you're going to have to stick with one...for the time being at least. For example you're in a band and you're gigging regularly, but you also want to become a film composer. Both are quite time consuming so somewhere along the line, you might have to make a decision to go one way or the other. At the very least, there are going to be times and situations where you're going to have to focus on one more than the other. Essentially, once you decide on a course of action, some things are going to be mandatory to focus on, and others will be extras that you could try to fit in when possible.

The Projects Scenario

Really busy musicians usually have one or more (usually quite a few) projects going at the same time. How do you manage this? How do you fit it all in? It's all about organization. You'll find that accomplished musicians are not just really hard working but organized. Organization and management aren't things that are usually discussed in music class. The more projects you have going, the more things you want to accomplish, the more organized you're going to have to be. There is no other way. If you aren't organized, the projects will suffer...sometimes all at once. Either you keep your projects to a minimum, or get organized.

Getting Organized

What does this mean? It means planning, deadlines, taking notes, making decisions, finances, and time management. All of those boring things that seem to get in the way. In fact it's the opposite. The more organized you are, the easier it is to be creative. When you know exactly what you want to do at any given time, it makes it easier to get it done. Instead of wasting the time away not knowing what to do, or what you did yesterday, you can get right to work. We've talked a lot about this in here before but here's a summary.

Plan. This always goes first. The further along you are in the project, the more detailed your to-do list should be.Always be planning. There are the initial steps of development, but planning should be done consistently since things change often.

Deadline. There needs to be sort of time-line. This isn't cut and dried...especially with music; but you need to put some sort of time-line together with a deadline. Try and stick to this. Projects get done more often when there's some cut off and urgency to them. The last 10 yards are often the hardest.

Notes. While this may not be intuitive, it's really important that you take notes. The better you are at this, the easier it will be to stay on top of things. Always make notes as you go along. Ideas and problems always pop up.Make notes on what you've done, what you want to do, any problems, and how you did certain things. If you've gone through a certain process once, writing it down will make it easier to remember for the next time.

Decision Making. This in a category of it's own because there will come a time to make some decisions. Set this time apart and look at the overall picture. Let the ideas stew for a while. Put all of the ideas together and make some decisions. If it's a tough call, sleep on it. You'll find you get the best ideas at the weirdest time. If not sure, just set a course for action and see what happens. You'll make mistakes along the way, learn as you go. Don't stop or hesitate for too long. A little step in the wrong direction is better than none at all.

Finances. This is another one that needs its own category. This needs to be a separate planning session. It's not easy to put this together but the more upfront you are about how much it's all going to cost, the easier it is to make crucial decisions. Money is a crucial decision.Not thinking about it or not dealing with it won't make it go away. Planning in this area helps eliminate those nasty surprises that come out of nowhere and you aren't prepared to deal with.

Time management. Of course this is the one that everybody thinks of when talking about organization. As you can see though, if you've taken care of the other areas, time management becomes a little easier. If you know what you have to do, and how much time you have to do it, it's easier to make it part of your schedule. This also includes taking things off your list and delegating if at all possible.Time management at this point is really making sure something gets done everyday and that you stick to the items on your lists. Of course you also must be diligent about not wasting time on anything that doesn't fit into your plans. All of the things on your list are time consuming, so you have to be diligent about your time.

The Details

So once you've decided what your goal is, what should you practice? Let's look at the metal band scenario. Unlike the film composer who will be working on their composing, music theory and learning different styles of music, you're going to be focusing on just the one. Secondly, whereas the jazz musician may start out learning a dozen variations on the blues, you'll be focusing on your scales, arpeggios, chord progressions, alternate tunings and learning your tunes (cold). In short, you are now practicing on purpose. You're practicing with a specific purpose with a specific set of goals, with a specific set of exercises. Another caveat, even if you know what you want to accomplish, don't try to learn everything about your style of music all at once. There are some lesson books that go into 8 and 12 hour guitar practice sessions but this isn't practical most of the time. You should still be focusing on the things specific to your goals.

For Example...

For example, in the metal band example, you'll want to spend a portion of your practice working on arpeggios (using alternating picking and sweep picking). Unfortunately there are a million different arpeggios with a million different fingerings. You should focus on the ones that are used the most and grow from there. That way you'll have the 'basics' down before getting into anything to esoteric. You know you'll be using and applying these almost immediately; when they come up in songs, you'll be prepared. How do you figure out which are the ones to learn first? Two ways: first is by learning songs in your genre. There are chord progressions, scales and/or idioms specific to your style. Once you've learned a dozen or so songs, you'll start to notice some similarities. You'll notice the same scales, chords and arpeggios popping up again and again. It's what makes the style of music sound like it does. You may have to spend some time looking for and analyzing these things, but they're always there. Look for books, videos and other learning materials on your style, in the (specific) subject you're interested in. It doesn't matter what you're trying to learn, the info is out there! In the metal example from above, even though there are a ton of arpeggios and fingering available on the guitar, there are a couple that metal guitarists love to use over and over; mostly because they sound great. Learn and memorize these ones first. Then when you have time, go into things that aren't usually used in your style and try to apply that. It may set you apart from all the other bands in your genre.

Going With It

Whatever you decide on what it is you want to do, your course of action will be slightly different than everybody else's. Even two people in the same band may have a different set of goals. It's all very personal when it comes to artists managing their careers. The more organized you are, the more you plan and make notes, the easier it will be to get things done. The easier it will be to track your success and see where you are heading. The easier it will be to achieve what you want to achieve. Above all, the more rewarding it will be when you look back and see how it's all coming together, and how it's all going exactly the way you want it to go.

