Change is good.

I am changing, you are changing, and the world around us is changing–FAST!

Here is a bit of my recent news:

Over the past six weeks, my family and I have packed up and stored all of our furniture, gotten rid of (donated, sold, thrown out, or gave away) two thirds of all of our possessions, relocated a piano and the Let It Out Productions recording studio, mobilized our office, and transformed most of our day-to-day routines and lifestyle. We have cleared a lot of room for new opportunities, with an eye on touring around the country and creating a new home-base over the coming year.

We have taken a total of 10 road trips, including an inspiring journey down to Washington DC to witness the historical inauguration of Barack Obama (as well as catching the “We Are One” pre-inaugural concert).

Though many friends and colleagues have commented on the courage it must have taken to embark on such a radical path, I feel that this process is actually much less scary than being stuck and resisting change, especially in such a quickly changing world.

With radical shifts and changes in the economy, society, and the political landscape, artists need to stay up to speed with their own changes. This can mean upgrading or revamping your instruments or technologies (your rig) or changing the venues or context in which you create (your gig).

Check out this SOS podcast for more examples of creative adaptability as five levels of change are examined for the impact they have on the artist’s life: personal change, cultural change, economic change, political change, and musical change.

 

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When in deep water, learn to be a diver…

When you are committed to life-long growth, there is no such thing as failure, only lessons on the way.

When you are committed to success, there is no such thing as rejection, only clarification about where you are headed.

When you are committed to making great music, there are no accidents, just constant adjustment and refinements to make as you follow the Muse.

Just as every misstep is an opportunity to come in to greater alignment with your true path, so every unexpected professional or musical flub can be an invitation to seize the moment and integrate the “mistake” into the business plan, the composition or the improvisation.

When you can let go of the need for everything to go “right,” you open up to the possibilities of everything going well. This is equally true when writing a song, crafting a career path, or growing into a personal relationship.

Join this uplifting episode as JP shares some of his most prized misfortunes, the hidden gifts he received from them, and some of the underlying principles of musicianship he discovered along his winding path.

 

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Performing artists, songwriters, and aspiring musicians are usually given the same piece of sage advice: to get yourself or put your work “out there” where it can be discovered. This often implies pounding pavement–moving to a big city, booking a lot of rough gigs, networking like a monster, or knocking on the proverbial door of opportunity until someone–an agent, an executive, or a “talent scout” (do those still exist?)–discovers you.

The familiar story always ends the same way: Once you get discovered–once some powerful, visionary manager or mogul is exposed to your talent*, they will make you a big star and the rest will be history…the only problem is that the eternal hope at the root of this “discovery myth” is built on rumor, not fact. How many success stories are really that simple?

Even more importantly, expecting to be discovered may lead to another unintentional problem–the common trap of leaving your center in hope of attracting someone else’s attention and admiration. Once an artist gets hooked on the dream of getting discovered, they become vulnerable to superficial flattery, neediness, and a host of manipulations. This desperate need for external recognition is so common in some industry circles that it seems completely natural–an industry standard.

However, there are alternatives: instead of perpetually seeking to be discovered, you can invest your energy into a lifelong pursuit of Self-discovery. Living with a deep curiosity about who you are and who you are becoming is a joyous journey that strengthens an artist’s resolve, deepens self-expression, and, paradoxically, attracts more attention from potential business contacts and musical collaborators.

Tune in to this Soul of Songwriting episode to learn from some of the hard lessons and foibles that have taken many a musician (including our host) down many a wrong path. Discover what treasures lie calmly in waiting once the need to be discovered is redirected into a search for Self-discovery. This is part five of the “Seven Common Myths of Musicianship and the Creative Process” series.

*For more thoughts on talent, listen to SOS Episode # 21: “Just The Way You Are: Debunking The Myth Of Talent.”

 

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Are there any areas in your life where you experience an abundance of frustration? 

If not, you might want to skip this podcast. If so, go ahead, take a listen, and get ready to tap into your frustration as fertile source of good material for your next song or composition. Six distinct strategies for turning your difficult emotions into sweet musical ideas are explored and analysed. 

JP not only discusses, but also sits in on the piano to play around with some examples that range from Beethoven to Americana.

 

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