1. What is your potential? - we usually think it’s basically limitless
2. What is the only way to find your potential? - it’s to produce
3. When you produce anything, there’s only one place you can start from: exactly where you are at this instance
4. Not where you think you can be sometime in the future
5. This means: you are forced to come to grips with the complete understanding of what your abilities are AT THIS SECOND
6. But THIS second is all that counts!
7. You can have all of the potential in the world bottled up inside of you, but if you’ve done nothing to cultivate that potential - it doesn’t count for anything
8. Is flies against some of the ideas of perfectionism that can sometimes come into play for the artist
9. And perfectionism is good in the amount that it can drive you to really push yourself, and to work really hard
10. But perfectionism can be a hinderance when it comes to actually putting products out there, into the world, as finished products
11. This means: not hiding, telling everyone “oh, this is just a rough draft,” etc - but rather completing something, recording it if you’re a musician, or performing it if that’s your thing, and NOT APOLOGIZING FOR IT
12. When we apologize for what we create - saying it’s not the finished product or whatever, we’re falling into the trap of the “perfectionist” who can’t get anything done
13. But you are only as good as that finished product
14. This is where the Zig Zigler quote comes in - If something is worth doing, then it’s worth doing NOW, even before you can do it as well as you want to eventually!
15. And if you want to do something that is worthwhile, and you want to do it well, the only way to get there is to do it poorly at first
16. So swallow your pride, create music and art that really shows where you are NOW
17. And then make an effort to make each subsequent effort better and better!

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/029

Colin Thomson is a composer for media, music educator, and host of the podcast The Modern Musician Show. Colin writes music for a variety of media, including game, TV and film. He also runs the website sightreadingacademy.com, which provide music students with a steady stream of new sight-reading material, as well as innovative video exercises to help students read ahead. Colin also hosts the podcast The Modern Musician Show, where he interviews musicians as well as "outsiders" to the music industry, to find out what musicians can and should be doing to lead fulfilling and financially successful careers in music today.

• Hustle makes up for a lot. A lot of times, the person with the most hustle wins
• Soft skills (speaking with people and making a good impression on them) is an essential aspect of "making it" in the music industry
• A lot of times, what you are doing now will pay off in a few years. You just need to keep putting in the effort
• When you persistently take actions, one built upon another, you will be amazed at where you can get over time
• Say yes to everything that you possibly can. You never know where it will lead
• One of the most valuable habits a musician can start is the habit of learning new things all the time
• Be so careful about the people you choose to partner with in a band
• Consistency will be your best tool to get where you want to go

Recommended Book: "Insanely Simply" by Ken Segall

Learn more about me:

SightReadingAcademy.com

ModernMusician.co

Twitter: @colinthomson

Instagram

Periscope (I 'scope' all the time): @colinthomon

Blab.im/ColinThomson

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/028

David Hart is a guitar teacher based in Sydney, Australia. He sold his first music school (Learn2Play Music) in 2003, and walk away from that project with quite a bit of debt. This was followed by a time of soul-searching and financial difficulties. He dug deep, wanting to know everything possible about business, coaching and success. The knowledge and experience all came together in 2005 when he launched G4 Guitar, and after 2 years he had enrolled over 3,000 students from scratch and with no initial money. By 2010 he had begun to franchise, and he now has 50+ teachers operating in Australia, Canada, US and the UK, impacting a total of over 10,000 students as of today.

