What is success?
Everyone is going to have a different answer. Personally, I would consider a sustainable career doing something I love to be success. Wouldn’t that be nice? I would start yesterday if it were that easy. But, if it were easy everyone would do it.
The best piece of advice I think anyone entering the entertainment/music industry can receive is, “learn business.” Know what you don’t know and understand that the most effective way to sustain a career as a working musician is to “sell out.” You must know your audience and give them what they want before you can determine what it is you think they need.
To elaborate on what I mean by “sell out,” I’m saying that selling out simply means you are creating content that people want to buy. Whether that is a song, a catch phrase, or a brand of any kind. This should be the main goal of any artist as it just means you are relating or identifying with an audience. Though the phrase “sell out” has a negative connotation, the most efficient way of achieving this goal is to be REAL.
Measurable success is the key to starting down a path in “the right direction.” Setting an attainable goal that can be reached in a reasonable time frame is a valuable technique for driving productivity and ultimately create a sense of achievement. These small wins are a great motivator in the long run. However, as an artist and entrepreneur I can tell you that any amount of success just leaves you wanting more. The fire that drives innovation and fuels success can only be tamed by one thing.
Happines
In it’s simplest form, success is happiness. Striving for happiness and love in the face of adversity is succeeding at life. Yet, you can never truly know happiness until you are familiar with its counterparts: fear, struggle, and failure. In life, there is no good without evil. And the evils of this world are what push the righteous to evolve; and vice versa. After all, what is success if there are no obstacles to overcome? The bigger you dream the bigger the challenges you must conquer; both internal and external. It is important to maintain a balance of both on the journey of ‘following your dreams.’
“Comfort is the enemy of achievement.”
Farrah Gray