Becoming a Musicpreneur: 3 Steps to Getting in the Musicpreneur Mindset

becoming a musicpreneur: 3 steps to the Musicpreneur Mindset

I want to congratulate you - You decided to take your music career from amateur to professional and that’s a HUGE first step.

But now you’re probably wondering: Okay, what’s next? How do I actually do this?

Unless you went to business school or you have a corporate day job, the business side of the industry is most likely not your strong suit.

That’s okay! That’s what I’m here for and why I’m developing content specifically for the musicpreneur!

The First Steps

I never thought I’d be an entrepreneur. I remember taking an entrepreneurship class in grad school and it was all about creating a tech company and how to get investors, launch a product, etc.

I thought, No way do I want to do this for a living. I shut the thought down and was relatively content to work for someone else for the rest of my life.

What I didn’t understand at the time is that entrepreneurship isn’t all about the biggest and best tech product or company. Entrepreneurs come in many shapes and sizes, from online businesses (like this one!) to small mom and pop corner stores.

(A huge thank you to my business mentor Amanda from She Did It Her Way for helping me to realize that yes, I could be an entrepreneur without a high tech product!)

And yes, even as a musician you can be an entrepreneur. The new trendy term (which I’ll admit, I do love) is musicpreneur.

So how do you get from where you are to become a musicpreneur? I’ll be honest, it’s a lot of work, but it’s rewarding in the end.

First things first though, you have to shift your mindset. You’ll go from one of “this is a hobby” to “this is my business,” reframe your thoughts, consider why you want this, and so much more.

Here are the first three steps to take to get into a musicpreneur mindset:

1. Reframe Your Thoughts

Think like an entrepreneur.

I remember the days of going to punk rock shows, where not “selling out” was all the rage. It was a DIY mentality and if you signed a record deal or somehow made a ton of money from music then you were “working for the man” and a sell-out.

Real talk here: If you want your music career to go anywhere, if you want it to be your life then you have to make a living from it. You have to treat it like a business and think of it like a business.

Now I understand that music is art, that it has meaning to the writer and performer, and that sometimes you don’t necessarily want to compromise your work for money.

That’s not what I’m saying here. Look at the incredible variety of music out there that people create, listen to, and buy.

Reframing your thoughts is about removing the negative talk and being positive. It’s understanding that often, things aren’t personal but are just business. It’s changing the thoughts from “this is a failure” to “this way didn’t work, so I’m going to try it this way.” It’s viewing problems as opportunities.

My journey into business ownership started when I reframed my own thoughts of entrepreneurship. I went from “entrepreneurship isn’t for me, it's all about tech products and companies” to “entrepreneurship is something I want for my life, and I can become one by creating an online business.”

Now you try!

2. Take Intentional Massive Action

Passive action can only take you so far

You’re taking online courses, reading blog posts and books, and learning all about music and the industry.

That’s great! You need that knowledge to be successful.

But what have you accomplished?

You’ve checked books off your list and you understand the industry, you’ve set goals, but have you earned an income? Where’s your career going?

You’ve been taking passive action.

Massive action is income producing activities that don’t stop until you get the result that you want. It’s releasing a song to Spotify and marketing the hell out of it, launching an online course teaching others how to play guitar or write a song, performing on Facebook live with a PayPal tip option, putting out a Kickstarter for your next album release, selling handwritten lyrics, or even writing songs on commission for fans or other musicians.

The most important part of taking massive action though, is to be intentional about the action steps you’re taking. Don’t just take massive action to take massive action. Make sure that each action fits in with why you want this to be your career, with your goals, and with the brand you’re developing.

I’ve been taking online courses, reading all the business books, and attending conferences. I took action by launching a blog and podcast, but my massive actions were launching virtual services for music industry professionals and creative entrepreneurs, and developing two digital products for 2020. Both the services and digital products were massive actions that will produce income for the business.

3. Eliminate Negative Words and Phrases

It’s not a failure, it’s a learning experience

This is a BIG one for mindset work, and it will help with the first step of reframing your thoughts.

When I stepped into entrepreneurship, the first word I eliminated from my vocabulary was “failure.” Instead of labeling something that just didn’t work a “failure,” I label it as a “learning experience.” I take what I learned, make adjustments, and move forward. It’s only ever a failure if it doesn’t work and you a) give up or b) keep repeating the same mistake.

What else can we eliminate and replace with something positive?

I can’t… I choose not to.

I should… I choose to.

I have to… I get to.

No problem… You’re welcome.

Okay, that’s great. Now how do we remove these words? These words and phrases are part of our every day lives, and heck, I even catch myself saying (or writing) them.

Catch yourself thinking or saying those phrases and encourage yourself to use positive terms
Practice saying positive, empowering words and phrases
Speak it into being and tell someone else what you’re trying to do

What negative words and phrases will you eliminate?

More Mindset Shifts

These three mindset shifts will get you started to thinking like a musicpreneur, but remember that it’s not one and done when it comes to changing your mindset.

Entrepreneurs practice mindset work every day and in different ways. What works for one person might not work for another, so you need to find what shift works for you to get you into a musicpreneur mindset and keep you there.

I’ve put together a list of 6 Mindset Shifts for the Musicpreneur (including the three in this post), all of which will be included (with additional shifts) in the upcoming Musician to Musicpreneur online course.

Download the Think Like an Entrepreneur: 6 Mindset Shifts for the Musicpreneur now, and sign up for the Musician to Musicpreneur waitlist here!