You’re reading this because you’re passionate about sound. You might be a musician but you have an appreciation for anything that sounds good – movies, games, tv shows etc. Our individual goals are probably quite different but what we do have in common is that we want to express ourselves through music or audio in some shape or form and that’s incredibly important… that’s why you’re here.
Now, you already have an audio career, whether that be through a full time job, a “side hustle” gig, or simply as a hobby and for fun. Your career exists and it’s entirely up to you whether you make it full time or not. With that said, there’s one common mistake that most people make on their journey whether they’re working full time or not.
So to start with, I want you to think about an inspiring story. It’s usually an underdog story, right? Someone who’s experienced a terrible loss or setback but fought back against all odds and succeeded. I’m sure the perfect example pops right into your head but here’s a few I always think of: Steve Jobs, Jay-Z, Oprah Winfrey, Thomas Edison and Rocky Balboa (fictional characters count!).
We use those people as shining examples of what can be achieved when we’re relentless in the pursuit of our goals. Yet those examples are just the tip of the iceberg. There are no successful people in existence or who have come before us who haven’t experienced terrible failure and rejection on the path to success. That’s because it’s impossible. Life doesn’t work that way. If we got everything we ever wanted without working for it, we simply wouldn’t appreciate it.
This isn’t a “poor me” story, but I’ve personally experienced a phenomenal amount of failure and setbacks in my career and I’m proud of it all. My failures have made me who I am today. Failure is a sign that you’re pushing the envelope and you’re trying to succeed in uncharted territory. If you fail, you dust yourself off and keep going.
When you’re starting out in any fiercely competitive field like music or audio production, you’re going to get way more people saying “No” (or ignoring you) than “Yes”. Over time, if you keep at it, keep working hard and smart, you get a lot more people saying “Yes” than “No“. If you’re really dedicated and do all the right things, people will even seek you out to work with you. How nice is that?
But let me get to the most important point…
What’s the biggest mistake most people make in their audio career?
They quit.
The worst possible thing you can do when you experience rejection or failure is quit. It’s possible to bounce back from failure very quickly but if you quit, you’re done for good. Now, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with quitting if something really isn’t for you and it just feels like you’re bashing your head against a wall. It’s worth thinking about that quote out there that’s often credited to Einstein…
“The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.”
That’s definitely true. However, more often than not, all it takes to succeed is a slight change of direction or tactics. Sometimes it’s just your method and the way you’re going about it that sucks and that’s an easy fix.
If you’re truly passionate about something, why would you ever give up on it?
Whether you want to write, record or play music as a hobby, make a few extra bucks with it as a side business or quit your job altogether and launch a career as a musician, producer or engineer, it is all possible.
It’s possible because there are people exactly like you who have done it already. There are even people much less talented than you who have done it already.
There are also many many more people who have quit. I know so many talented musicians who quit a long time ago. They’re happy with their lives and I’m happy for them but I also know they’d still prefer to be making music. Not only that, but they’re more than capable of being wildly successful at it.
Now, I know there are life circumstances that get in the way. I’ve been there. We all have. Life throws all sorts of obstacles in our way, whether it be inflation, illness, unemployment, a breakup… that list is potentially never ending. The most important thing is to keep going. Focus only on what you want to do and ride it out.
Difficult times pass and huge goals can be achieved. But if you quit, you’re done. You’re resigning yourself to the fact that you’ll never get to do what you really want to do. Unfortunately, that type of thinking creates a lot of bitterness and resentment in people, so don’t go down that route at all!
Whatever your audio career looks like… full time, part time, or hobby… don’t ever quit if it’s something you love.
If you’ve got an inspiring story to tell about your journey, don’t hold it back. Share it with others and give them the encouragement they might need from your success.
So, make a start right now and share your story with me…
Leave a comment below!
professional sounding mix every time...
