“If you’re going to be a performer, have a back-up profession, something secure, like welding”

-Robin Williams

 

 Ah the advice of well-intentioned family and friends! They just don’t get it! You tell them about your dream, hoping for some excitement or understanding, and all they can think to ask is, “How are you going to make a living doing that?”!  Is that how we define value these days? Can’t we define personal fulfillment in terms besides dollars per hour/year? 

Well…we can, but we can’t quite pay the rent with it.  I would imagine that your landlord would be even less receptive to the “my music is more important than money” thing than your parents. 

Okay, so we need to make money, but do we need a backup plan?  Well, more important than a backup plan is the CONCURRENT PLAN.  You won’t increase your odds of success in music or art or whatever simply by taking extra time to earn credentials for a different field.  You may gain piece of mind, and if so, perhaps that’s a good choice for you, but ALL OF US are going to need to plan ahead a bit to make sure we can make some money WHILE we’re still pursuing our music.

Part of your business planning is going to include a list of basic personal expenses you need to meet each month.  Here’s one place we differ from mainstream financial advice.  People in regular jobs usually take their monthly income and divy it up accordingly.  We’re going to start with listing the basic expenses you need to live and then finding sources of income to meet those needs.  If not, your business will experience a serious cash flow deficit and your dream will be going nowhere.  There will be an entire article devoted to this later which I’ll come back and link here then. 

This series is now going to explore some various jobs and other methods of making money which you can use to help finance your dream. Each article will detail a different job or income source, how well it pays, how flexible it is, and what training or qualifications you need to land it.  We need to compare these various ideas with real dollars so you can make good decisions based on accurate information.  Besides, won’t it be nice when your folks are pushing you to major in something else and do your music on the side to pull out some hard figures and show them how your Concurrent Plan actually pays more than their idea.  Sound far fetched?  Not at all!

So, put the backup plan on hold for awhile and devote your energies toward fulfilling your dreams.  There will always be time to go back to school and get a different degree or get a professional degree like an MBA or JD, and scores of student loan lenders ready to line up and help you finance it.  Far easier to go after your dreams now than later.  You don’t hear about many lawyers giving up law to try and become a rock star do you?  Go for your dreams while you’re young, but be smart.  With a little bit of thinking ahead, you can line up some jobs and other income sources that will pay the bills and allow you the time and flexibility to reach your goals.

Lets get started!