Delegate Your Work!Written by Ruth Marlene Friesen
It's a number of years ago I heard a Elizabeth Elliott, say * a woman should learn to delegate any work that a child or helper could do, so she could focus on work only she could do. That made a profound impression on me.In past year or so I've had it come back to my mind a number of times, and more I think on it, wiser that thought appears. Just think, of all little chores that are part of your basic daily routine. In how many is it conceivable that someone might learn to do that as well, perhaps better, than you? If you gave up making beds, preparing family's breakfast, and washing dishes, how much free time would you have to do creative writing? If someone else mowed lawn, swept porch and driveway, watered flowers, could you check on a discouraged friend by phone and lift their spirits? Or create a gift to take to them? If you've been overwhelmed with far more to do than is humanly possible, maybe it's because you were never meant to do ALL those things. You are hogging work that someone else ought to be doing.
| | I Am Finally Living My Dream! (How I left the corporate world at age 44 to pursue a career as a musician.)Written by Jim Hudak
Even in grade school, I knew I wanted to be a musician…full time, as my career. I firmly believed it was my "calling". Early on, I determined that in my case, as a musician, there could be three sources of revenue: live music performances, record sales, and songwriting royalties. It took many years, but finally it has happened as I envisioned it as a young boy. As I near age of 50, I can say I am living my dream as a musician…performing, recording, and songwriting!This wasn't by any means a direct route. I forgot about following yellow brick road. Along way, I have taken a few side roads…newspaper delivery, landscaping, outdoor maintenance for a school district, restaurant busboy, boxing and stocking groceries, bartender and tavern manager, lumber yard and hardware sales, real estate sales, selling entertainment discount books door to door (and successfully, I might add!), doing voiceovers for commercials, acting as an "extra" for films and television, concessionaire at sporting events, umpire for youth athletic games, painting houses and remodeling buildings, apartment manager, music librarian…. and "big three" long term: 1. 16 years as an executive with ASCAP (American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers) and SESAC where I received an incredible up-close view of songwriting and legal side of music business. 2. Five years as an employee and store manager for a six-store chain of record stores, learning just how many thousands of recording artists there actually are and getting to attend an unlimited number of free concerts. 3. Four years as a traffic, news, and sports reporter for over 50 radio and television stations. This reporting experience was invaluable. Besides all behind microphone experience, I saw competitiveness, professionalism, (usually) low paying, corporately controlled world of broadcasting - firsthand. The highlight was flying daily in Cessna planes and helicopters, providing traffic reports for stations in San Francisco Bay Area. Wow! That’s quite an assortment of jobs. Talk about a diverse view of world. But…all that time, I saw it only as a means to an end. My real goal was to play, record, and compose music, FULL TIME. It was just so hard to do on an ongoing basis and still pay bills. I would get gigs from time to time that would last anywhere from one night to three months. I never played "Top 40" radio hits, but insisted on playing what I believed was music with integrity or at least music close to my heart. While I wanted to perform mostly my own compositions, I was willing to also play songs by my musical heroes. You know, those singer-songwriter types that were not always household names: John Prine, Bob Dylan, Gram Parsons, Jerry Garcia, and of course Beatles and James Taylor. But whether I played as a soloist or in groups, sustained income just wasn’t there. Finally as I neared age 30, thought of a steady paycheck became too good to pass up. I took a job as a Field Representative for ASCAP. It required my selling copyrighted music licenses to all types of businesses who provided music for their customers. I spent next 16 years never having to worry much about money. I also enjoyed varied experience, travel, and solid education in learning about that part of music business that so interested me - it was a valuable chapter in my life. But although financial worries were gone, I spent so much of that time unhappy! I knew I had to get back to artistic pursuit of my music.
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