Pop-Up Advice

I have written first drafts of my blog posts on my iPhone for the past few years. An idea will hit me, I type in a few notes while the idea is fresh, then finish it later.

Sometimes an idea-starter I wrote days, weeks or months ago will pop up on my screen and I won’t remember what sparked the idea.

I just saw this ...

If you’re struggling to make a living with your art, don’t give up on the art; modify your revenue stream.  I know that sounds corporate. You know me well enough to know I’ve found my place in the corporate world without crossing too many of my artistic or ethical lines.

Sometimes bending a few of your own rules helps put food on your table while you do what you really want and create the art and the life that you really want.

... I don’t remember what inspired that particular advice. It might have been an intended response to a friend’s Facebook post. Several artsy friends and acquaintances are frustrated by the challenges of making a living in the arts. Should they compromise their artistic vision to make a buck?

Does making that compromise mean they’re “selling out”? Should they give up on their dream?

That pop-up advice is my answer to those questions. Seeking balance between conflicting paths can be a satisfying direction to take. For me, being a somewhat compromised artist is more important that being a starving artist.

I’ve worked in radio for four decades and much has changed during that time. Most radio people I know who started that long ago whine about the direction the business has taken over that time. Most of them no longer work in radio and it wasn’t always their choice to exit.

I’m still in it and still love it. I do not agree with all the changes but I have found my place in it. Although some of my creativity is micromanaged, I mostly chart my own path through the audio I create. I don’t have to always have it my artistic way to feel artistically satisfied. Maybe that’s just me.

This blog is my artistic outlet. I do it for me. I make no money from it. I am grateful that you visit and that is my reward. In many ways this is the result of following my own pop up advice. Hope it works for you too.