What do you do?
It’s one of the most common questions anyone is asked when meeting for the first time. What do you do? For musicians and songwriters, it may not be such a clear-cut answer. In this open question to our readers, I ask how do you answer the question: what do you do?
To those who are touring the country or world, selling thousands of albums, and placing your music on major television shows and films, I congratulate you. You’ve done it. You’re making your living completely from your music (and luck), and that’s a beautiful thing. Your honest and complete answer to this question is, “I am a songwriter” (or something similar).
For the rest of us, music alone won’t pay the bills. We hold day jobs or some other source of income besides selling and playing music. Maybe we enjoy our day-job, maybe we despise it. Some us may have career-oriented job situations, others may be holding down a temp position for some quick cash.
Some of us play music on the side, and plan to keep it that way. Others are working the day-job “for now” until the music thing takes off. Our split career-personalities come in many forms and variations.
What does your day job say about YOU? How much of your day-job makes up “what you do”? Would you base it on the percentage of your income? Or something a bit more personal?
I think it all comes down to how you want to define yourself and your place in the world around us. If you earn 10% of your income from music, but spend 90% of your time thinking about and pursuing your passion, then your answer should be simple. You’re a musician. That’s what you do. That’s what defines you.
I know that in the past, I felt a bit uncomfortable simply stating “I am a songwriter” when in actuality, songwriting only accounts for a small part of my income. But I have come to realize that I treat songwriting and producing as something more than a hobby. It’s my passion, and it consumes a large part of my physical and mental energy.
If you play music as a hobby and you’re happy with that, then your answer may be different. You might first state your career as a ____, followed by “I also write music on the side”. If you’re happy with this situation, then that’s great. You can proudly present yourself as a multi-talented creative who has his hands in several things.
On the other hand, you may wish you can say “I play music for a living”, but it’s just not a true statement. It’s up to you to make it true. I’m not saying lie. I’m saying take the steps necessary to make you feel more comfortable when you answer that question. This might mean dedicating more time to your songwriting or composing. Booking and promoting more gigs. Searching for a new job that is somehow related to music. Assess your situation, and make the changes that your passion calls for.
As they always say about careers in music, do it for the love, not for the money. I say be passionate and proud of “what you do”. If you’re not, then it’s time to make a change.
Open Question
How do you address the question, “What do you do?”
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Thanks for being part of the conversation at Serve The Song. We have a simple comment policy (with thanks to Tim Ferriss) - critical is fine, but if you’re rude we'll delete your stuff. ’Nuff said.
04/21/2009
12:08 pm
John Radcliff
I think you hit the nail on the head when you talk about what defines you. My music income is a very small portion of what I bring in, I only made slightly more as a sports writer (blogger). But I always bring up those two things as “what I do.” If someone really wants to know about me, they’ll find that I have a real job. But it hardly defines me more than a continuation of the education that I received.
The way I figure it, if anyone wants to know about me my day job is the last thing they’ll want to hear about.
04/21/2009
12:23 pm
Brian Casel
@John – absolutely. There’s no point in emphasizing your day-job when music is what is most important to you.
04/21/2009
1:09 pm
Mad Stratter
Great post… and comment also, John.
I’m fortunate enough to be able to say that “I’m a musician” without any footnotes.
Granted, that it because I am unemployed otherwise, and not because music provides a livable income, but nonetheless… I can honestly say “I’m a full-time musician”
04/21/2009
3:07 pm
Sam
i work – but to be able to afford stuff like touring the states as an up and coming band from europe on our own dough – so i guess a job is a means to an end – and my end will be music!
04/22/2009
7:59 pm
Andy
I make music.
That’s my answer. Usually ends up with a discussion about music in general and the diversity of my involvement.
I also find myself asking ‘What’s your passion?’ instead of ‘What do you do?’ … normally gets people talking about what they really like, not just what they do for a living.
04/22/2009
8:03 pm
Brian Casel
@Andy – I like that. If we replace “What do you do?” with “What’s your passion?” we might avoid the boring small talk and actually engage in more meaningful conversation.
04/23/2009
7:19 am
Bing Futch
I’ll never forget talking to a lawyer in a Bennigan’s about ten years ago. He asked me what I did and I replied, “I’m a musician.”
His reply? “Oh, so you’re unemployed?”
Fast-forward to the present – I run a video production company and am a singer/songwriter/composer/teacher of music. I work from home and am blessed to travel around the country to perform and teach mountain dulcimer to folks at festivals. It’s not a high-paying gig by any means (not yet!) but it’s never been about the money, which is something that most vocational or career professionals don’t understand. So many people are groomed from high school through college to pick a skill that will enable them to make the most money. As we’ve seen with our current economical crisis, the value of money is in constant flux and simply no way to serve as a plum line for your life.
If more people followed their hearts and did what they loved, as opposed to what rolled in the dough, the world would be a happier and healthier place (and probably full of a lot more music.)
Aloha -
Bing Futch
BingFutch.com
04/25/2009
5:50 pm
David Kraut
Interesting post — I guess I am lucky in that I do enjoy my day job (although not every day), which is not music, but I still maintain a passion to write and make music that reaches beyond my living room. I wrote a song a couple of years ago, “A Day Job and a Dream”, that reflected a time when I wasn’t quite as happy with the day job, and the dream was what kept me going. [You can hear it at http://www.broadjam.com/player/playerhosting.asp?play_file=12663_297427) Some of the artists who have recorded it say that it spoke closely to their own situation.