The Real Life Of A Musician

I read a great quote a long time ago that said ‘a musician doesn’t do just one thing, a musician does many things’. Great words of wisdom. Unless you’re lucky and hook onto something immediately, you’re going to end up doing a lot of things to make ends meet and ultimately become successful in your career. Instead of just going out there and just getting 'any job to pay the bills', it may be in your best interest to really think about what you want to do and how to go about getting there. Something that you should take into consideration when trying to figure out how to get into the industry is (oddly enough) 'industry related' jobs. These are better than your regular run-of-mill jobs because a) in some cases be a greater source of income than your standard part-time wage b) it may be something you're already skilled at, and most importantly, c ) it may create excellent opportunities that take your music career to the next level.

A Little Of This, A Little Of That

For example, you may start out in a band and end up becoming the ‘go to’ sound person when setting up the PA. You may end up being the most knowledgeable when it comes to recording and mixing. Or, you may be the person who takes care of all of the PR and social media chores. You may end up being the web person; taking care of all of the updates and coding. Whatever it is, these can all be potential sources of income. Gaining some expertise in these areas and using them in the music industry is a great way to get a foothold in the industry. Once this happens, you automatically become surrounded by other musicians and industry people. I don’t know how many musicians I’ve met who had they’re big break by knowing the right person in the industry; often through the oddest circumstances (e.g. I helped this guy with his website and his uncle happened to be in the industry). There have been many composers who got the gig because they were ‘already there’ e.g. working at the company at another position (that's why becoming an intern can be so valuable). Or, getting to know industry people from just getting another job (e.g one of aforementioned skills) within the industry. You get a job somewhere in the industry and suddenly, you’re there right in the middle of it all.

The List

Here are just a few of the things that you can do to make some money and may help get your foot in the door:

Teacher / Educator

One of the best things that I’ve done is teach. Not only is teaching rewarding, it can be financially rewarding. You can make much more money teaching than most part time (or even some full time) jobs. It also helps in your own development, because trying to explain a concept to someone else really helps clarify the concept in your own mind. Teaching can be a great (and usually reliable) source of income. You can work for a while, go on the road (or whatever) and return at almost anytime. It''s also a great source of networking within your own community. Working at a local school or college, you learn about all of the extra community affairs and shows going on. It's easy to get involved and meet tons of people. Most musicians I know have taught at one time or another.

Performer

I firmly believe that every musician should go on the road, or at least perform on a regular basis. As far as musicianship goes; nothing is better for your development than performing with a band. Performing is beneficial for all musicians no matter what else you may be doing. If you're teaching on the side, this is a great way to get new students and to showcase your talents. Nothing gets students more excited than seeing their own teacher up there showcasing their skills. Performing is also one of the best ways to network. Everybody wants to be part of something cool, and shows are cool. If you're performing on a regular basis, always let anybody you come in contact with about your shows. There are so many musicians out there; having a great live show is a great plus and sets you apart from all of the 'non-performers' out there.

DJ / Remixer / Laptop Musician

I got into this unexpectedly and was very grateful for the experience. It added a whole new dimension to my music career.There are many facets: DJ'ing, VJ'ing, remixing, laptop musicians, MC'ing etc. Of course DJing is a great source of income and may be a way to showcase your own tracks (some DJ"s feel that it's poor taste to play your own tracks) and network within that community. Most DJ's develop their own style and sound. Remixing has become part of the skill set; adding another dimension to their career and another potential source of income. DJ's also become producers in their own right. Some DJ's are more laptop musicians with a whole new generation of 'Ableton Live' specialists gigging out there. The digital music scene has become another whole section of the music industry.

Studio Work

While not the same as before the home studio revolution, studio work can be another source of income. There are tons of people with music software wanting to create tracks, but then finding their 'VST guitar simulator' just isn't cutting it. If you work with a lot of musicians, and money is scarce, you can parlay your musician skills into getting them to do some of your work too. Like we've talked about here, musicians are usually well versed in a number of areas. Find out what the other person is skilled at and see if you can trade your musician skills for their internet/mixing/whatever skills. Beware; be absolutely clear about these things before you go in. It'll save you headaches, misunderstandings and arguments later.

Mixer / Engineer

Like mentioned above one thing that is widely available to most musicians is recording software. What most musicians don’t take into account is the learning curve involved in using that software. Not only is there the learning curve for the software, there is the engineering and mixing. Anyone how has spent anytime in a studio knows how hard it is to get your demo sounding great. There are some many facets that need to be taken care of. If you’re good at mixing it may be a great source of income. Most musicians need a good engineer and/or mixer. Again, be clear about your fees and what you're responsible for up front. Most people like to come back numerous times, with numerous changes and revisions, asking you to redo it/touch it up without paying you any extra for your time.

Professional sound

If you’re spent any time on the road, you’ll know all of the trials and tribulations of live sound. Being knowledgeable in this area can be another area of potential income. Look into local live venues that have live music on a regular basis, there always seems to be a need for someone in this area.

Music Sales

Another standard for a lot of musicians. This is another source where you may be a pro in this and not even know it. Music sales is also a great source of networking because you eventually get to know almost every musician and industry professional in your area. It's a great way to network with other musicians because you literally meet tons everyday. It doesn't take much time before you know have a dozen like minded musicians that may be potential band-mates or a source of gigs..

Songwriter / Composer

This is something I generally do all the time depending on the other things that are going on in my life. Depending on what you want to accomplish, this is something that you would be doing on a constant basis anyway. Always think about how to use these skills to make money. It probably won't be your sole source of income for a while, but it has to be maintained and updated/revised constantly.

Producer

This goes along with the writing but in this case, it's writing specifically for an artist. This also involves getting the right songs and right sound. It involves all of the aspects of business. This is another aspect that will take some time to get steady work going. The key is to start working with other artists and start producing as soon as you feel you're ready. It's a learning process like any other and will take some time to learn all of the ins-and-outs of the job. Be patient, and try to get work and  your name out there whenever you can.

