Scroll back through your memory, and I’m sure we can all recall a time seemingly stuck in the family car when all you wanted to do was stop the hot-sticky-seats madness of the journey; a time when the only relief seemed to stop the “getting there” part and just get to the “get there” part already.
Sometimes a process, a journey can feel like forever. Everyone has periodic moments of impatience. The trick is what you do with and learn from such bursts of anxious adrenaline.
As an artist, such impatience can manifest as, “Why am I not a household name yet?” “Why am I not gigging more?” Or the classic bawl, “Why won’t radio spin my music?”
Why ask why?
Do something. Do something different than you've done before.
Keep learning to contunually tweak your approach to music. Cultivate the relationships you want. Introduce yourself. Be fearless to go for what you want and unafraid to push boundaries as an individual. Work as a team and be effective as a solo operator. Do not stand on the sidelines awaiting recognition—create the happening. Consider everyone else in the picture to be additions to your own genius plan of attack.
While working at Verity Records, one particular artist (who shall remain nameless) actually created a pseudonym to use when booking events and performances. Such a smartly shrewd tactic created the ability for this artist to be an entrepreneur about his business without sacrificing his artistic persona. Or consider the icon Vickie Winans who prides herself on being the hardest-working woman in Gospel. If you have ever had the pleasure to be within a 50-yard radius of the radiant artist-preneur, you would see in action her drive, smarts, savvy, mega-watt smile and strengths that have been well cultivated to allow her music to flourish.
Recently, I met TMG Gospel artist Mary Rieves in Missouri as she travelled cross-country on a concert and breast-cancer-awareness tour designed by and fully incorporating herself and her family’s talents. Such purposed creativity in action is success. To read more about Mary in the January issue of Variance Magazine, visit http://www.variancemagazine.com .
If it's not happening, make it happen.
Do all that you can to build your business strong enough to support your dreams.
I want to encourage you to seize every moment to turn whine into wine.
No comments:
Post a Comment