First off, sorry for the cheesy, over used Field of Dreams reference; it seemed to fit too well to not use.
Now on to the meat…
It may be an old sentiment but it still rings true. Work hard and things will happen. People will pay attention to you or come to your gigs or pay you to cut their grass or whatever. You may not even have to work hard in the exact area for it to pay off. For instance, you work hard as a forklift driver but your passion is computers. Well, if you are working hard and are deemed dependable, your boss may pay enough attention that he hears you fix computers on the side…now lets say the IT guy is on vacation one week so he calls you up when his cursor stops working. You get to his office, throw some “AA”s in his mouse and BAM! you’re a freaking genius! Now lets say the IT guy finds a new job and will be transferring to the Bermuda branch. Out of the blue, Big Bossman calls you up and offers you the position!
I know, the analogy is horrible but there is some sort of cosmic power that knows when you work hard and it will be reciprocated. The hard part is to put the work in before you get the gig. For me, it is really easy to fall into the mindset that when I get the call, I will shed the charts and blow back the director’s hair. That’s an OK plan and all but if you hit those “fundies” (as a professor of mine used to call fundamentals) like a sumbeetch then three things will happen – 1) those pre-rehearsal/gig shed sessions will get shorter and shorter. 2) You will be so busy that the gigs will seem to come even quicker and 3) You will just be straight up bass arse.
Call it God, karma, or whatever else but it works. Beef up your practice routine and give it a little time. Your calls will increase. when I slack up, my gigs always slow down and when I hit it like I’m supposed to, then my calls nearly double and, after each cycle, I end up with more clients than I had after the last time.