Marketing/PR

Like many musicians I know, this is something that I’ve never been very good at; yet it’s one of the most important things you can do as a musician. If you think that this is just for artists releasing material, you’re wrong. We’re all in a constant state of working and looking for more work. Whether you’re a gigging musician, songwriter, teacher, or a band on tour, it’s always important that you are connecting with other people. This is something that most musicians don’t take seriously enough yet it’s one of the greatest resources of getting ahead in your career and making money. If you're good at this, the industry always needs these kinds of people. There are always positions opening up for outgoing knowledgeable people to help with marketing and PR. A lot of them may be internships or low pay but now always. Either way, it's a great way to meet tons of people in the industry.

Music business/Management

This is a something a little different than the marketing. This means taking care of the business and administration. One of the great things a publisher does is take care of most of the administration for musicians. These things can be quite involved and time consuming. There are copyrights, correspondence, and a million other things that must be taken care of on a regular basis. This (along with marketing) is arguably where musicians suffer the most in terms of skills. Like marketing skills, if you've got 'em use them. I know a few people in the industry that do this type of work and they always seem to be working. Like every other area of the industry, companies are always looking for hard working, outgoing people.

Lecturer / Industry Pro

This is a bit different from teaching in that you become a lecturer or a ‘expert’ in a particular area. While this isn’t something that you would start out doing, you may find yourself being knowledgeable in a certain area and may use that to help other musicians. There are many of these 'self proclaimed experts' online so setting yourself apart from the wannabees is something valuable. You don't have to be an 'industry veteran' either. Lecturing on software (e.g. how to use Ableton Live) and/or gear, music styles, are other areas where this may apply. A successful blog, is also a great outlet for this. I know of other musicians who work for various music supply companies, traveling the world, promoting certain products.

Web Stuff

This is a huge subject. It has all of the website/coding/etc issues but also all of the other things that go along with maintaining an internet presence. A couple have been mentioned before: social networks, marketing, website creation/maintenance, graphics, video, etc. All of these need to be created and maintained on a regular basis. These days they're also incredibly invaluable because it's something that every musician needs and pretty much has to do. Sure, all of the tools are out there but there's a learning curve and keeping it all updated and relevant is an ongoing task. 

It's All There

Yes, there are a ton of things on this list and there are tons more! It's easy to get too wrapped up in it all and lose sight of why you're here in the first place. You may to do a majority of things on this list at one time or another. Pick the ones you're best at. The ones that you can do without taking too much time away from your primary goal. If there are things on this list that you need but are unskilled at or reluctant to do, try and find a way to outsource that skill. It's the best of both worlds where you can spend the majority of your time working on the things you love best and are most important to you, while letting others take care of the rest.

Musician's Top 10 Getting It Done List

Being a working musician is tough. You're pretty much on your own. You have to take care of all of the business, networking and finances. On top of that you have to find time after a busy day to try and be creative and make some great art. Here are a list of things to help you keep focused and on track.

1. Move away from abstract ideas to actionable goals - There was a study done with two groups of people. Both groups where given a set of tasks to complete. Group A's tasks where clear and concise (like go pickup this, go here etc.); whereas Group B's tasks where a little more abstract (like having to pick out 'interesting items'). Group A completed all of the tasks whereas Group B had trouble completing the list. It's much easier for us to complete concrete, measurable goals. This especially applies to musicians because so much of what we do is abstract. For example your goal maybe to write a song. That's not well enough defined and also may not be something you can complete in one go. A better goal would be to finish a first draft of a pop song or ballad. This applies to everything; your writing, business and practice sessions.


2. Work backwards with the end in mind - This is another well known technique that is hard for musicians to convert to their art. If you're creating art, you can't start with the end in mind because you usually don't know what the end is. This works better for career goals and band/marketing/business tasks but like noted above can be helpful in your writing and practicing. For example you have a band and don't know where you want to go. You decide that you want to release a 6 song professionally done CD in 6 months. That's starting with the end in mind. Now when you get together you can start planning for that end.

3. Create and/or get involved in a community/network - One of the worst mistakes I see artists doing is working in a vacuum. Not only does networking and being in a large community help with your creativity, it helps get gigs, make money and keeps you in touch with what's going on. It also helps in the learning curve since so much can be gained from others' experience and mistakes.

4. Take note of your successes - It's easy to get carried away with trying to get stuff done that you don't take notice of what you've accomplished. This is also very important in another aspect; if you take note of your successes, you'll slowly start to learn what works and what doesn't. Most of the time musicians have to fly by the seat of their pants. If you come across something that works, take note and use it again. It doesn't matter if it goes against the grain or not, if it works for you, it works.

5. Review plans and goals often - This goes along with the previous. It's too easy to get carried away in creating music and playing without taking note of why you're doing it or if it's line with your goals. One of the great things about music is that it is literally never ending. It's too easy to go in a hundred different directions at once and in the end not get anything done at all. Make sure what you're doing stays in line with your goals. Review your goals often; edit and change when you feel the need.

6. Create time-lines and deadlines - I've known musicians how have worked on the same song for years. It's important that for every goal you write down, you create a time-line and more importantly a deadline. Try as hard as you can to adhere to these if you can. If you've put something on your list, it has to have importance to it and it has to be done. This is one of the best ways of getting things done.

7. Simplify - There are a million things that you have to do. More now than ever, a musician has to be effective in tons of areas. The best way to make sure things are getting done is to simplify. Simplify your entire life if you can. That means sometimes saying no to new projects because you must finish the ones you're on. That means using the gear you have and not needing every new piece that comes along. It means saying no to other activities to open up time for your music. Or, leaving off some new musical ventures and techniques because you have to prepare for your next gig. You must be ruthless in this area. If you are effective in this, you may actually find time opening up for all of those other things that you want to do.

