11 ways to create a mindset of success in music
What’s one thing most people in the music industry have in common, beyond a passion for music? They want to be successful. Yet if you think that it's all about talent, hard work, your network, (or worse, the latest hack to get on Spotify’s playlists or beat the Insta algorithm), you’re missing the one thing that will make the biggest difference: your competitive edge, your mindset.
During this shift towards a new world and industry, you cannot afford NOT to work on your mindset if you want to get ahead and adjust to curveballs with your sanity intact.
Your mindset is the foundation of your success. Mindset ➔ Actions ➔ Results
Here are 11 ways to create a mindset that will lead you to success in the music business.
1- Define success
First things first: chasing success for success’ sake is an old paradigm. What you truly want is not success, but what you think success will give you and how you may feel as a result. If you don’t define in detail what success looks and feels like to you - and feel is the key word here - you’ll simply chase an idea of success without ever feeling truly happy, despite what you might achieve.
“Achieving everything you wanted to achieve is a weird feeling… no one in this industry is ever really satisfied”
2- Have a strong ‘Why’
Why do you make music or work in the music business? What is your purpose? Having a compelling ‘Why’ will sustain you in trying moments like rejections and freaking pandemics. It will help you bounce back, stay motivated and feel inspired.
3- Develop a growth mindset
Ditch any ideas that you’re either good at something or you suck at it (ie, having a fixed mindset). Instead, look for ways to develop your skills, whether that’s getting better at self-promotion or time management. Seek out constructive feedback. Embrace so-called failure as an integral part of the journey - you’ll learn so much from it.
4- Be expansive
Stay open to endless possibilities, rather than feeling limited by your gender, age, experience, mercury being retrograde or whatever. Trust that there are enough opportunities, fans and projects out there for you to prosper in the music industry. Feel the abundance already present in your life, celebrate your achievements and let your peers’ success inspire you and expand what’s possible for you.
5- Own your worth
True self-confidence is not arrogance and is not ego-based. It means you accept who you are (ie. an imperfect human), and recognize your qualities, strengths and accomplishments, rather than relying on other people’s recognition. Believe in yourself and your potential, and don’t waste your energy getting sucked into comparing yourself to others.
6- Take risks
Be willing to get out of your comfort zone and take action that feels scary. Say ‘Yes' to speaking at conferences, even if public-speaking scares the shit out of you. Follow through with your crazy creative idea, even if you don’t have any guarantees it’s going to work. Approach that label or artist you want to collaborate with, even if you risk rejection.
7- Cultivate patience, perseverance and resilience
Everyone who’s had success in music has faced (and continues to face) rejection, failure, challenges, criticism and so on. These can be potential exit points (you give up), or opportunities to become more patient, resilient and to persevere in the face of obstacles.
Take 90s band Suede for example: they got ignored for 4 years before getting signed, and they’re still alive and kickin 3 decades later. This, despite facing various setbacks, including a difficult second album, their guitarist and composer quitting, drug addiction and even a split.
8- Be aware of self-sabotaging thoughts
Your thoughts create your reality and they often run in the background, completely unchecked. If you pay attention it often sounds like self-doubt, being hard on yourself, thinking you’re too old, that you don’t have what it takes, and so on… Just because you have those thoughts doesn’t mean you have to believe them! Choose to replace them with thoughts that serve you instead.
9- Fake it 'till you make it
It’s not about pretending, but about thinking, feeling and acting as the future version of you who already has the success they want. That’s right, feeling successful now will help you achieve success. (Now, hear your mind telling you all the reasons why you can’t feel successful now…. it’s fascinating 😂). What does ‘successful you’ believe? What kinds of conversations are they having? What are they doing or not doing? Do they feel like The Carpenters (on top of the world) or like Beck (I’m a loser baby…)? Embody your successful-self now, and watch what happens.
10- Feel gratitude
Throughout the process of reaching for your goals, remember to be grateful for the wins, the milestones you achieve, and the help you receive. And also for the blood, sweat and tears - for they shape you into who you’re meant to be, and take you closer to where you’re meant to go. You're able to pursue a career in music and live out your dreams - take a moment to appreciate how cool this is!
11- Let go and flow
And finally…. release your attachment to specific outcomes or the ways you think things should unfold. Have goals and ambitions, take intentional action, but strive a little less and and flow a little more. Don’t let your mind tell you that you need to achieve a certain level of success before you can be happy - happiness can only ever be felt right here, right now, and enjoying the unique journey you’re on is the best way to get to where you wanna go.
The funny thing with mindset is that you may already know all of the above, but in practice you still get in your own way and self-sabotage. Why? Because it’s impossible to see your own blind spots, and because you need to elevate your mindset consistently.