Thanks man! needed to hear this. It’s definitely frustrating to keep coming up short to the pros over and over again, but my love of making music and creatively expressing myself keeps me coming back for more. I don’t have a success story, but I feel it is a success just to keep working and trust in the process no matter what. Thanks for taking the time to send out this positive, encouraging message in a world that isn’t always so.
Thank you for the Encouraging words of Wisdom Stephen. 25 years ago I was in my late twenties and decided to go to night school for Recording Engineering, many told me that it was a waste of time and that I should stick with my corperate job, but I went for it, even when the school discontinued their night classes (if you wanted to complete the course you had to switch to day classes) which many couldn’t as they needed steady work to survive, I quit my day job and stuck it out. When I graduated from the two year program I managed to land an internship at Flyte Tyme Productions in Edina MN, which was the private studio for Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, started out answering phones and housekeeping. Ten years later when they decided to re-locate to the west coast I had worked my way up to Night Studio Mgr / Chief Digital Editor in addition to being the main tracking/ programming engineer on the night shift next to Steve Hodge who was the Chief Engineer. I can’t say enough Wonderful things about Jam & Lewis, the most amazing down to earth production duo in the history of music. Lastly I give all the credit to God for giving me me the health and strength to stick with it, You never know where you’ll end up unless to stay the course, see it to the end and Never Quit.
My story is kinda short: in 2013 I started studying recording, mixing and mastering and finished last year on Q1. Since thern I have no job or any way to get money. I mix on headphones (ATH-M50x) and I did a few tricks to make it sound better. Now, I don’t have an interface, yet some people say they like my mixes.
Now the problem is that both my PC and headphones are starting to break, and as the past year showed me every day, it doesn’t seem like I’ll get any kind of job so I don’t even know when I’ll be able to mix again when they completely break.
In the last three months I’ve been offering people mixes and masters for free so I can make my portfolio, still, people in this country don’t know what those are (not their fault), they only search for guys that can record and “make beats” (tbh I hate the last one and I don’t have any tools for it except the DAW).
So yeah, for now my future looks pretty dark, I don’t how will I even survive if my parents kick me out of the house in the future.
Hallo, I can´t help you with hardware. But if you use Windows XP or higher Windows, you can download for free “Samplitude Pro X Silver”. Its a small and free version of “Samplitude Pro X”. You have to registrate after installation for running. (Where Keeped? = download).There are many highend plugins in, also great amps and boxes and beatmachines! Also very good meters and masteringtools. You get it here:
http://www.miditech.de/userfiles/magix/samplitude_pro_x_silver_miditech_us.exe
Yours Gerd
Hello again. Don`t know how to help, but would like to…
I`m about to recover an “old” mix of mine from the Men and Machines project. Sounds kind of crappy as it is and I`m going to make some “cosmetics” and see if it turns into something good enough to hear.
It might not be entirely your favourite genre, but it`s the heaviest we`ve done so far… 😉
Would you like to give a listen and see if it suits your portefolio? It would be great having someone other than myself mixing one of my electronic home recordings at the same time on the other side of the Atlantic and see the result…
And would you like me to send you some samples (drum loops, bass loops, that kind of stuff) from a sample pack? They`re kind of “old”, but what is “old” when it comes to music?
For this or any other purposes, please hit me through my “professional” e-mail address: portugalmixtake@gmail.com
Take care. Paulo
I’ve failed my whole life……I’ve failed in music, in marriage, in parenting, in college…..you name it, I’ve failed at it.
Currently, I’m failing as a mix engineer. But here’s the thing, every time I don’t get it right, that means I’ve learned something new.
I’ve never defined success in terms of dollars.
In terms of life, I feel I’ve been a huge success because I’ve always done what I wanted to do.
You should pick your own terms for what it means to be successful and what it means to be alive because if you don’t, there are a bunch of people and situations just waiting to take over your story and tell you how to be and what to do.
Write your own story and don’t worry about what culture is asking of you……culture is not your friend.