8. Create working hours - It's too easy to just try and fit your musical activities into your 'free' time and hope to get it all done. The most effective way to make sure that you're getting something done everyday is to assign certain times of the day for work and practice. I separate the two; music business, and music practice. Music business can be done at almost anytime of the day although I find it's best to do it first; that way I know that it's getting done. The first thing you should do during your 'office hours' is go through your goals and planner and see what needs to be done. That way you're always on course and not likely to waste time on things that aren't on your list. Secondly, always schedule practice and writing time into your day. You may find that certain times work better for this than others. Maybe you're more creative at night therefore you would schedule your time for that. Schedule in a certain amount of time (I like to work in half hour increments) and always make sure you do at least that.

9. Be diligent - Getting stuff done on your own takes a lot of discipline. It's important that you stay focused, practice discipline (it's a muscle, not a talent), and always finish important projects. It's easy to get discouraged and let things go. It takes diligence to make it.

10. Always make time for your art - Being a musician is a 24 hour a day lifestyle. Although it may not seem like it, this list is to free your mind so you can get that all important work done. When you have a community that you are a part of, if you're taking care of the business side, if you're staying disciplined and on course, it becomes a lot easier to get more done. You'll be amazed at how much more you enjoy the process, even though there's a ton of stuff going on. Most of all, it leaves time in everyday to be creative and just enjoy being a musician.

Try and Try Again

The idea of getting things done isn't new. Most of these are tried and true techniques. Musicians and artists seem to have issues all of their own. It's important that you address these and find work-arounds. It's tough enough trying to create great art in the first place, never mind having to deal with the million other things in your life. Simplify, work hard and stay focused and you'll soon find yourself enjoying the process all that much more.

Practice Doesn't Make Perfect

It's pretty much a universal truth; practice makes perfect. Musicians know all too well that if you want to master your art, there is no substitute for practice. The problem is that this statement is much too vague.

The Blind Leading...

Just blindly practicing without thought can do more damage than good. Thinking that you can just show up and go through the motions can install false hope and produce unrealistic expectations. It also may cause doubt and pain after a huge investment in time and money is made and there are no results or improvement. There are right ways to practice and wrong ways to practice. There are wrong ways to learn and wrong ways to work. You can actually practice hard everyday and not accomplish very much at all. The student who practices wrong may be doing more damage than good; wasting years of time and effort practicing the wrong things over and over. Or, they may be going through the motions of practicing without making any effort or challenging themselves at all. Essentially, it's not enough to just sit down and practice, you must make sure that you are going about it the right way.

Why Are We Here?

While this may seem obvious at the outset, a lot of students will go about practicing without thought to why they are doing it in the first place. Some musicians have the really bad habit of practicing certain skills without too much thought about proper fingering or technique. People like to practice the same material and skills over and over. Learning new skills and keeping yourself challenged takes some discipline. Keeping on track with planning, execution and periodic self assessment is hard. It seems so much easier just to get to it; even when we know better. If may be as simple as not looking forward enough to see how much could be gained by some planning and discipline.


The Two Finger Approach

A lot of the time, making that initial investment seems like more trouble than its worth,. We're simply too lazy, can't be bothered and just want to get down to the task at hand. There are some skills that people don't take the time to learn even though the investment would be quite small in comparison to the time and money saved. The best analogy of this is the simple task of typing. Many people spend most of their day on their computer yet never learn to type. Even though it will save them a huge amount of time in the long run, they never take the time to learn and practice the skill properly. Some people go through an entire lifetime typing with two fingers. If they took the time to learn the skill in the first place, with regular practice they could double their typing speed in a relatively short time. The best part is that this is a skill that will stick with you the rest of your life. With a little concentrated effort and planning you may achieve much more in a significantly less amount of time. When you take the time to learn the proper technique, you will only get better with time. It's a good idea to think about this when planning your practice regimen. Think about what it is you want to learn and how (or who to go to) would be the best way to go about it.

Do You Have One?

First of all, how many musicians do you think actually have a practice regimen? By that I mean a specific time set apart where the musician will sit down and follow a charted course of lessons and exercises. How many musicians a) practice simply when they have a spare moment or just whenever they feel like it? b) actually take notes during their practice sessions? c) record their practice sessions and periodically review their progress? Working at something without actually charting your progress seems ludicrous. Can you imagine practicing a sport without taking the time to measure your progress and results? Yet how many musicians do this? How many musicians take a haphazard approach to practicing, writing, technique and their overall progress? As a student of any other activity, you would never do this.


General Rules

I'm going to go over some general rules to always keep in mind when sitting down to practice. These principles can also be applied to any endeavor which takes daily, regimented action.

Always do the following when sitting down to practice.

• relax and focus on the task at hand
• be mindful about what you're doing and why 
• review what you did in the last session
• plan for the practice session
• work on problem areas
• work on new skills and ideas
• take notes
• stretch and challenge yourself daily
• use a timer
• include warm ups and fundamental exercises
• make notes for next session
  

While this may seem like it would be a chore to do and hard to implement, it's actually like most other learned behaviours. Once you do it a couple of times, it becomes easier to do. After an extended period of time it will become automatic. It actually saves a lot of time and takes a lot of the guess work out of what you're trying to do. It's easier to stay on track because it's all right in front of you. There is little guess work. It may be hard for a lot of easy going, artistic personalities to get into such a regimen but once you stick with it for a while and start seeing results quite quickly, your attitude may change.

The Big Review

You're going to have to sit down periodically and do an overall review. These reviews serve two purposes. First of all it gives you a good idea of what you've done and what you want to accomplish. That way you can make sure that you're working on things that are going to get you where you want to go. With music, there are so many skills and things to learn that it becomes easy to work on many different things. It's easy to get into a whole set of skills that aren't related to what you wanted to accomplish in the first place. It gives you something to measure as far as seeing if you are actually moving toward your goal.

Secondly it also helps in motivation and keeping on track. It's all too easy to lose your place or even worst, lose your motivation when practicing. This after all, is just you. You have to try and be objective about what you've learned and if you're making any progress. If you've taken the time to write down what you want to accomplish, you can later go back and see if you've done what you've set out. A lot of the students I have taught get excited when they see the results in their playing. Sometimes, it's as simply as recognizing a chord progression on the radio, but once there are measurable results, it gives up the motivation to stick with it. There are always periods of what seems like no growth at all but then there are always moments of a-ha where you realize that have improved or accomplished something significant.