• You always need to find new and creative ways to leverage your time
• When learning, it's essential that students understand where they are
• A lot of times the most valuable thing you will get out of any events you attend will be the relationships you are able to build
• Listen to others, and learn from other people. You will pay for your education one way or another, either up front, or in the mistakes you make later. So choose to pay upfront. Don't be afraid to pay for education
• You can be the most amazing musician in the world, but if you don't know how to market and "sell" yourself, you're at a huge disadvantage
• If you look at the history of musicians, all the big names had a network behind them
• If you don't take care of your body, you won't have the energy to do what you need to

Books Mentioned:

"The Learn Startup" by Eric Ries

"Great By Choice" by Jim Collins

"Mastery" by Robert Greene

"Teach Like a Champion" by Doug Lemov

Learn more about David Hart and G4:

G4GuitarMethod.com

Twitter: @g4guitar

YouTube

Pinterest

Learn more about Katie Lott:

KatieLott.com

FaceBook

Twitter: @katielottmusic

YouTube

SoundCloud

Instagram

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/027

Mark Sommerville is an audio engineer, music producer, and sound designer currently based in Los Angeles, CA. He works with a wide variety of artists and composers around the world, providing high-quality mixing, mastering, and sound design for visual media. Mark is the co-creator and current owner of The Wave Shop. As an entrepreneur, Mark has been self-employed as a producer/engineer ever since graduating from college. Today he still is active in the music and audio world, but also has broadened his interests to filmmaking as a writer and creative producer for The Zach King Team.

• Finish projects. You learn more from releasing several things that are less than perfect than you do from taking forever to perfect one track
• Perfectionism has it's place. But you've got to get something out there, to show what you can do, even if you think it's not your absolute best. You have to have something to show people
• If you give people free advice and education on a subject, a lot of times it will come back to you, because people will think of you when they have a project that you would be good for
• You have to continually be marketing yourself. If you spend 100% of your time on your current project, you'll run out of work fast
• It's really important that musicians be continually seeking out shows in their area. If you don't play live, you can't really expect record labels or anyone to be interested in you
• Don't underestimate the power of building up your social media. Once you have a dedicated, sizable following, there are nearly unlimited ways to monetize it
• Streaming, and probably song sales, will never be your bread and butter the way it used to be. Get used to it, and understand that there are now so many more ways to make a living that there wasn't before. Don't whine about your streaming payouts, but be one of the musicians who figures out the new music industry
• When mixing, don't overlook the basics. If it sounds good, leave it alone. You don't always need 9 plugins. Keep it simple if you can
• When people are listening to your music, they can usually only listen to about 3 aspects. So identify on the 3 things that you want listeners to hear, and focus on those
• Use reverb sparingly. Strive for "tight" mixes (unless the song really calls for it)
• Don't think you can just "fix it in the mix." Getting it right in the studio, at the recording stage, will make the whole finished product sound better
• When you mix something to fix it, you end up with a different and worse sounding song, than when you mix it to take it to the next level
• The easiest mixes are the songs that have been arranged well
• While it's sometimes necessary to mix and master your own music, it's extremely valuable to get a pro

Learn more about Mark Sommerville:

WaveShopAudio.com

FaceBook

Twitter: @TheWaveShop

YouTube

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/026

1. We’re often asked (and we ask ourselves): What does it take to make it in the music industry?
2. There is a common quote that can be applied to the music industry very well: “Only the paranoid survive.”
3. If you want to “survive” in the music industry - you’re probably going to be a little bit paranoid
4. This applies to your thoughts and actions - wherever you are and whatever you’re doing
5. There is a “paranoid” mindset that is going to make the difference in what you are able to accomplish
6. While there exists no really shortage of success, it’s often helpful to keep in the back of your mind what your “competition” is doing to get where both they and you want to get
7. Sometimes I think about someone who I may be in a bid against someday - for a job or anything else. Not because everything in life is a competition, but because it helps me.
8. Say sometime, far down the road, I will be in competition for a music composition job (just to make it personal to me) - and then I think about what that person is doing right now to prepare for that moment
9. When you think about snoozing your alarm instead of getting up to work on your music - ask yourself if you “competition” is doing the same?
10. When you consider not continuing to practice for another hour - ask yourself if your “competition” from down the road is doing the same?
11. You can apply this “paranoid” way of thinking to a lot of decisions - and you can use it to motivate you to continually be striving to do better - and to work harder than you would otherwise
12. While being paranoid can feel exhausting at times, you’ll find that you are energized to continue your massive action as you see bigger and more massive results through your commitment to being “paranoid”
13. Keep this in mind next time you consider being lazy in the way you approach music - and let this mindset help you to be the kind of musician who constantly and consistently takes action to get where you want to be.

