Music Business—Minus Luck

This post is about How to make money, time, and/or work on projects aligned with your values.

Yesterday, I shared one process I’ve used for nearly 30 years to build my music career—it works no matter the gig, project, or industry shift.

Today, I want to break it down into day-to-day actions you can take to affect your income, free up time, or align your work with whatever matters to you.

Who This Is For

If you’re on salary with a stable job, this might not apply—unless you’re working on building something outside of that job.
If you work for yourself (teaching, gigging, freelancing), or do some combination of jobs, keep reading.

The Work 

Let’s be clear:
Practicing your instrument isn’t business-building work.
Teaching students, playing a gig, or working on a project isn’t either.

These things fulfill your career, but they don’t actively build it.

The work that grows your music career is simple:
Defining your goals (money, time, artistic freedom)
Choosing a clear strategy to get there
Creating an action plan
Testing, refining, and repeating

This is the difference between reacting to opportunities and creating them.

If you’re happy with your music career, keep doing what you’re doing. But if you want change, the process above is clear.

Self-Reflection: What’s Your Ideal Work-Life Balance?

Clarifying goals, strategies, and action plans is sometimes more complicated than it sounds and often requires revisiting. To start, answer these questions:

Vision & Priorities

• What does my ideal week look like in terms of allocating my time? (Work, practice, personal time)
• How much income is enough for my goals?
• What impacts matter to me? (Family, community, artistic fulfillment)

What’s Holding You Back?

• Am I relying on luck for gigs and work opportunities?
• Do I struggle with self-promotion or asking for what I’m worth?
• What fears or limiting beliefs keep me from taking action?

What Do I Want to Change?

• Do I want more money, more time, or more creative alignment?
• What type of work energizes me vs. drains me?
• What am I doing too much of that doesn’t serve my goals?

Your Time Is Your Power

If you can devote one hour per day to taking strategic actions aligned with your goals, you can reduce the role of luck and increase the odds of making a balanced “successful” career. “More” is not always the answer. The key is being clear on what you want.

Final Thought

Building a sustainable music career involves strategy and consistent action.

What’s one small change you can make today?

If this resonates, share it with someone who could use it.

If you want to work through this process together, join an upcoming coaching session.