The Big Plan

One of the things that's important to do before you even start a practice regimen is figure out what it is you want to accomplish. Write down what specific skills you'd like to learn and what the big plan is. It should be within a given time frame. This could be a year or 6 months or even 3 months. Don't worry about being too accurate with your time frame if you're just starting out with a new skill. For a beginner this would include learning to play an instrument for an intermediate musician, it may be earning to write a symphony. You won't know how long this is going to take. As you get going with your regimen though, you should do a review after a couple of months. From this you will be able to tell if you're improving and it may give you a better idea of your time frame and how long it may take to learn a new skill.

Check, Check

You must make sure that you are checking your results and always striving to get better. It's possible to keep going over the same things and think that you are practicing but you're not. This is when people seem to hit that 'ceiling' and can't seem to improve. When learning new skills you may have to get 'worst' before you get better. There's the idea that mastering a skill takes 10 years but it's possible that you could work on something for a decade or more and see very little results. It's also possible for someone with a set plan, with the right materials and work ethic, to master something in a fraction of that time.

Working Solo: R&D

Last time we talked about some of the problems with goals setting and planning when working on your own. When you're a musician most of the time you're going to be on your own which makes it that much harder trying to get it all done.


What to Do…What to Do

Planning is simply figuring out what’s important, what needs to be done, and how it’s going to get done. The problem with the music industry is that there isn't one way to the top. There are as many ways of getting there as there are musicians. So what do you need to do? What's your first step? What's your next step? What needs to be done first? Of course the answer to any of these questions has a lot to do with where you are now and what you want to accomplish. There is no set approach for artists and musicians; more now than ever since the turn in music industry in recent years.


R&D

You are going to have to spend a part of everyday on career development. Most companies spend a good deal of time (and money) in research and development. As a business, you're going to have to do the same. It’s said that in business that you should be reinvesting a certain percentage of your profits back into R&D; otherwise you become obsolete and die. You need to be doing the same. That means spending time everyday doing some research in figuring out what people in your industry are doing to make it. Much like practicing and working at your craft, this is one of the things that you should be thinking about and working on everyday. How do you go about this? What do you do first? If you’re just starting out, you’re going to have to do quite a bit of research and a lot of trial and error.


This process of research and trial and error never actually ends; you just get better at it.


The ‘R’ Part

For a starting musician (or even if you’re not), you will need to do some research first. Go to your library and take out books. There are tons, pick a couple but don’t just read them, make notes and put some of the ideas into action. This will be the beginning of your master plan. Don’t worry if you’re doing the ‘right’ thing yet. It will become apparent what works and what doesn’t soon enough. Do some research online. Don’t spend too much time on this. You could spend years going through all of the stuff online and end up wasting a lot of time. Do the same process as you did with the books. Take some of the good ideas, print them out on a separate sheet so you can access them anytime. This will get rid of any temptation to do any extra surfing while trying to work on your goals. Make a list of some actionable goals from the ideas you got online and then get out there and do them.


People, Places

Get out there and talk with musicians. This may be your greatest resource. Even if they aren’t ‘rockstars’ yet, that doesn’t matter. Every musician has stories and lessons learned. Remember to take it all with a grain of salt. See what ideas you like and try them out. If you hear one piece of advice over and over; memorize it and learn from it. It may save you a lot of pain later. There is no substitute for real experience but with a little research there won’t be as many surprises. Make no mistake though, there will be surprises!


Always have research and development as part of your to do list. No matter where you are in your path, this always needs to be on your list. This must be an ongoing thing.


The ‘D’ Part

The development part has a couple of areas that needs to be considered. Just putting your research into action is part of your development. Tweaking that research and you master plan is another. Remember we’re talking about career development here and not about your art; development of your art goes is another article entirely. Development in your career also involves networking, administration and of course finances. If you’re anything like me, you’ve spent years working on your craft, leaving the business largely alone. There is no place for this anymore. Just as you work on songwriting everyday, you must work on the development of your career. This means that once the research has been done and you’ve written down some goals, it’s time to see what’s working. Most businesses have a method of measuring if something is successful or not. They measure if it was worth their while and check to see if they can replicate that process. If you can do this, it’s a good idea but a lot of the things that you do in your development wouldn’t be so clear-cut. Sometimes the most unexpected things happen as a result of something that seemed arbitrary at the time. Sometimes upon closer inspection, there things don’t turn out to be as arbitrary as you think. It’s all part of the process.


Anything Happening Yet?

There will be times that you can see a direct result of something that you had done as part of your R&D. This may be getting contacts at a networking event, meeting other musicians at a jam night or simply getting sales from a local gig. When you achieve some success, it’s important to take a second and figure out why. If you can trace your steps back and see what you did and how it resulted in that particular success, you’re more likely to do that again in the future. It simply means that this process or goal works for you and it’s always a good idea to build on successes. A lot of very famous musicians have built a career on making the most out of one or two ‘small’ successes.


Your Career Workbook

One of things that you may want to do right from the outset is put together a career workbook. I have one of these for my practice sessions as well but having one solely for your business, planning, career and PR is a good idea. Once you’ve made a list, put it in there. Any marketing ideas? Put it in there. CD release checklists, networking events, etc. Put it all in there. Some people like to have their workbook on their computer. I personally find a binder much better. I carry it anywhere, doesn’t need any batteries or back up, and I have a hard copy of all of the most important items. This workbook should be opened at least once a day and checked. It’s important that this is a vehicle for action and results; not another system that you spend all of your time on tweaking and updating. It’s a WORK book.


Try and Try Again

If you’re just starting out don’t worry too much about getting it perfect. Check out some of ideas that you’ve found in your research and get started. Keep a list of what you want to do and what you’ve done. If something works, make a note of it. Rework the research and the plan. It’s a work in process.

