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A Man of Many Hats

Ahoy!

From the first day I started playing bass in high school I knew I wanted to be a musician. Not everyone around me was as excited about this life choice as I was. For the past 20 or so years I have been asked what it is I do for a living. I've shared on this blog the different ways I have labeled myself over the years, in particular, that I am a self-employed musician, not an unemployed musician. I have made my living wages from music endeavors for years now. There have certainly been times when I've had day jobs, but only as a short term fix while my music life was in flux. Today I want to share yet another way of expressing yourself to those pesky relatives when they complain that you “need to get a real job.”

Today's advice is simple: You are a musician. That's it. You don't have to label yourself as a teacher, performer, youtuber, and anything else that comes with your daily life. Being a musician means you are all these things and probably many more. A colleague of mine was explaining to someone recently that he had three jobs: a high school teacher, private teacher, and a weekend performing musician. To me he has one job: he's a musician. I don't label myself as a teacher even though by day I do teach in a high school. I don't say I'm a studio musician even though that's part of my evening routine. I am a musician and as such I wear many hats. This is ok, and it's the norm these days.

Don't feel the pressure of having to justify yourself by saying you have more jobs than you do. You have one. You're a musician, and a darn good one.

Until next time,
Heard

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