I believe people are placed in your path for a reason. Some inspire you. Some infuriate you. They either sink you or push you in another direction. They are the rock your life’s raft hits. And yes, hitting that rock is sometimes painful. I mean really, being pushed out of your comfort zone is, by definition, uncomfortable.
I interviewed blues musician Vasti Jackson yesterday on my radio show (Now You’re Talking on MPB Think Radio, Monday’s at 10 a.m.). A brilliant singer, songwriter, producer and musician, Vasti is known as a demanding guy to play for. Not because he is a bad guy — just the opposite. He has high standards. I asked him how he got those standards. He told me the story about his early years as a musician. His family was musical – -he had natural talent. A guitar was always around. He played up until he was in his mid-teens. And then one day he was in a recording session with an instructor. Vasti played well, but didn’t know all the notes. The instructor stopped the session and told him that until he learned how to read music, he would have to get out.
The instructor was the rock that Vasti hit.
He could have sank Vasti’s musical dreams. But instead Vasti got serious about his craft. He learned it and his musicianship was carried to a whole new level. He became a professional and set exacting and high standards for himself and those who he hired. He explained why he demands so much from a drummer for example. “They are the floor. They are the base of the whole song — so they have to get it right,” he said. A friend told me that there was no rehearsal with Vasti. You know the music coming in or you don’t. Vasti explained that if he is paying a musician $100 to play a song with 100 notes, he or she can’t come in and hit 75.”
That is import to all of us. How many of us only hit 75% of our notes every day?
Vasti then said something that really resonated with me. “A talented musician can have a terrible work ethic and attitude and not get brought back. But an average musician with an amazing work ethic will always get the call.”
How many people do you know who succeed because of their attitude? Their work ethic? Their professionalism? I had to look in the mirror on that one.
I was named most talented in high school. My talent has taken me across the country and to the edge of greatness. But with the changes in the my profession, it is no longer enough. What if I raised my standards? How high could my career soar?
Vasti’s words were an epiphany for me. It’s time to improve my professionalism. To get the little things right. Vasti’s instructor was a rock that sent him off in a better direction. And his story definitely inspired me to do just the same.
It’s time to learn the notes. It’s time to be a pro.