Do You Struggle With Stage Fright?
When talking about going on stage, there is a fine line between excitement and anxiety. The thrill of being able to share what we have with the audience fights against the fear of freezing under the spotlight and forget everything. We want to prove ourselves and we are afraid of failing ourselves at the same time. There is a bunch of butterflies in our stomach, and we are not sure what they are doing.
Every person feels this differently, but we all feel it. Some have developed strategies, little rituals to do right before the show starts. Others have taught themselves to disregard anxiety's insideous comments by actively turning all their thoughts into positive ones. Some more throw themselves to the heat of the moment and trust that the sight of the audience will shatter the insecurities right away. Whatever the case, you are not alone, and by communicating with your peers, you can learn, advise, and gain the confidence to face an audience eager to hear you.
How do you deal w...
There's Still A Lot To Take From 'Success Beyond The Score' Season 1
The brand name “Success Beyond The Score” started as a podcast back in 2019. Since then, it grew into the this website full of different resources for emerging musicians. The podcast itself has two seasons with 50 episodes in total, covering all kind of relevant topics for artists who want to achieve their goals in the music industry.
Usually, people stick to the latest content of shows that have been airing for a while. In the case of the podcast "Success Beyond The Score", doing so would not be advantageous. Have you never listened to it? Or maybe you did so long ago and don't remember much? Go to episode one of the first season and start, or restart, your journey into the secrets of the industry.
If you want all the episodes with their respective info, so you can choose what to listen and in what order, you can do it in this link. Share and discuss with your colleagues, and of course, be sure to contact Millicent if you have topic suggestions or questions you’d like to see address...
Are you struggling to get paid for your gigs?
Having a customer crying poverty after you've come off stage is one big nightmare for musicians who perform live as part of their profession. The best solution, meaning the one that will allow you to sleep without anxiety, is to arrange it so you're always paid beforethe gig, not after.
How can you do that? Well, I have ten tips that will help you figure it out, and I am happy to give them for free! Just go to this page and follow the steps to download the document. There, you will also find a more comprehensive booklet, called "25 Secrets of the Successful Gigging Musician, Singer, Rapper & Spoken Word Artiste" that will serve you as guide sheet in the world of music.
If you'd like more customised assistance, you can also check my coaching sessions, and if you are a woman looking for a community that supports your growth, then Time For My Music is for you.
Why You Should Take A Break.
We live in a busy world. Our phones keep us active, the internet cries for our attention, and then there is the demands of family, friends, work and even our music. There are not enough hours in the day to get everything done. You might even find you feel stressed.
There are many tips, videos and blogs on the internet giving advice on how to cope with stress. I learnt the hard way how much my health was affected by working maximum hours with limited sleep, so three years ago I started to realign myself and it’s paying off. One of the things I did was to consciously plan breaks in my day and week.
A break can be a few minutes each day where you mentally come away from work. This could be looking at nature, the sky, having a short sleep, doing something creative, but not music. These things will help your brain, which in this regard is like a muscle, to rest, relax and recover, renewing you to do your next job.
A break can be moments taken to deliberately breathe. By doing this,...
Master YouTube To Boost Your Music Career
Are you interested in setting up your own YouTube channel to widen your music reach, but are not sure what to do? Do you worry about breaking it, and feel step-by-step instructions by a musician would help you to understand the screens and get it working?
On Wednesday 30th March, 7.30pm until 9pm on Zoom, Millicent Stephenson will be running a Zoom webinar called ‘Mastering YouTube for Musicians – Part 1’ to address all these concerns and answer your questions.
The content of the session will be:
- How to login
- Understanding your Channel layout
- Steps to upload your videos
- What to put in the boxes (fields) and what tags to use
- How to share your video to get views
- How to grow your subscribers organically
The course fee is £35 and you can book your place on this website.
See you on Wednesday!
Mastering YouTube For Musicians
Are you interested in setting up your own YouTube channel to widen your music reach, but are not sure what to do? Do you worry about breaking it, and feel step-by-step instructions by a musician would help you to understand the screens and get it working?
Perhaps you have put videos up but have had zero or one or two views. This may also be the case with your subscriber count. Would you like to know how to increase both things without paying for advertising?
On Wednesday 30th March, 7.30pm until 9pm on Zoom, Millicent Stephenson will be running a Zoom webinar called ‘Mastering YouTube for Musicians – Part 1’ to address all these concerns and answer your questions.
The content of the session will be:
- How to login
- Understanding your Channel layout
- Steps to upload your videos
- What to put in the boxes (fields) and what tags to use
- How to share your video to get views
- How to grow your subscribers organically
Millicent will talk from the experience she's got with her own YouTub...
Support Your Female Colleagues This International Women's Day
This information and the services mentioned are all by GPDQ, which provides nationwide healthcare services for individual, businesses, and the NHS. We share it here because we believe it is essential to break the taboo around women’s health in all spheres of life!
Support your colleagues this IWD 2022 by breaking the taboo around women's health in the workplace.
At GPDQ, we pride ourselves on being one of the UK's leading corporate healthcare providers, and this International Women's Day we want to lift the taboo that surrounds women's health in the workplace.
Following feedback from our clients, we know that female employees often feel they have to keep their health issues private and under wraps from their employers. But from periods to pregnancy, menopausal symptoms and much more, we know that not discussing what you are going through can actually lead to an increase in mental health problems and ultimately an unhappy and unproductive workforce.
In today's “Ask the Dr”, our cl...
Is It Time To Get Help?
Last time, I mentioned that we get work through our connections. I hope my words helped you identify the people who do that for you. But how do you maintain the work you get through your connections? Today, I want to discuss one aspect of that.
In the early days of my music, I was on my own. I arrived to gigs on my own, I set up and pulled down on my own, I handled my gig enquiries on my own and sorted out my tax return on my own. I did everything myself, making decisions and only seeking advice when needed. Does that sound familiar?
This way of working was fine for some time, but as my music grew, it became unwieldy. I couldn’t keep up with everything. I worked long days and into the night to balance family commitments and work. I felt stressed with missed deadlines, keeping up with admin requirements was a nightmare and personal practise on my instrument was deteriorating. I felt like I was on burnout. It dawned on me that, in order to advance, I needed to create a team.
If ...
Success Beyond The Score, season 2, episode 20
The season 2 finale of the podcast Success Beyond The Score is available now! Listen to Millicent Stephenson highlight the best from the interviews she held during the season, comment and add on the advice by the guests and thank every one of them for their fantastic advice and contributions.
Click here to watch the episode on YouTube.
Click here to find your podcast platform of choice to listen to the episode in audio format.
Don't forget to leave comments and to share with friends that are also working their way into the music business.
Also, let's take this chance to confirm there will be a season 3 of the podcast. Stay tunned!
Do you have the right connections?
For quite some time, like the Frank Sinatra song, I thought ‘I did it my way’ with my musical achievements. I believed I developed my music hobby into a professional music business all on my own steam. I felt I carved my path and forged my way with no input from anyone else. That I figured it all out, through epiphany.
But, while I was compiling my music business plan on a course I attended 10 years ago, I learnt something quite significant. I learnt that although there were moments of revelation in my journey, I did not achieve half of what I had without someone else’s input.
The people who point the way; those who offer a shoulder to cry on; individuals who pass on opportunities; fans who take it upon themselves to be my ambassadors; colleagues who make the time to explain concepts so I can do my business better; and so on.
By the way, your own connections are not too far away.
Everything you do or achieve has a connection to someone else.
Maybe you think your connec...