Getting off the train

Sometimes you just need a break. Don’t feel bad about that. It can be restorative to take a week or two off from your musical routine. As a music major in college, it is ground into us that we must work, work, work. More is better and there’s never “enough” or “too much” in such a competitive market. All those go-getters who have made it to the top make it look like it’s a constant press all the way through. We are encouraged to admire the super-achievers above all others.

Well, sometimes you have to step out of the market and catch your emotional breath. This is especially true after setbacks, such as health challenges, relationship breakups, family struggles, career failures, and many other things. During such times your usual mode of “being a singer” may need to change or be put on hold. No guilt, just do what you have to do.

We are not machines. Our careers are not machines. The big things that matter are certainly nothing like machines. Changing or stopping a long-standing pattern can be very good for one’s perspective, and can lead to new ideas about how to proceed.

Be kind to yourself and to others.