Working Solo: Staying Motivated

There’s been a ton written about the importance of planning your goals. It's common knowledge that one of the best things you can do to make your dreams a reality is to put together a list of goals and then take steps to get those goals done. This is rarely as simple as it seems. Take a trip online and see all of the websites, programs and applications that are supposed to make this process simple and painless. The problem with goal setting (and achieving) is that we all have different goals (approaches and applications) and different personalities (methods and motivators). There doesn't seem to be one system for all. What we're going to discuss today is a good starting point in putting together some lists so that you have a strong foundation. We'll look at some of the universal problems in achieving your goals. From here you may try any one of the systems out there and see what works for you. In any case, you'll have set the ground work and not matter which system you end up using, you will be heading toward your goals along the way.

You're Special

One thing that most systems don't take into consideration is the fact that no two people work the same. There are provisions in most time management systems that allow for folks to try and discern the most productive time of day and try to work around that but there's a lot more to it than just the time of day. People have different ways of working and different motivators. Some people like to work under pressure, some hate it. Some people need to work in a neat and orderly place, some people thrive on chaos. Most people need structure, though the amount varies a lot between individuals. Some people need a lot of supervision and feedback, some very little. You get the point here. There are a lot of other variables that most systems don't take into consideration. Some just leave these questions wide open and leave it up to the individual to figure them out for themselves. The problem is that these issues are really important and may make the difference between a system working for you or not. Let's look at a couple.


One is the Loneliest Number

One of the major issues people have today in getting things done is that most things have to be done on your own. This means that not only do you have to get the job done, but you also have to figure out what’s important and what needs to be done. Just as important you have to try and find the motivation to get do these things on a daily basis. The fact is that a lot of people don't work well completely on their own. Most people work best within a system with some structure. Working with other people, it's easier to stay motivated and on course. It's all too easy to let things slide when you don't have any one waiting on results. It's easier to think that an item isn't as important when it's your own responsibility and no-one's reputation or job on the line. The problem is that if you have an important item on your list that must be done, you must find a way in make sure that it gets done. If you boss tells you that he needs that report by Friday morning by 9, it's a lot easier to put much more importance on it because somebody is waiting for it. It seems easier for most people to get things done when there are other people waiting on it and you're reputation is at stake. That's why when people are trying to lose weight and going on an exercise regimen, they are encouraged to tell somebody they trust about their plans. When there is somebody waiting on a particular project, there is a huge built in motivator for you to get that done. When you're on your own, that external motivator isn’t there.


Feedback and Community

Along the same lines, another big motivator that keeps you on goal is feedback and community. When you have a community of people that know about your goals, you can turn to them for advice and motivation. Sometimes just being able to have a conversation about what you're working on and what you plan to do in the future may provide enough motivation to last for weeks. It certainly can help when you're not sure what to do next or if you're questioning the goal in the first place. There is also that built in motivator that we talked about in the last point. Suddenly there are other people that know about what you're doing and you may feel pressure to get things done just to keep up with the community. Community is also great when things aren’t going well. It’s comforting to know that there are others out there going through the same kinds of things that you are. It may also give you an idea of what the trouble is and finding a solution.


Welcome to the Show

It’s no longer enough these days to just be a musician. You need to be able to run your music career like a business. That means that most of the time you’re going to be doing a lot of things at once. Most of these things won’t be your area of expertise. You are literally a one person show. Even if you join a band, these same principles of running a business still apply. You won’t have the money to get all of the help you need so you’re going to have to do a lot of things on your own. You will have to start working your music career like a business.

As a business you’re going to have to set apart some time to make some plans. Knowing how you work, how to keep motivated and on course is critical for your success. At the end of the day, you’re on your own and it’ll be up to you to make sure that you get all that needs to be done…well, done.

Next we’ll take a look of some specific examples from the problems listed above and find some solutions.

So You Want A Record Deal

Image via WikipediaOne of the things that I come across a lot is people who really want to make it in the music industry and think that if they're just standing in the right spot at the right time, then they'll get discovered and all of their dreams will come true. They dream of the day when they turn a corner and there is a music industry bigwig there to make them a star. We all know they story, it's permeated into our brains and then reinforced by the media and shows like 'American Idol'. The premise being that 'we will make you a star'. While this does happen it's rarely the case. Most of the time you hear of people 'getting discovered', they've spent many years working at their craft and were completely prepared when their time came. Part of the success of 'American Idol' is that it feeds this desire may people have to be a star, while taking away the personal responsibility to make your own career. It never ceases to amaze me when I see people with obvious talent subscribing to the thought that a record company will come along one day and make all of their dreams come true. I know because I held these very same viewpoints myself. I used to feel that 'it was going to happen anytime soon'; that this was going to be the year that I finally make a success in the music industry. The problem was that I didn't know exactly how I was going to do that; I didn't have a clue about what I wanted to achieve in the first place. I didn't even know the genre of music I wanted to be successful in because I had spent time touring with rock, country and jazz bands. All I knew was that I wanted to make music for a living and didn't really care in what capacity or exactly how I was going to do that. Is it any surprise to you that I never really had that much success in those years? It wasn't until I sat down and make some concrete goals that I started to see some success. The funny thing was that when I did finally sit down to make plans, the goal to get signed to a record company, something I thought would be the number one item on the list, was about number 20. I realized that if I wanted to become successful in what I wanted to do, I'd have to decide on exactly what it was that I wanted to do and then take responsibility to get it done. Although the thought that I was ultimately responsible for my entire career was scary, it was also very liberating.

