Don’t do what you love; do what makes you curious

There is a deep problem with the advice, “Do what you love!”

I’ve found myself in an awkward spot when people ask me for advice about how to pursue music full- time–aka, quit their jobs–since my path is a confusing mess of crossroads, luck, persistence, pulling my hair out, and highs and lows. I’ve been reflecting on my luck this year.

A culmination of my luck-meets-persistence is when I got the chance to play at the Shedd Theater in Columbus, playing for the Six Strings Concert series, my favorite gigs of the year.

During my set at the Shedd Theater, I made sure to say:

It’s a privilege to be sharing my music with you today in your community. Thanks for being here.

That word “privilege” isn’t a criticism or dirty word. It’s just a fact.

Hard work, hours of practice, dedication, a willingness to live like a miser, a willingness to play long bar gigs, and having a bit of financial stability–all of this allowed me to take the jump in 2011 to be a full-time musician.

My last year teaching, I saved a lot of money to survive if something bad happened. (And sure enough, I’ve had some road blocks, including getting viral meningitis in December 2011, canceling a stretch of gigs before the holidays!)

Not only has that savings account made this possible. A big piece of this puzzle is the early help my loving parents gave me. Let’s focus on that help when I was 18-21 years old.

First, I didn’t have an undergraduate, student loan payment because my parents covered that investment.

Then, they let me keep the money I earned during my summer job after my freshman year of college to buy my first Taylor acoustic. (My Taylor 514ce is still my main guitar!) Then, they let me borrow a few hundred bucks for my first security deposit when I got hired at Holly. Then, my first year teaching, they let me borrow some money to buy my first PA.

I’ve always paid them back, but that help has gone a long way. When I left Holly, I had all of the gear I needed as a musician!

Jonathon Mann’s blog about this idea of privilege enabling folks to do what they love resonates with me:

“Like—most folks I know who have dropped everything to “do what they love”, were dropping good, salaried jobs. They weren’t working 3 jobs just to scrape by and support their 2 kids. Which, by the way, is the way MOST of the people in our country are surviving.” – Jonathon Mann

I’d like to present a revision to the advice of “do what you love” inspired by Elizabeth Gilbert. (I also love this interview on Radiolab about inspiration.)

Privilege to explore art as a living is one thing, but what if you don’t even know what you love?

Teachers often tell teenagers, “Do what you love!” which can be confusing if they haven’t explored the world enough to find what they love. What if you don’t want to be an artist, but are seeking something else?

Instead of telling someone to do what they love, Gilbert recommends telling them, do what makes you curious.

I love this mantra. Curiosity leads to education and skills. Curiosity leads to work that we don’t dread every morning. Curiosity is something that we can sustain.

Most of my circle reading my blog are musicians and writers and artists. We are a lucky bunch of folks because our curiosity has led to a craft we indeed love. But I think even we need a reminder, do what makes you curious, not only what you love.

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Need some gigging tips? Join the Workshop on Jan 3, 2016 in Ann Arbor: “How to Book a 1000 Gigs“