PLEASE HELP! I'm Standing At The Crossroads...
Hey Steemians,
so here I am, 1.5 years and almost 40k later that I invested into developing myself as a musician. Instead of investing into a property, I had quit my day job and invested into myself - intellectual property. I spent the money to basically pay my monthly bills and buy food. Not shopping or extravagant travels.... though I did go on a Tour in the US (see below) to support developing my music.
THE HIGHLIGHTS
To highlight just a few out of the hundreds of things I've done to get my musical career off the ground, here's the list - I've contacted venues and hotels to get paid gigs (mostly unsuccessfully), played open mics - mostly successfully :), started playing at jam sessions to get to know more musicians which is now paying off by having more contacts; paid for consultations with an experienced manager; successfully offering songwriting workshops and consultations (check www.messageofthesong.com; went on a self-sponsored Open-Mic Tour around the US with the intention to build my audience and expose my music to new venues; got selected for and took part in a songwriting retreat in California with Judy Stakee (the talent development engine behind Cheryl Crow, Gavin DeGraw or Katie Perry) which was also a fantastic experience; and eventually found Steemit and started sharing my music here as much as I can WHILE gaining the amazing support of @dsound and @openmic! THANK YOU GUYS!
THE CROSSROADS
While I feel incredibly blessed to have had this opportunity to dedicate my life to a full-time music career, I haven't YET managed to start generating sufficient monthly income with music and my songwriting workshops. My songwriting workshops have proven to be potentially successful so I will focus on developing them now. For the rest, Steemit has started making a difference for me but it's still hard to rely on financially at this point since I'm relatively new here and also the price of crypto fluctuates...
So I'm standing at the crossroads - I have a BUDGET left for about 2 MONTHS ... and then I need some income. I really don't want to return to an office which was death to my soul for the last 10 years or so, so I am thinking what all I could offer to generate income with music and music-related activities.
In addition to generating income with my songwriting workshops, paid gigs (hard to get for me) and my activities on Steemit, I thought that I would simply ask for your ideas and opinions. I can do many things, and it would be a shame to put this person behind an office computer where she will die once again... So I made a list of things I can do and would like to ask you for ideas where I could take it to make some money to pay the bills.
MY SKILLS
Advanced - Musical
- songwriting
- singing
- playing piano
- music production
- audio editing
- teaching songwriting workshops
- conducting interviews
- host a radio show
- research
- providing musical feedback/curation
- coach and encourage others (and share my experience from personal development courses, therapy, spiritual studies, meditation, yoga)
- creating and developing concepts
Advanced - Non-Musical
- project management (I'm really well organized and deliver on time)
- translation (Slovak/English)
Mid Level
- video editing in iMovie
- Photoshop
While I don't expect you to solve the puzzle for me, I'd love to hear your suggestions about where I could utilize my talents on and off Steemit. More heads, more ideas... And perhaps someone is looking for a person like me to work with.
I AM
- reliable
- hard working
- creative
- smart
- constructive
- experienced
- an idea generator
- on time
So feel free to resteem this and leave any comments about ideas and tips you might have for me. I really appreciate your time reading through this.
Thank you!
Petra
Follow PETRA JORDAN on all platforms
It is interesting to hear that Steemit is doing some good for you, as it appears that Steemit is sooo new...
I haven't seen you write about selling into the film/cinema industry, which Is what I am attempting to do. Nor have I heard you mention anything about publishing and how you are dealing with that end of things.
I assume you are collaborating with others on at least some parts of what you are doing, but I'd suggest finding collaborators in the areas that you are weak. As you expand your space (Sphere of influence) you will need to delagate. I would say that with out Money you will need to develope a group of like minded people with the same goals, who can contribute fairly
Russ.
Thanks, @ruslucas! As for writing for film/cinema - a good point as I actually really enjoy writing that kind of music! It’s just that it’s more long term payouts and I need something in 2 months...
As for publishing, I could use some guidance there. I only self published till now...
And no, unfortunately I am doing everything by myself and I know it’s the wrong way to go but I don’t know who to reach out to...
Where do you live?
Could you see yourself busking?
If so I got a bunch of tips...
Thanks, Timothy! I live in the Netherlands. Busking would mean investing into a portable keyboard and gear because I’m a keyboard player... and most towns in the Netherlands have a condition that you may only busk unamplified - quite challenging for a keyboard player:)))
same rules in most towns in sweden, and yeah a portable (perferably battery run) keybord and a battery run amp like the Roland KC-110 or something that can support at least two channels (one for the microphone and for the keybord) is required to make some dough... although it might be a good investment.. i usually just make sure that i play in locations and at times where i get no complaints and then the cops to 99% just leave me be. Ofcourse i have come across places where the rules are applied more strictly... in my home town i would make back the money for a battery amp in a weekend.. and after that there is continious income.
Perhaps you could borrow some gear like that for a weekend or two and see if you could make it work, and if you like it? If you get there, then its just to play songs that are famous And that you really like.. also resist the impulse to give up and go home.. one needs to do the hours.. 4h is a good shift ;)
Thanks, I’ll consider it!!! Really appreciate your input;)
Good luck for your next step !!
I`m a Hobby Composer from Germany - so there is no pressure for me.
Viele Grüße aus Deutschland
Michael
Thanks!