Just read this great article by Mark Cuban.Ya know, The Benefactor, multi-billionaire guy? The whole thing is excellent (as are most things at http://www.changethis.com/– hint hint), but two things absolutely nail what I’m trying to get across to musicians: the importance of reading and thinking differently.
On reading: “Of course, my wife hates that I read more than three hours almost every day, but it gives me a level of comfort and confidence in my businesses”
If there’s only one thing I’m able to communicate through my work, I pray it’s the importance of reading. It’s been said that leaders are readers and it is so true. As Mark says, books and magazines (and blogs too) are very inexpensive and/or free and they are FULL of useful stuff for your career and self development, yet so few people take advantage like they should. Read often and read anything and everything you can get your hands on, you’ll be stunned at the things this simple habit will uncover for you.
On business in general: “Always ask yourself how someone could preempt your products or service. How can they put you out of business? Is it price? Is it service? Is it ease of use?”
What a great set of questions to ask yourself no matter what you do for a living (might not be a bad question for some personal lives too!). By learning to think in this way, you are setting yourself apart and making sure you’ll never go hungry.
Go read the whole article, it is chock full of great
stuff. Enjoy…
When I was a musician, I read magazines, and I suggest you do the same thing. However, I’m probably not talking about the same magazines your reading today.
While I absolutely think you should read trade mags, and magazines about your specialty within the industry (mine was Modern Drummer), I strongly recommend you read some of the great business magazines when you can. Fast Company is one such magazine (be sure to check out the wealth of info on the site too). Filled with trends, marketing ideas, branding concepts, entrepreneurial ideas and a hundred other things in every issue, I cannot encourage you enough to get a subscription. If you read just one business mag, make it this one.
I’d also recommend you join the local chapter of Company of Friends (see the site). Organized through the website, each chapter is simply a reader led group of people that meet to discuss the magazine and their goals and dreams. What a great way to meet forward thinking people like yourself! Check it out…
May 28th, 2005
10:05 pm
Money
As I said in the post called “Just Say No”, be thorough when asked how much you charge to play your music. Know the market, know what you’re worth, and don’t ask for anything less. If you’re pressured to go lower, be very, very careful – I’ve just never found it to be a great idea. If you know you’re worth a certain amount, stick to it. You may not get the gig, but that’s not always a bad thing anyway.
I read a great post on this subject at 9to5andotherwise.com. In the post, Eric Sohn points out that “service providers need to market their value to their customer, not the cost of their services. Anyone who’s buying on price is unlikely to be a good, long-term client – and will remain price-sensitive”
The point he makes is great, don’t waste your time trying to sell the person on the pay you want. Instead, sell why you’re the best for the gig. If you can prove that, you’ll get your money, you’ll be happier, and you only have to haggle once — next time you’re called, it won’t even be an issue. Ask a fair price, know you’re worth it, and stick to it.
When I first launched this blog, it was to be a part of a larger plan involving a book, website and various other ideas related to helping people in “the arts” build careers. Problem is, all that takes time to build, and being the sort of person I am, it’s taken a LOT of time to build. Truth is, I’ve been suffering with “paralysis of analysis” — a dreaded condition common among creative people.
Simply put, paralysis of analysis occurs when you have many great ideas, thoughts and plans that all seem to clash inside your brain. They may be about your life here on earth, or how to play/sing the next part of a song. Either way, they can easily lead to a trainwreck because one of two things will happen: you’ll stop and do nothing, or mismanage doing everything at once. Sound familiar?
Oddly enough, one way out of this condition is a little more analysis. Think about what you want in the end. What is the “big picture” goal or idea or wish you are working towards? Often times, simply taking the time to reorient yourself towards these goals will bring everything else into focus. Once you’re focused, the steps from here to there come into focus too.
But what if you still can’t get focused? I mention this at my website, as something called “fuzzy dream syndrome”. This exists when you really don’t know what you want? That’s what caused my website to languish. To be honest, it’s what caused my music career to flounder too.
Don’t let that happen to you. Get focused and get going.
