Tuesday, March 12, 2013

In Spite Of

Following your passion takes a lot of courage, especially when your passion is music. There are tons of examples and cliches about the musician or artist. We are often referred to as starving artists. It is really a metaphor for dedication because following your passion means risking it all and before you can walk you have to crawl. The hardest part is that following this passion is never enough to guarantee success. Along the way we find that we have to master our business skills in order to make our passion worth something to others. This is where the rubber meets the road, so to speak. You see, we can see the vision because it's ours but to the rest of the world and even those closet to us, we are just dreamers. Well my advice is that you keep moving in spite of. Being an artist is a thankless endeavor and we have to have unshakable faith and a thick skin. What most people don't get is that we have to spend thousands of hours developing who we are and what we do before it ever really pays off. The problem is that most of us give up or allow others to make us give up before we reap the reward. Trust me, the only way you loose is to stop playing the game. I've seen people with very little natural talent become very successful because they simply didn't quit. I've also seen people get one or two steps away from making it only to give up, never realizing that if they had only kept going, their payoff was right around the corner. This can be much harder as we get older, especially if you have a family, but I say even then you can not give up. To do so will only make you bitter, full of regret and make you resent those closet to you. It's also important that we keep our minds open to expanding our visions so that we can see all of the opportunities that lie before us that can be a part of our passion. Stay encouraged and focused in spite of everything else and remember to enjoy the journey.

The Truth
All Rights Reserved by Airtight Productions 2013

Monday, March 11, 2013

Life Is Short

I've had a few close friends and associates pass away within the last year. The shocking thing is that all of these people where young and in, what seemed to be, great shape. In every case I found myself shocked thinking of how I had just seen or spoke to them not realizing that would be the last time I would share time and space with them. Of course when people pass away, we all have brief moments of reflection and an acceptance of our own mortality but these thoughts soon disappear and we return to our lives as usual. The thing we have to remember is that life is short and we don't have time to waste. This point is driven home more and more as we get older because death is something we will ALL experience so why not live our BEST life all the time. We never know if this moment will be our last or someone else's. This is also applicable to our craft. We never know how our music and performance can affect some one's life so it is paramount that we live and perform FULL OUT all the time. We are not promised tomorrow so we should learn to focus our words, thoughts and actions toward living the best life we can because it can all be over in an instant. The key to living life is to be HAPPY. Yes we all strive for success but if the stress of achieving a certain success shortens your life, it's not worth it. Some say that stress is just a by product of winning. Well not if you truly love what you do and your goal is to live a happy life. As musicians it is important for us to remember that stress kills just like cancer. So as we continue on our paths, let's be sure to take time to enjoy every beautiful moment we can and not stress over ANYTHING. Trust me it's not worth it. God bless those we've lost and may he continue to bless us as we continue ahead. Be well and enjoy the journey.

The Truth 
All Rights Reserved by Airtight Productions 2013

Thursday, March 7, 2013

The Little Things

In every aspect of this business it is the attention to quality that wins every time. Even though some of us may feel as though the bar has dropped a bit, the winners all have a certain level of quality in common. This also goes for musicians. I play with a lot of different guys in a bunch of situations and it's always amazing how a group of people who have never played together can sound as if they have been together for years. This only happens when you have like minded people that share the same belief in quality and mastering the little things. The misconception about being a success is that it all depends on the big break. Well there is no BIG break. Success is a learned behavior. By focusing on mastering the little everyday things, we learn how to practice success. We soon realize that success is only about excellence and quality. It's about always being at our best in practice, performance and business. Once we master the little things, then the big things happen. Success is just like anything else, you have to practice it everyday in every part of your life. We have to not only master out musical talents but our communication skills, time management, planning and follow through. We have an opportunity everyday to practice these skills. These are some of the little things that serve as the building blocks for our larger success. Remember to always strive for quality and excellence in all you do and enjoy the journey.

The Truth
All Rights Reserved by Airtight Productions 2013

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Stay Tuned In

The coolest thing about music and any other craft is that you never really learn it all. Being great is a lifelong pursuit. Success is all about consistent growth and change. Learning only occurs from listening, watching and experiencing the moments that happen all around us everyday. Most of us as musicians miss this. We become jaded and our egos lead us to believe that we've been there and done that. Well I beg to differ. The key to growth in music and business is to stay tuned in. We have to pay attention ALL the time. Music is a living, breathing thing that can produce amazing experiencing when we are tuned in. Every musician or creative person has had times when the universe gives us the most beautiful  grooves, melodies and words. This beauty exists in every creative and business situation but the key to connecting with it is being tuned in and approaching every situation being open to explore and create something new and beautiful. It doesn't matter how many times you've done something, each time gives you a new chance to explore the music, the opportunity and yourself. Our performance is only an extension of who we really are. This concept also applies to our business and personal lives. We have to stay tuned in and listen to the people and world around us. All of the answers and success we seek are right in front of us daily but if we are not tuned in, we will miss it all and opportunities will just pass us by. You see success is about relationships and all the experts have always said that the key to having a successful relationship is listening. Let's stay tuned in and better our relationship with the universe. Our success, business and art will be the all the better for. Enjoy the journey.

The Truth
All Rights Reserved by Airtight Productions 2013