This is one of – if not THE – top questions in every musician’s life: should I have a plan B, or not?
It’s tough!
From my experience if you want to become the best musician you can be (essentially applies to any profession), you have to invest every bit of your time and energy into it. You can put 75% (you can define your own percentage) into your plan A and then 25% into your plan B, but neither of them will be done properly! You can also get yourself a day job and make music on the side as a hobby and when it takes off (if you’re lucky) then you can quit your job and go full time. Be aware though: all the things you do beside music require your energy and time. Maybe after a long day at work you can find a couple of hours to spend on your music but more often than not you’re just too tired to do so.
My tip: if you really need a plan B then you should find one where you can work on your music the whole time. Back in the day we would make or join a cover band and play gigs, so we could live just from making music and in our spare time we would work on our own projects. Unfortunately these kind of gigs are becoming very rare or they’re even completely gone. It’s a shame because it was a great learning and growing process. You were playing the whole time so you stayed in shape. You were learning new songs and automatically learning songwriting and arrangements. And not to forget: you were learning how to play with the band and interact with your bandmates on stage! Nowadays, this is a rarity! Everybody is a solo artist…
What to do?
It’s always difficult or even impossible to tell somebody what to do. We are all different, we have different personalities, we are differently resilient and persistent. I can only speak on my own behalf and this is what I would do if I was starting as a musician today.
As we all know and we’ve already talked about it, in today’s world of music you have to be the “Jack of all trades“. Nowadays the quote is often misinterpreted as negative because the “master of none” was added, but the complete saying was originally “A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.” Formerly intended as a compliment, the phrase means that a person is a generalist rather than a specialist, versatile and adept at many things.
As a musician of today you have to practically do everything yourself: learn your instrument, learn the music and everything that goes with it. Don’t count on the big labels to help you. They will notice you only if and when you’re already an established act with your own audience and huge online presence. And then – and ONLY then – they will want a piece of that pie! And trust me, they’ll want a BIG one! I wouldn’t do it! You can if you want but get a good lawyer and read carefully through your contract…
What I would rather do is to list the things I have to learn to move my career as a musician to the next level and then consider another way how I can use them:
- Ok, I have to learn my instrument. When I get good enough, I can teach others the stuff that I already know.
- I want to learn some music theory. When I do and I understand it, why not try to teach and help others understand it, too?!
- I want to record myself. When I learn how, I can make instructional videos and put them online to help others.
- I have to have an online presence so I learn how to make me a website. When I do, I can make websites for other people.
- etc.
Keep it in relation to music
See where I’m going with this? In everything that you learn and/or do there is a hidden plan B in there, it’s just not meant to be THE plan B in the first place. If something you do and you’re good at is good enough for you, then it’s probably good enough for other people, too. So, if they need something you know you can do, offer them your help. Don’t see it as a plan B but as a nice side earning from something you’ve already learned along the way to help your own music career.
In today’s world of technology and internet there are still countless opportunities hidden to be found – we just have to take a moment, look for them and then think how to use them to our benefit. It’s a win-win situation: you stay in your music lane, constantly learning new stuff and at the same time helping other people to move faster and safer on their musical journey…