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/025

Andy Fling is the owner of the website MakingMusicFun.net. In 1992 he began teaching music at a small Christian school, and an excitement for teaching kids and music education began. Offering instruction for general music, band and choir to thousands of elementary aged kids in School, his excitement for teaching music to kids is stronger than ever. He currently teaches to a studio full of private music students, offers weekly homeschool classes, and shares the fun though this website.

• Put up blog posts, make them specific and keyword-targeted, and it will build up over time
• Don't neglect Pinterest!
• Large websites (lots of pages) do better on Google search results
• Whatever you do, try to be very focused on whatever goal you have setup. It's far more difficult to make multiple things successful at the same time
• Creating different pages for each specific item improves your visibility on Google
• Get links coming from everywhere that you possibly can - both inside your own site and outside
• There will always be a need for high quality content
• Find out who the biggest people in your space are, follow them, and then do what they're doing
• Pinterest is especially valuable because of how much you can recycle your pinned content

Learn more about Andy Fling

MakingMusicFun.net

FaceBook

Pinterest

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/024

Shannon Curtis is an independent songwriter, singer, performer, recording artist, and author, based in Los Angeles. Curtis is currently on a 70-show nationwide house concert tour in support of Connections. Curtis’s groundbreaking use of the house concert touring format has taken her on extensive nationwide house concert tours, and she has become a popular speaker on the topic at music industry conferences. Curtis's how-to book on house concert touring was published in February 2014, debuted at #1 on Amazon’s Music Business Best Sellers list, and has been featured in major national publications like The Huffington Post and American Songwriter Magazine. Curtis’s music has been featured prominently in independent film & in TV shows such as ABC Family’s Pretty Little Liars, ABC’s Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, and MTV’s The Hills.

• There's not set path for how you can become a "successful" musician - everyone has to figure it out for themselves
• It is an important mindset shift to start to realize that your music has real, monetary value
• When you give people an opportunity to show the value that they place on the musical work that you do, they, in turn, value your music more
• House concerts give you a "captive audience" - and leads to a far better connection between you and your audience
• You want your house concerts to be "community-driven," which means that a real community of friends comes together (invited by the host) to listen to you perform
• House concerts foster far better genuine connections with your fans than really any other model
• This house-concert can be used for musicians at any level, whether you're just getting going, or your well-established
• The biggest opportunity that comes with house concerts is that every night you have at least 20 new potential fans who are primed and ready to get interested in what you have to offer

Mentioned: 1,000 True Fans

Learn more about Shannon Curtis:

ShannonCurtis.net

FaceBook.com/ShannonCurtisMusic

Twitter: @ShannonCurtis

Instagram: @ShannonCurtisMusic

YouTube.com/ShannonCurtisMusic

Shannon's Book: No Booker, No Bouncer, No Bartender: How I Made $25K on a 2-Month House Concert Tour (And How You Can Too)

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/023

A long-time veteran of the music industry, Bobby Owsinski has worked as a producer, recording engineer, guitar and keyboard player, songwriter, and arranger for a variety of major and minor recording artists, motion pictures, and television shows. One of the first to delve into surround sound music mixing, he has worked on a range of surround sound projects and DVD productions for such diverse acts as Elvis, Jimi Hendrix, The Who, Willie Nelson, Neil Young, The Ramones, and Chicago, among many others. Bobby has penned several hundred audio-related articles for a variety of popular industry trade publications. He has also authored a number of books that are now staples in recording programs at colleges around the world, including “The Mixing Engineer’s Handbook,” “the Mastering Engineer’s Handbook,” and “The Recording Engineer's Handbook,” in addition to the “How to Set Up Your Surround Studio” DVD.

