Tytania Explains It All- Part One.
This would have been a reply on NFCS but it's long and I decided that I might want to be able to edit my post at a later time. My thoughts are in response to a poster who was concerned about a singing spouse who seems to be spending a lot of money on a "career" that isn't paying out. These are issues that have come up at least three times over the past few months, so let's talk, shall we?
Kids, we have a lot of ground to cover.
I've seen a lot of business words being thrown around lately, but I get the impression that singers don't really understand what those terms really mean.
If you're running a business, then you need to run a business. That means you don't send copies of sheet music that you paid for to other singers because doing so is funding a competing business. What I see here are not people running businesses but people who sing. So, we're going to talk about being a person who sings as part of a balanced life.
If you are the only person in your life, then you can do what you want to do. If, however, you are sharing your life with other people (spouse, partner, kids, family members etc.) then those people need to be factored into the way singing impacts your life and finances. That being said, if you're alone, you should still do step one.
Step one: You need to sit down and talk honestly about your long-term goals. Really honestly. Really really really honestly. This is a conversation that has the potential to be really painful, especially if you haven't ever discussed this stuff openly. You need to talk about where you want to go with singing, whether children or a house are part of the long-term plan, the needs of all family members. This conversation is tough because we cannot have it all, so we have to understand where our priorities lie. If the plan is to jet off for an international career and our SO needs us to be at home, then there are some compromises that need to happen. You should know that if this isn't painful, then you probably weren't honest.
Step Two: Now, we're going to decide how our singing fits into our lives. We need to do this in order to avoid ending up in an abusive relationship with our dream of performing. You have to decide on what your contribution to your non-singing life is going to be. If you're making a financial contribution, you need to budget how much you need to contribute to life outside of singing. Yes, non-singing money must be budgeted first. If you have a spouse who is handling the money, then you need to agree on what your non-financial contribution will be, because you will need to plan your singing in a way that does not impact that.
Step Three: Now that you know what you need to invest in your life, you can think about how much time and money you can spend on singing. You (and your loved ones) need to decide how much you can afford to put into singing. This is going to be a finite number. In other words, you are going to learn how to prioritize your spending. Trust me, you're going to see those audition fees in a very different light when you have to choose between paying an audition fee or spending the money on a competition application, or parking for a local audition. Note that all singing expenses (including gas, parking, sheet music, audition outfits, computers, cell phones and anything else that has a function related in any way to your singing) have to come from the singing budget.
Step four: Decide on a plan for extras. If you earn money from singing, does it go back into singing or does it pay back what has already been spent? If you want to spend more money on singing, is getting a job or a second job or a third job an option? What happens if life throws a curve ball that forces you to reduce your singing budget? You need to think about all of these things.
What I'm trying to say is that you can have your dream. You just have to approach it as an adult with the understanding that your family might be willing to support you, but they will not support your voice teacher or an opera company or a dream that is breaking your heart. That's not going to happen.
But that doesn't mean you can't have your singing and your dream. You just have to wipe those stars out of your eyes so that you can see clearly.
Next time, we'll talk about the thing you really want to know- HOW TO MAKE LOTS OF MONEY IN MUSIC.
Kids, we have a lot of ground to cover.
I've seen a lot of business words being thrown around lately, but I get the impression that singers don't really understand what those terms really mean.
If you're running a business, then you need to run a business. That means you don't send copies of sheet music that you paid for to other singers because doing so is funding a competing business. What I see here are not people running businesses but people who sing. So, we're going to talk about being a person who sings as part of a balanced life.
If you are the only person in your life, then you can do what you want to do. If, however, you are sharing your life with other people (spouse, partner, kids, family members etc.) then those people need to be factored into the way singing impacts your life and finances. That being said, if you're alone, you should still do step one.
Step one: You need to sit down and talk honestly about your long-term goals. Really honestly. Really really really honestly. This is a conversation that has the potential to be really painful, especially if you haven't ever discussed this stuff openly. You need to talk about where you want to go with singing, whether children or a house are part of the long-term plan, the needs of all family members. This conversation is tough because we cannot have it all, so we have to understand where our priorities lie. If the plan is to jet off for an international career and our SO needs us to be at home, then there are some compromises that need to happen. You should know that if this isn't painful, then you probably weren't honest.
Step Two: Now, we're going to decide how our singing fits into our lives. We need to do this in order to avoid ending up in an abusive relationship with our dream of performing. You have to decide on what your contribution to your non-singing life is going to be. If you're making a financial contribution, you need to budget how much you need to contribute to life outside of singing. Yes, non-singing money must be budgeted first. If you have a spouse who is handling the money, then you need to agree on what your non-financial contribution will be, because you will need to plan your singing in a way that does not impact that.
Step Three: Now that you know what you need to invest in your life, you can think about how much time and money you can spend on singing. You (and your loved ones) need to decide how much you can afford to put into singing. This is going to be a finite number. In other words, you are going to learn how to prioritize your spending. Trust me, you're going to see those audition fees in a very different light when you have to choose between paying an audition fee or spending the money on a competition application, or parking for a local audition. Note that all singing expenses (including gas, parking, sheet music, audition outfits, computers, cell phones and anything else that has a function related in any way to your singing) have to come from the singing budget.
Step four: Decide on a plan for extras. If you earn money from singing, does it go back into singing or does it pay back what has already been spent? If you want to spend more money on singing, is getting a job or a second job or a third job an option? What happens if life throws a curve ball that forces you to reduce your singing budget? You need to think about all of these things.
What I'm trying to say is that you can have your dream. You just have to approach it as an adult with the understanding that your family might be willing to support you, but they will not support your voice teacher or an opera company or a dream that is breaking your heart. That's not going to happen.
But that doesn't mean you can't have your singing and your dream. You just have to wipe those stars out of your eyes so that you can see clearly.
Next time, we'll talk about the thing you really want to know- HOW TO MAKE LOTS OF MONEY IN MUSIC.