The List
Once I had figured out my music career goals, I was surprised to find that getting a recording contract was quite far down the list. Don't get me wrong, it was important to me and it was one of the things that I wanted to accomplish but it was only after I had accomplished a few other things that a recording contract was even a consideration. After I knew what I wanted and had written it down, I got quite a bit done. I set up my own company, starting making money with my studio and put together a great band all within a year and a half. I started writing and producing tracks on a daily basis and made plans to get some gigs for my band. It was hard and a lot of work but it got done. In the end the band disbanded after a couple of years but it was one of the best bands I had ever played with. While I had the studio going I would spend a lot of time working and getting better at producing tracks. You see, to get the attention of the big record companies, I wanted to have a demo done, I wanted to have some shows under my belt and I wanted to have some credits as far as writing and producing. These were all things that I wanted to accomplish before I even contacted the record company. After a while, I wondered if I even wanted a record deal since I had done so many things myself. I had worked as a musician, a producer and a writer and wondered if I would have that kind of freedom if I worked at a record company. I realized that if you go out and make a career of it one your own, record companies will stand in line to sign you. You see, you've done all of the work and they can make money from that. Don't kid yourself, that's the extent of it. If they didn't think that they could make any money, or if they probably couldn't get a return on their investment within a reasonable amount of time, then they simply won't care. I wanted to write and produce, so I had to make sure that I had the chops before I put myself out there. So before you think that you're going to become a star but don't have a clue how you're going to get there, you may want to sit down and reassess where you are and where you want to go. Once you figure that out, you can take steps to make sure that when that music industry bigwig does cross your path one day; that you're good and ready to take on anything.

Paying Dues
There's the adage in the industry of one paying their dues; an artist who has spent time working at their craft through thick and thin. There's the image we have of a talented artist singing to an unsympathetic crowd in some run down club. If you get out there at all, you know exactly what I'm talking about. The truth is that no matter where you are there are always times where you will have to pay your dues. There is going to be a time when things are going badly and it seems everything is going wrong. This may be when you're just starting out, when you've finally had some success and realize that it's not all roses, or if you're just going through a difficult time in your career. The truth is that these things are all part of the music business and a lot of times the mark of a great artist is one that makes it through these times and still continues to make great art. I'm not here to discuss the darker side of the music business. I'm just putting it to you that if you want a lasting career in the music industry that there are a lot of things that you're going to have to deal with that aren't that pleasant. I would like to focus on how to still keep going and not lose focus when those hard times do come around.

Part of the Program
The sad part of the paradigm of paying your dues is that somehow we've come to think that this is a necessary part of the process. We've come to believe that being a poor, unappreciated musician is part of the program. This simply isn't true. Having to pay the bills and deal with everyday problems is part of life. There is the notion that great artists shouldn't have to deal with the everyday mundane things; that somehow, they're beyond this. I've held the notion that I didn't deserve to be waiting on tables; that I was a great artist and deserved to be treated so. The truth is that until you've gone out and made the way for yourself, you deserve to be treated like everybody else. Most musicians I knew never seemed to have any money; including myself. But then there were always those guys who seemed to have it together. These were the guys who were working hard at getting things going with the band but still kept their finances in order. A lot of musicians act irresponsible, like its part of being creative. The truth is that not paying your bills has nothing to do with creativity. Once you're a star and making millions, then you can be as much of a big diva as you like. You can be irresponsible and a pain, not because you're a great artist, but because you can afford to. It's a simply as that; it has nothing to do with who deserves what. You'll also find that if you're out there getting things done, some people will appreciate what you're trying to do and even show some support. You'll also find a lot of resistance, and I'll talk about this more in another article.

Walking the Path
A lot of what I've talked about in this blog actually deals with the 'paying your dues' part of the process. I put it to you that it's not so much paying dues as simply walking the path. And that's what this blog is about, helping you walk the path. If you've sat down and figured out what it is that you want to accomplish, and how you're going to go about doing that, it makes it a lot easier when hard times come around. If you've made a plan and are getting things done and something goes badly, you can deal with things better because having the plans there allows you to look at the bigger picture and see how everything fits in. It also makes you take stock of where you are and figure out if there's a better way to do things, or if you have to take a different approach. Most of all, when things go bad, you know that this is just a temporary situation and that you'll find some solution. A couple of times when things started to go badly and I had to take a different course or had to drop my current plans to deal with the emergency at hand, since I had sat down and made some concrete plans, I knew that this way just a temporary situation. This helped me deal with things in so many ways. If I had to take a part time job to pay some bills, I knew why I was doing it and that it was just something that had to be done for me to reach my goal. I wasn't any happier about it, but I knew why I was doing it.

The Choice
The thing I came to realize was that since there was so much I wanted to accomplish with my career, I simply had to work twice as hard as 'normal' people. I had the part time job to pay my bills, and I had my music. I came to view my music as my main job; simply to make it the most important thing that I spent my time on. For people who aren't musicians, they can have their job and then come home and have that free time. For artists, that free time is time to work on their craft. I never viewed this as a bad thing; I always loved what I do. There were times when I wasn't motivated of course, and I talk about this in other articles in this blog. If you have to have another job or you have to jump through a lot of hoops to get where you want to go, that's simply something that you have to do. Some people don't go through as much to get there, most go through a lot. Whether you're one or the other doesn't matter as long as you stick to the program. When it comes to finances you really have only two choices; have a full time job and carefully budget your time or have a part time job and carefully budget your money. Remember that in the initial stages, becoming an artist can be a costly affair. So even if you're making enough to pay your bills, you'll need extra to pay for gear, gas, web space etc.

No Time
Another misconception I find people have is that they have all the time in the world. When you're twenty years old you may feel like you have tons of time to get things done and try things out. Well, yes and no. This is the perfect time to try things and see what works for you. You probably won't have that many responsibilities and your cost of living may be lower than older folks. The problem is though, that you really don't have that much time. If you're playing in a pop or rock band, or are looking to become the next Gwen Stefani, these are the years were you want to take advantage of your time. Most recording acts these days are signed while relatively young and they're getting younger all the time. It's not unusual to see a teenager getting signed to a multi-million dollar deal. If you show promise at a young age, you're more likely to look appealing to a major label. A lot of the biggest acts we know today started out at a very young age and kept at it; usually with the guidance of an older person. So if you're in your twenties and think that you have tons of time to waste, you don't. I don't want to scare you or put older musicians out, I just want to put it to you that time, no matter how old you are, is always a consideration. If you've already decided on what you want to do and are getting it done, you are more likely to find yourself in the right spot at the right time.