• Take every opportunity you can to work on good gear, and get experience in general - it will do wonders for you down the road
• At first, you're going to have to take every gig you can get
• If you're going to be able to really focus on one thing - you have to be basically the best in the world. Better to spread yourself out over several things at first, while you are figuring out where to go
• the quality of your demo will make a huge difference in the attention you are given by anyone. You demos need to be final master quality, without exception

BobbyOwsinski.com

FaceBook

Twitter: @bobbyowsinski

YouTube

Google+

LinkedIn

Pinterest

The Mastering Engineer's Handbook

Music 4.0: A Survival Guide for Making Music in the Internet Age

Social Media Promotions for Musicians

StudioLive Mixer Handbook

The Mixing Engineer's Handbook

The Recording Engineer's Handbook

How to Make Your Band Sound Great

The Studio Builder's Handbook

Audio Mixing Boot-Camp

The Ultimate Guitar Tone

The Musician's Video Handbook

The Studio Musician's Handbook

The Drum Recording Handbook

and more...

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/022

1. A lot of people and artists try to approach creativity with no sense of structure
2. A lot of artists think that the only way to be creative is to do away with structure
3. Structure gives you freedom in creativity - the boundaries that you are allowed to be completely free inside
4. If you completely understand the structure, and the agreed upon norms when it comes to art, you understand how and when to do away with them for the sake of your creativity
5. But structure is two-sided: Structure helps with productivity as well as creativity
6. And to the creative person, structure is the best way to make sure that they stay creative - and produce creative content on a regular basis
7. Map out your day - consider recording your time to find out what is going where (be VERY honest if you decide to do this)
8. Make specific plans about how you are going to spend your time - from the time you get up to the time you go to bed - and include the time that you are going to spend creating music
9. Of course, this lifestyle is not for everyone - but going through this practice is going to show you so many things: where you’re wasting time, how you can do more with the time you have, etc…
10. So try it! I highly recommend at least giving it a shot, to see what it does for your creativity!

Hours Tracker App

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/021

Gail Fischler is an MTNA Nationally Certified Teacher, and a past president of both Arizona State Music Teachers Association and Tucson Music Teachers Association. Gail currently teaches private piano, a pedagog and piano literature seminar, and community class piano at Eastern Arizona College and maintains an independent studio in Tucson. She collaborated on, Latin America, a volume of music with Neeki Bey of Piano Accents. She continues to focus on creating arrangements of folk music and original compositions based on musical heritages from around the globe. She is a contributor to The Piano Bench Mag, an eMagazine by Karen Gibson. Gail also runs Piano Addict, a website for piano students, teachers, and avocational players and The Musical Adjectives Project, an interactive Wiki to aid pianists and musicians in describing and understanding the emotions and character within repertoire. She is the inventor of the popular board game Musical Words which is based on the descriptives found on the Musical Adjectives Project pages.

• There are always many facets to a musical career
• Usually, people make their assumptions about what it means to be in any one career, long before the actually get there and understand what it really means
• Consistency is probably the single most important thing when it comes to curating a following online
• There are so many different ways to pursue a musical career. Don't confine yourself to the expected norms of what a musical career looks like
• Sometimes it really helps to get away from what you're working on, and to do something unrelated, to come up with a solution to whatever was bothering you
• Don't be afraid to let go of something and head in a different direction, or cut back for a bit and take a breather from your projects

Recommended Book:

"Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life" by Anne Lamott

Learn more about Gail Fischler:

PianoAddict.com

The Musical Adjectives Project

FaceBook

Twitter: @pianoaddictblog

YouTube

Pinterest

Google+

If you would like to be considered for featured artist, email music submissions [email protected]

Shownotes: modernmusician.co/020