Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Take Control

The road to success in this industry can seem very elusive. It is vital that we slow down sometimes and take stock of our actions. In order to build wealth or sustain a higher quality of life we must assess how and where we invest our time. We have to be willing to take control of our own destiny and career. It is rare to become wealthy by just being the hired talent. Whether as a sideman or artist it's just next to impossible because we have no real say so or control over what happens with our career. We have to position ourselves to be in places of authority. We need to be booking our own events for ourselves and others. It's all about duplicating ourselves and diversifying our talents. I've grown tired of touring with artists that make $10,000 to $75,000 a show and don't want to pay me any more than $500 to $1000. Now most musicians will say man I would be happy with that. Well you can't become wealthy just making that kind of money. I'm putting myself in the position to be the one making the $10,000 to $75,000 or even more. Now this takes shouldering more responsibility and working hard but hey I work hard anyway so I might as well be properly compensated. As musicians we are always forced to take the table scraps. Whether it's by promoters or club owners, we are always being under compensated. It's time to take control. This is not for everyone because you have to be willing to say no and walk away from situations. I don't mean make stupid decisions. Sometimes we have to do things for less money to get to a certain level but we have to set a limit and not allow people to pimp us. We also need to be aware of how to use our other skill sets to make money. Think about how much free advice we give to people to help them build their wealth. How many times have any of those people come back to you with a check after they made money using your advice. I don't know about you but I have yet to experience that one. (LOL) So let's just take control and do it ourselves. We have the know how and where with all to book shows and events. We don't always have to be on the bottom of the pile. From today forward start to seek every opportunity you can to take control of your own destiny and career. Enjoy the journey.

The Truth
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