There’s a problem that most creative professionals struggle with, it’s not money or ideas, but it affects both of them. I want to talk about a problem that may cripple you and your business and how to beat it.

What Does He Do?

Whenever my wife and I meet new people the subject that often comes up is what job do I do for a living. Her usual response is to smile and say ‘ask him!’ The reason being it’s not a very easy thing to explain. I work with those in the creative music technology sector to help them grow their businesses. Over the years I’ve developed two answers depending on if I want the conversation to be lengthy or be stopped dead in its tracks. If I need to work and I’m sat next to someone on a plane, it’s the latter.

Often people will start asking questions like, which famous people have I met and what are they like? The question is often loaded with the assumption that they are an arrogant twat or at least a primadonna.

My answer is disappointing as in my experience, with some rare exceptions that’s not the case. In fact, in most cases the people I work with suffer from one problem, a lack of belief.

We often associate belief with religion, I’m not going there today, I don’t want to commit my thoughts on that in writing and die on that hill. However, many of us suffer from a lack of self-belief, in ourselves, our ideas, our ability to make our business grow and survive, in short, it’s crippling.

Talking of religious belief, I once read a quote that went something like this. “The problem with most faith leaders is they say to their followers, let’s go do this amazing thing. The followers then sit and think, you might be able to do it, but I can’t! If the leader stops there then nothing happens, but if they say to their followers; “listen, I can’t do this either, so let’s try and do it together.” Then action takes place.”

So, cards on the table, I’m bad at this self-belief stuff too. We all are to one degree or another, so let’s talk about some ways we can help one another.

The REAL Role Of Labels, Producers And All That

The problem with a lot of modern audio production is that many people work alone. Technology was meant to set us free from the dependancy of labels, studios, producers and all the things that were stopping us getting on in music. On a technological level that’s true, but on an emotional and psychological one, we threw the baby out with the bath water.

Yes, there were some bad A&R people, producers, and studio owners, but the good ones were worth their weight in gold. In essence they were our coach, our cheerleader and in many cases our friend.

I remember one of my A&R people working with me on album ideas. He’d suggest lyric changes, chord changes, or sometimes tell me the song was better than I thought and it should be on the album. His input on projects was invaluable and often took them from good to great.

The same happened in the studio. I’d do a vocal take (I hate my own voice) I’d think it stank, but the engineer and producer on the other side of the glass would tell me it was better than I thought. It was the same with people mixing the tracks, or mastering them. As each part of the process took place, there were small moments of validation that helped me think I wasn’t a complete imposter. Few of us think any differently.

So my advice on a creative level, is find your cheerleaders, your mentors, your real critics, not the critics that reside in forums and on social media, but trustworthy stakeholders in your future. These are people who will believe in you when you don’t. They will tell you that you can write a better song, play a better part, or whatever needs to be said to keep you believing. We all need them, no one is able to exist alone, it’s not good.

Business Support

Running a creative business alone can be a killer, and for various reasons. You’ve no one to bounce ideas off, no one to tell you if you client is being fair or unreasonable, no one to just share your concerns with. However, since the pandemic even more people are running professional music and post businesses alone - it’s not good.

Just today I’ve had two seperate calls with people who are working alone. One of them a plugin developer, the other a creative professional. On both calls I found myself having to engourage them to believe in themselves and their products. The plugin developer has created one of the most amazing plugins I’ve seen for a very long time, he was asking if it was any good - this was despite some of the best in the business sending emails to him about how impressed they are.

The second person spent over 25 years working for one of the most respected brands in the music production industry, they were asking if anyone would value their work?

Both have imposter syndrome, both need to have faith in themselves.

The number one way to fix this is to find a mentor. One word of advice on this matter, never take on a mentor who is offering their services to you before being asked - that’s all about them. Seek out one who you trust and respect. Here’s what a good mentor can offer;

• Expertise and Experience: A business mentor brings valuable expertise and experience to the table. Their guidance can help you navigate through challenges and avoid common pitfalls, their advice can often help you from making mistakes, the ones they made first, saving you time and money.

• Objective Perspective: Mentors provide an objective perspective on your business. They can view your challenges and opportunities from a fresh angle, offering insights and suggestions that you might have missed. Sometime the mountain isn’t as high as you thought it was, or you are stronger than you think!

• Networking Opportunities: A mentor often has an extensive network of contacts that can be valuable for your business. They can introduce you to potential investors, partners, or clients, opening doors that may have been difficult to access on your own. One of the people I mentioned earlier came into my orbit because a record producer friend of mine called me and said I should meet them. Some say knowledge is power, I also think influence is power too.

• Accountability: Having a mentor or external support creates a sense of accountability. They can hold you responsible for your actions and help you set specific goals and milestones. If I need to send a tough email I run it past one of my mentors first. It helps me avoid saying things I might regret later. I can always tell when I get an email like this from a solo operator, I know it wasn’t checked by someone else, if it had been then they would have never sent it.

• Moral Support and Encouragement: As I’ve already said, owning a business can be challenging and lonely at times. A mentor or some external support can provide much-needed moral support and encouragement. They can boost your confidence during difficult times and celebrate your successes with you. Sometimes they are the only person who believes in you.

Summary

It’s highly likely that you are reading this and thinking ‘this is me!’ It’s most of us, it’s certainly me. I work alone a lot of the time, if I do it for too long then my work and my mental health suffers, something not even AI can fix!

The problem for most of us isn’t over-confidence, it’s a lack of confidence, or to put it another way, a lack of self-belief. It can be crippling, but can be solved by finding others to help share the burden and to restore our faith.

If it’s you, then fix it today.