How Classical Music Jolted Me into a Career of Tech and Operations
If you had told me a decade ago that my career in ten years’ time would include running remote teams of over 200 people, growing startups and apps, and working with people all across the world everyday, I would have laughed at you.
You might wonder how a trained classical composer finds their way to a career in global operations. I can tell you that it certainly wasn't intentional but that there are a lot of transferable skills. Let me explain.
Some creators can realize their vision without the help of a team. Let's take a painter for example. If you think of a painter's final product, you might envision, well a painting, or perhaps an art gallery. The process of getting the painting hung in a patron's house or in a museum requires additional work I'm sure (I'm no painter)—and I'll get to this part of the process—but an artist's ability to turn their idea into a tangible product i.e., a painting is pretty straight forward. A painter can buy brushes, paint, and a canvas. All that's required is an environment to be creative, a few supplies, and the artist's time. Within a few minutes, hours, days, weeks (?) a painter can create a tangible product all by themself.
A classically trained composer who plays an instrument proficiently could have the same experience as a painter. In theory, all they need is an instrument to perform on and something to document the existence of their musical creation - a pencil and paper or a recording device. Write it down and or record it and you've got yourself a product.
Now let's say that you're a classically trained composer who doesn't play an instrument proficiently (or at least to the level that you're composing) or you're writing music for a large ensemble like a symphony orchestra. The cost to produce your work of art—a tangible product—is much higher. I'm not necessarily speaking about monetary cost here, but rather effort. Chances that you're able to play every instrument in an orchestra at a high level are pretty unlikely. So if you've just written a symphony (I didn't) or a short orchestra piece you need a team in order to create a tangible product.
This is exactly how my career in global operations began. As a composer, I spent more time convincing people to play my music than actually writing music. Frustrating at the time? Yes. However, this was one of the most valuable skills I learned at an early age. Convincing people to contribute to my vision—something I poured my heart and soul into, or something that I simply had to write and record in order to graduate—turned out to be an invaluable experience. I spent hours knocking on my classmate's practice room doors, interrupting their practice session as politely as I could to introduce myself, compliment them on their playing, and ultimately begin a relationship with them. In some cases I'd straight up ask them if they would be willing to take a look at a new piece of music I had just finished or if they would be available to perform something I had written on an upcoming recital. Other times, I'd go out of my way or even be late for class when I heard someone incredible practicing down the hall. I'd wait until they were finished with their practice session and let them know how impressed I was with what I had heard.
I had built up relationships and a roster of trusted collaborators that I could call on overtime to help me bring my musical visions to fruition and ultimately, provide me with a tangible product. (Thanks to all who participated and allowed me to be part of your musical life!)
So for the composers out there who want to hear, document, and produce your symphony, all you have to do is interrupt some practice sessions and hand your new—and slightly miffed—colleague who you just disturbed some sheet music and you've got yourself a tangible product! Congratulations! Sadly, that's just the beginning.
After you've assembled your orchestra (team), you have to gather everyone's individual availability so that you can create a rehearsal schedule that works for all parties involved, you have to reserve practice spaces, send out rehearsal dates to your collaborators (meeting invitations), and book any special equipment for the concert or recording session, arrange to have someone record the performance, create a clear channel for communication in case of event updates or changes, and provide instructions regarding dress codes, etc. There's loads more to consider as well, but you get the idea.
At this point, you have succeeded in procuring and managing everything you need to create a tangible product.
You have vision (your composition)
People (the orchestra)
Management (someone to coordinate schedules and make adjustments during rehearsals as necessary)
Systems (rehearsals and concert / recording instructions)
A means of documenting your creation (a recording session)
The tune you conceived in your head is finally in tangible form. This is extremely rewarding. For those of us with an entrepreneurial enthusiasm (or erhm, obsession), you'll probably want to share your symphony with the world. So what's missing? The audience. Marketing.
Just as a painter needs patrons to attend their art show at a gallery, a composer needs audience members to fill the seats at their concert. All artists have to market themselves and build out systems that produce a following and attract new audiences. Some venues require performers to guarantee a minimum number of attendees or minimum spend (bar tab). If the concert's attendance doesn't hit a certain quota, the performer might be required to subsidize the venue for their 'loss' or the performer might not be paid in full (or at all) if these terms aren't met. This long-winded example is important and illustrates that artists need to do one of two things: 1. get really good at marketing themselves and or 2. develop a system that takes marketing off of their plate by delegating it to someone else so that people consume their art and the performer is ultimately compensated so that they can well... eat or pay rent.
When I launched my first remote startup in 2010, I had already acquired some of the most vital skills necessary to launch a tech-startup: networking, assembling a qualified team, leadership skills; creating a strong vision and plan, and motivating the team behind that vision and plan; plus some basic marketing skills (gotta fill the concert halls!).
So while I had zero intention of launching apps, working in technology and marketing, or traveling around the world networking with fellow founders and digital nomads only to work with people from over 20 countries on a daily basis from my home office, here I am, 10+ years later. I've learned a lot over the past decade and been fortunate enough to participate in high growth and high impact companies.
I'm so excited to share my experience, lessons learned, and tips of the trade to help you improve your productivity and scale your systems and company. I want to help you get your symphony out of your head, onto paper, into the world's finest concert halls, and in the ears of as many people as possible.
You can expect regular blog posts, tangible guides, and steps that will help you streamline your systems, grow your revenue potential, and scale your success.
Streamlined Scaling is here.