Archive for the ‘Lifestyle Design’ Category

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Everybody needs to make a living and so do musicians.
For a lot of musicians the ultimate goal is to write and perform their own music and get paid for it.

This is an awesome goal, but success takes a while. In the meantime you need to pay the bills. Luckily as a musician there are a lot of creative ways to make good money.

We can’t live without music anymore. Music is needed everywhere and for everything. It’s a global language that we all understand and people all over the world come together to listen to it. We need music to feel good, get excited, be inspired, relieve stress, go crazy, to connect and to feel we belong to something or someone.

We are surrounded with music everywhere. Just to name a few: CDs, DVDs, Radio, TV programs, ads, movies, Internet, games, jingles, concerts, festivals, bars, coffee houses, restaurants, malls, weddings, ceremonies, etc. So there is a huge market for you as a musician to benefit from. You don’t need to be a professional. You become one while doing it. It’s possible for everyone. All you need is dedication, motivation and persistence to make it happen.

Here are 5 ways to make money while loving what you do:
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photo from Istockphoto
Many years ago I bought a guitar exercise book written by Al Di Meola. The first two things he pointed out in the book was the importance of creating good habits and taking care of your health. I never forgot those two golden rules, although taking care of my health was something I had to learn the hard way. It took me a while to learn the major benefits of living a healthy life.

Body work outs, healthy foods, stress release, finger warm up exercises, taking care of your hearing, stretching, relaxation, etcetera are all part of the journey in becoming and staying a good guitar player. I know we don’t always have the time to work out and we all get into a slump once in a while. That’s okay. It’s part of life and it’s good to have a break now and then, but that’s no excuse to ignore that little voice in the back of your mind who knows what is best for you when you haven’t taken care of yourself the last couple of months or worse. So let’s pick it up where you left of. You know you’ll be a lot happier once you start working out. We are talking about your health here. It’s the most important thing!

Being fit will make you feel good about yourself. It gives you a more overall positive attitude. You will be more motivated to practice and more focused to achieve your musical goals. A good physical condition will also improve your performance on stage and in the studio when you’re recording.

So here are some tips to get you in good shape and stay motivated at all times:
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photo from Istockphoto
Why should you become a minimalist musician in the first place? Well, musicianship is about playing and creating music and not about collecting a lot of stuff. We call those people collectors.

All you really need is an instrument to play and then you need to get going, working your way up to becoming a better musician. A very efficient and fulfilling way to do this is becoming a minimalist musician.

Stop focusing on all the stuff you think you need to improve your playing. It will not. Practice improves performance.

A lot of stuff will only distract you from reaching your goal. As a musician it is tempting to keep buying the latest gadgets, hottest gear or recording equipment, but in many cases it will eventually end up somewhere in a corner. I don’t say you shouldn’t buy gear or recording stuff, but keep it basic and to a minimal. The less stuff you use, the more authentic you will be as a musician. If you do buy some recording equipment, use what you buy, use what is is meant for. Don’t leave the dust to settle. You know who you are. :-) Write songs and record them. Brilliant ideas won’t stick in your head forever. They deserve to be recorded and put on paper. Buying is the easy part, actually recording is a different matter. It’s great fun but you also need some persistence. Keeping things simple makes it easier.

Being a minimalist musician is about sticking to the essentials, being focused on your music with the least distraction, feeling good about yourself and trying to become as authentic as you can possibly be. Play, write, perform and record authentically. Don’t strive for perfection, strive for authenticity.

Here are some suggestions to becoming a minimalist musician:
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                                            photo from Istockphoto
As a musician there are so many things that will distract you from making music. We get caught up in all the stuff we can use to enhance our music… or so we like to think.

A better guitar, a more powerful amp, more and more effects, the best sequencer, the latest plugins, always looking for updates and upgrades. I admit I’m guilty as charged. I always thought: “If I only could have that plugin, sequencer or this effect, life would be much better”. I’ve been there, done that, but I’ve come clean. I realized it took my eyes off the ball and I lost a lot of precious time because of it. Now I’m back to basics.

I focus on playing guitar. Practicing and writing. That’s my main goal. Why? Because I love it. I also try to be basic in my lifestyle. Although I’ve got stuff like everyone else, I get rid of the things I don’t need. When you go basic, you automatically create more time for your music and social life. The more basic you get, the more time you have left.

What do I do apart from practicing and writing? Read the rest of this entry »

                                             photo from Istockphoto
We all have busy lives nowadays. A lot of people aren’t content or living their dreamlife while they should be.

In order to create a life where you can spend all the time you like on music, family, friends and other things you love most, you need to sit down and relax.

Stop being busy. Stop running around. Stop everything for a moment.

It’s good that you read about the things you enjoy and the dreams you want to be inspired by, but you also have to let your own mind inspire you. The best way to do this is to do nothing. Just sit on a couch undistracted. Find a place where you have a little peace and quiet. Try a bench in the park.
Once a month or once a week take some time to do nothing and just observe….

Here are some ways to take one step back and many steps forward:
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