One of my favorite ways to kick off the New Year is by diving into a new reading list. It’s become a tradition here on the blog to share my book picks at the start of each year—a mix of business insights, inspiring memoirs, thought-provoking nonfiction, and a few captivating novels to round things out.
Copyright.
It's a sticky subject and one not often taught in music school.
Copyright law protects anything with intellectual property rights. This includes poetry, books, photographs, art, song lyrics, music, and more.
How does it affect what you do as a musician, teacher, freelancer, artist, or small business owner? What do you need to know?
What does it mean to be a leader? And what does it take to be a great one?
Leadership has been defined as “the art of motivating a group of people to act towards achieving a common goal.” (source) Thus, a leader is one who inspires and directs that collective action.
This requires a certain set of skills and character traits, though experts say you can learn and develop these skills with time and experience.
You don’t have to be born with all of these skills and traits to be a great leader.
One of my favorite traditions is putting together a book list at the beginning of each year. I try to choose a variety of books (old and new) from a few different categories:
Business, Spiritual & Lifestyle, Fiction, Personal/Intellectual, Nonfiction/Memoir
This helps me be intentional about the books I read and ensure some diversity (so I don’t end up reading only one type of book!).
Looking for books to read this coming year? I hope you find something interesting and relevant on this list.
The beginning of a new career is an exciting time, full of energy, motivation, and possibility.
Maybe you’re taking that first step from music student to music professional, newly-printed diploma in hand (or in the mail - sometimes these things take a while).
Or maybe you’ve been working for a few years and are ready to make a change and set off in a new direction.
Maybe you’re in between things: trying to figure out what you want to do and what kind of musician you want to become, or maybe you’re beginning a second career later in life.
Wherever you are today, and wherever you hope to be in the next few months, here are 5 helpful tips for getting started:
Every spring, my husband Steve and I set aside a few days for a work retreat.
We’re both music freelancers, so this is a time for us to take a step back from our businesses, reflect on the successes and challenges of the past year, evaluate what’s going well and what could be improved, and do some creative planning for the year ahead.
Often, we try to tie this in with a short getaway (because by March or April, we usually have a pretty bad case of cabin fever). In the past, we’ve found affordable rentals on Airbnb (a business expense!) within an hour’s drive and bring our dog Rory, our laptops, a few books, and food and snacks for a few days.
It’s the most wonderful time of the year:
Christmas music on repeat (currently listening to Brooklyn Duo Christmas), Thanksgiving dinner with all our favorites (pass the cranberry sauce, please!), and a cozy weekend in, snagging all the best online deals.
I’m thrilled to be hosting my first-ever holiday sale this week - starting now! I put together three exclusive holiday bundles for you, available for a limited time only.
