When you have a passion for music and decide to devote your life to attempting to make a living off of creating music, this can be an exciting yet challenging path. While music is something which can bring great joy to your life, it is rare that you can make as much money from it as you would from another career path.
Since being a musician means that you are an independent contractor, there can be more risk when responsibility falls onto your own lap. If you get injured on the job, there won’t be anyone to pay your wages. There aren’t any 401k’s in the world of gigging. Therefore, preparing yourself for this unconventional career path is essential.
In order to be able to make it it’s important to prepare yourself for the potential challenges that could arise and get creative about how to overcome them.
Get a Supplemental Income
If you like to be able to have a certain level of comfort in life then you may find that money you earn from music alone may not be enough to pay for everything. Setting yourself up for being able to do what you love through music, yet pay the bills through a job on the side will ensure your comfort in the long run.
Finding something which you like as well is ideal rather than dreading having to go to work when you’re not playing music.
Don’t Live Beyond Your Means
It’s important to remember that when you’re a musician sometimes you won’t always have a ton of money. Some jobs are paid less than others, and sometimes you never know when you’re going to go without gigs for a while.
It’s important to eliminate frivolous spending and living beyond your means. Knowing how to budget and what is necessary versus not necessary is important when you are making a living as a musician.
Put Away Savings
Since a career as a musician doesn’t offer a retirement package, it’s important to make sure that you prepare yourself for the future.
Putting away savings every month will ensure that in your older age, you’ll have the means to be able to support yourself when you stop working.
Take All The Work You Can Get
Even though you may have goals of making it to the Grammy’s by the time that you’re 30 you may not always have this kind of luck. Therefore, it’s important to not be too selective about what gigs you take on.
Accepting every gig no matter how big or small won’t just monetarily pay off but it will provide a lot of experience for you in the long run.
