But it seemed like letting go of the blog for a while allowed me to learn and grow in many other areas of my life. I’ve had experiences this year that I’ve never had before, and these sparked a deeper understanding about how I work, how music works, and what our world is really like. It’s been quite a journey, and I’d love to share it with you…but maybe in a slightly abbreviated form, so you don’t get bored.

Six cool experiences and things I learned this year:
1. Realized that the arts truly are jealous masters. If my trombone doesn’t want me to write, I’m not gonna write!

2. Discovered that watching Dr. Phil every morning with a misbehaving pet rabbit can bring out the nicer side of its personality. Our biting, thumping bunny turned into a snuggling, affectionate bunny over the course of a few weeks.

3. Completely broke and with little prior planning, my best girlfriend and I ran off to the mountains for a weekend in August. We ended up staying with complete strangers, playing trains with their young son, and cleaning the New River in kayaks.

4. Found out that if I maintain a repertoire of “tricky spots”, and take time to practice and record them on a regular basis, it beefs up my technique and makes it much easier to keep several different pieces at performance level.

5. Even when working with friends, we musicians must use contracts, and we must take the time to establish boundaries and expectations for everyone involved in the project. I tried to neglect this truth earlier in the year, and my Inner Artist took a serious beating.

6. I started doing Anusara yoga this year, and it’s been such a fulfilling experience in many different ways. I feel more balanced, spiritually connected, and full of energy…but one of the biggest things it’s given me is a reminder to approach life and music with a Beginner’s (open) Mind. It’s easy to play the “expert” and try to have the definitive answer to everything. But really, the longer I play and the longer I live, the fewer answers I have. And that’s a good thing.

Thanks for reading, and until next time, take care!

Last night, we spent some time writing about our new creative selves, definitively introducing our creative consciousness into our lives. Here’s what I wrote:

Today I am fully present in my creative self. I do not fear the future. I’m grateful the past has been my teacher. My creativity is a beacon to those around me, and I am happy and at peace.

This is a super duper intention–not just for this week or this month, but for how I live my life for years to come. I’m amazed at this neat little creativity course. We spend 8 weeks eating, painting, cutting up magazines, drumming, and talking about random subjects, and we leave with some of life’s best gifts: fresh insight into who we are, close connections with other people, open-mindedness, and the strength to get out there and do our thing.

2. but there’s no reason to beat yourself up if you get a little off-balance. Just keep on keeping on.

And above all:
3. Where there’s an active schedule, success is somewhere nearby. Either the success made you busy, or all your hard work is soon gonna pay off.

With Thanksgiving coming up, we’ve been thinking a lot about gratitude, especially in terms of how it relates to young musicians. When you’re learning to play an instrument, it often can be easy to focus on the negative–all the bad auditions you have to live through, all the things you want to play but can’t pull off yet, and all the times you have to listen to your teacher’s fussing at you to practice. Here we challenge readers to look at their musical progress from a more positive, gratitude-filled standpoint (and in the process, make playing more fun!)

Also, check out our improvisation corner, style challenge, and concert calendar. There are lots of FREE concerts in the Triangle this month, as well as some treats like Ornette Coleman and John Fedchock. Enjoy, and keep practicing!

As an independent musician, playing and teaching aren’t my only jobs. I’m also Summerglen’s marketing department, accountant, creative director, research and development department, and customer service specialist! I have to get the word out about what we do, keep everything organized, and continue expanding my skills as a trombonist and teacher as well. If I let it, my “fun” job can stress me out just as badly as any office gig–and can pull me out of whack where it really matters, my music.

But there are a couple things that can change my mindset from stressed to relaxed very quickly–being mindful of what I’m doing, and finding things to be thankful for. When I pay close attention in my recordkeeping, I make fewer careless mistakes, and the repetition of the task becomes soothing. Then when I try to be thankful as well, typing in checks and mileage is no longer a chore but a celebration–like Woohoo! I have so many gigs to type in! Responsibilities become the result of something good that has been given to me, and that makes those responsibilities quite fun to have. It makes being busy joyful instead of stressful.

Being mindful also helps me stay creative and mentally uncluttered. Yesterday I was walking home and I practiced listening carefully to the sounds of nature and looking at the details as I walked down the street. Noticing what was going on around me made me feel connected and gave me a burst of new ideas, and made the walk special as well. I wasn’t just leaving Point A thinking about what I needed to do once I got to Point B–it was a journey. (And on the journey I saw a flock of Canadian geese and a lizard. Cool!)

As musicians, we specialize in subtle nuances, in sound, in teaching, and in performance. So, in noticing and appreciating the tiny shades of life, we can become better musicians almost effortlessly!

In times of trouble, I’ve found that expressing gratitude is one of the best ways to keep myself moving in the right direction. It’s the opposite of being jealous of others, and quickly staves off even the biggest case of the “poor me’s”.

As a musician, it can be easy to whine. Especially when you’re stuck in an orchestra pit for several hours with other musicians who enjoy whining over our profession’s little rough spots. Some months (like December) you’re rolling in cash, while others (like June) you’re a little poor. At times you feel like you’re a shameless-self-promotion machine, ’cause the job of telling the world about your music is very, very big and time-consuming. And once in a while you wake up in the middle of the night because your lips hurt from the day before, and it’s hard to get back to sleep.

But gratitude says, “Look at all these COOL things you have to whine about!” and in an instant can turn a music career in an unlikely locale from “uncertain, unstable, and risky” into “exciting, stimulating, and fun”! I’ve found that if I practice turning things around to face the positive direction, just about everything is good.

When I whine, all the energy I have to create new music, come up with new teaching techniques, and get out there and play seems to evaporate. But when I stop and think of the good things I have, more good things come, and I feel healthier and happier even when nothing is really different but my mindset.

So today, I’m grateful that I can play trombone for 2 hours in 100-degree weather! I’m also grateful that our Elvis didn’t get heatstroke during that same 2 hour show, in his 15-pound Elvis suit. I’m thankful for our Summerglen students and their parents, because the students can play and their parents are kind, supportive people. I’m glad to be here, ’cause all is well!

How about you? What are you thankful for today?