It Can Be Tough…But
Sometimes when things aren't going well, it's easy to get down and feel sorry for yourself. The goal to become an artist can become incredibly hard at times. It's so easy to feel helpless and lose sight of your goal or give up. If you've done some of the things that I've written about in this blog and written down exactly what it is that you want to accomplish, it'll be easier to deal with and keep track of where you are. Don't let old tired misconceptions like the ones I've talked about here get you down or get in your way. Whether it takes you 5 months or 5 years to get there isn't important; just get it done. Once you start you'll find that even with all of the downs, it's all worth it in the end. I love making music. Nothing else gives me the same satisfaction that I get when I'm writing a song or playing my guitar. If you've ever done a great show in front of an appreciative audience, or just written your latest masterpiece, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.

The Big Plan

One of the hardest things that I've had to wrap my head around as far as managing my career as musician is the whole process of planning. A lot of things about being a musician I felt couldn't be planned. I had gotten to the point where I was pretty proficient at my instrument, gone to college and university, had been in a couple of bands and toured yet never sat down to make any sort of plan. I figured that if I had made it this far without a plan, why should I start now? I also felt that planning might take away some opportunities that I might miss or would take away all of the spontaneity and fun of being a musician. Most of all I really felt like being a musician was nothing that you could plan and I might turn the corner tomorrow with a new opportunity that I could have never planned in my wildest dreams. I really felt like as a musician, you basically had to ride by the seat of your pants.

No Plan At All
I'm sure that you've heard the story; a young band starts out, does a couple of shows, and in no time at all end up getting signed and selling a ton of records. It's the stuff that Hollywood movies are made of. It almost seems like some people seem to do much better without putting too much thought into it. I read an article by one of the members of the Grateful Dead who said that anytime they made a conscious effort to do anything and sat down to make some concrete plans, it would usually fail. Whereas when they just went ahead and did what they felt like, without much planning and forethought, they were successful. Some people, not just musicians, also seem to get far with this mindset; succeeding in life without taking any time out to make specific plans. The fact is that most successful people plan. Studies have shown that a critical factor in highly successful people is that they write down their goals.They focus on one thing and make the effort to get that one thing done.They do things intuitively that most of use have to learn and take time out to do. We are usually unsure about what it is that we want to accomplish how to go about making our dreams a reality. You simply have to write down what it is that you want to accomplish and then take action everyday to realize those goals. With music, art and life, there are also things that you could never predict; you can only prepare and plan and see how things turn out. The Grateful Dead were an incredibly successful group that sold millions of records and were one of the most popular touring groups of all time. Ultimately, you could never plan that. You may find that you can still get a lot done if you are motivated to get out there and do it.
Highly successful people write down their goals; the key here is the word 'write'.

The Problem With Problems
So can't I just take things as they come up? Why do I need a plan ? The problem arises when problems arise. Let me explain that. Anytime you take on any endeavor, you are inevitably going to come across some problems. You are also going to get to the point where you don't know what to do next. You may also be at the point where you realize that what you're doing isn't working and you either need a new plan of attack or a completely new plan. The point is that it becomes necessary at this point to make some sort of plan and make some decisions. Even though the Grateful Dead were never successful at making any grand business plans, they were successful in creating one of the most successful live bands of all time. You're going to come across a situation where you're going to have to sit down and make some decisions and figure out what the best things for you to do next. We all know the value of making plans. So how do we apply this to being a musician and mapping out the best way to become a success?

Looking at the Big Picture
There a couple of ways that you can create a plan that will ultimately help you get where you want to go. The key here is figuring out where it is that you want to go. Sitting down and making plans makes you start to look at the big picture and makes you ask yourself some serious questions. You want to sit down and figure out where it is that you are right now and where it is that you want to go. It's a good idea to be specific here. Saying that you want to be a superstar in the next 2 years just doesn't cut it. If you can describe exactly what you want to accomplish, you will be much better off in making those goals a reality. If you are a singer, you want to describe the style of music that you'd like to do, if you're going to write the material or get other writers, if you're going to have a band, etc. Some people start off and they have no idea what it is that they want to do; they just go in every direction hoping that something will click. Some people don't even care; they just want to be a star. I'm putting it to you here that if you want to take control of your career and have a greater chance for success, then you should have an idea of what you want and how to get there. You'll find that as soon as you get out there and start getting things done, you'll learn more about what to do next and you may find things happening as a result of your efforts.


The basic formula:
1) Figure out who you are
2) Figure out what is it you want to do
3) Create a plan to achieve your goals
4) Put that plan in action


Simple yet tough.


What Next?
If you're one of these people who isn't sure of exactly what it is that they want to do or are confused about what it is that they should be doing don't worry, make the plans anyway. The biggest point here about making plans for a career in music is that these plans aren't written in stone and they will change. We do want to sit down though and figure out what it is that we want to do and have some sort of direction. Just grabbing anything that comes your way may result in some success but you're really just playing the lottery and we all know what those odds are. Once you sit down and start making plans and getting things done, even if you're not sure of exactly what to do, it will become a little clearer of what it is you should be doing. You're usually much better off deciding on some sort of direction and making plans to see that plan to completion. Your plans may change but once you've accomplished something by planning and making it happen, it becomes easier the second time around. It's also helps in keeping focused on achieving what you want to do and not just reaching for anything that comes your way. That way, you are in control of the direction of your career and when something unexpected does come up (as they usually do) you'll be better equipped to deal with it more effectively.