Who are you doing this for?
Why did you get hooked on music? Maybe it was because it was fun and a social activity where you got to hang out with all of your friends. Perhaps it was challenging and interesting, and it gave you a sense of accomplishment. Or it was the thrill of an incredible performance of a piece of music, and you continued to seek that feeling out.
Whatever it is, it's intriguing to realize that they are all a little self-centered. We want to have fun. We like the feeling of accomplishment. We desire the thrill. There was probably a defining moment for you, and even if you may not be able to articulate exactly why you fell in love with music, you know how it made you feel. It made you feel great. You can't imagine your life without it. It's just not the same.
This pursuit drives our passion for music and we work hard to chase our dreams. But chasing any dream is challenging. It's easy to get discouraged along the way. Sometimes the stress of it all causes us to forget why we loved it to begin with.
Is it enough to be motivated by a "why" that is focused on ourselves?
Maybe not.
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In a study of over 30,000 people across different industries, construction workers rose to the top as the happiest employees. Vanessa Van Edwards explains that this is because they satisfy four key elements to any happy job. They are in her words:
Prosocial: Interacting with people and helping them in some way
Creative: Being able to see a vision and make it happen
Teaching: Jobs that allow others to learn from your experiences or knowledge
Protecting: Jobs that help others who are in danger or in bad health
Other professions with high job satisfaction based on other sources include firefighters, physical therapists, and teachers.
The common thread in all this is that these people derive satisfaction from helping others.
They know why they are devoted to their jobs, they enjoy their jobs, and they also are crystal clear about who they are doing it for.
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If we think about it, musicians actually do tick every one of Van Edwards' 4 criteria for job satisfaction. What we don't do enough is highlight that fact as a basis for job satisfaction and happiness. We focus too much on ourselves and what we want and pursue.
We are not encouraged and reminded to think about who we are doing our work for. We are not incentivized or rewarded by doing so.
The great thing about this is that the "who" can be highly personal, and everyone in the organization doesn't necessarily need to agree on the same "who."
So who are you doing your work for?
For you, it may be the young people in the audience - to give them something you never got to experience as a child. For someone else, it may be their family at home - to support them financially.
For me, it is the musicians on the stage - to help them feel more valued, seen, and fulfilled. This drives me to show up even when I don't feel like it, to practice my craft so I can allow musicians to achieve what they're fully capable of, and to learn more about being an empowering leader.
Answering this question can help us all deal with the issues of stress, burnout, motivation, and conflict in our industry.
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