When back-to-school rolls around each year, though, I have a strange feeling of de ja vu. After all, we experience this season in much the same way for our entire lives. Some of us move from higher ed into jobs that aren’t dictated by back-to-school, but if you have children, friends, relatives, or a spouse that are in school or work in education, its unavoidable. If you happen to shop during the end of the summer you’re also met with back-to school sales and advertising everywhere. It would be difficult to escape this rhythm that dictates so many lives.

I recently took a professional orchestra audition for the first time in five years, and although I’ve continue to grow and change as a musician, especially during those five years (job interviews, recorded competitions, recitals, orchestral freelancing, collegiate teaching, health and wellness certifications, etc.),  it was a rollercoaster of an experience, to say the least.

No matter whether you like to play outside or not, the reality is that we want to sound our very best no matter the circumstances. With the outdoor odds stacked against us, playing our best just requires a little more preparation and planning.

But there is an even bigger part of our lives as performers that the iceberg can represent, and that includes our approach to daily life outside of making music. Routines of all types, planning ahead, reflecting on what’s behind us…tending.

Is music a practical major? Absolutely not. Is it a way to open doors to better versions of myself? Absolutely. Majoring in music isn’t our problem, and odds are that all of us will have a portfolio career to some degree. The problem is that we’re still framing this as novel or even as a second prize to a more ideal scenario that doesn’t exist anymore.

Our culture has a do-it-all-all-the-time mentality, and musicians embrace the high octane version. The great challenge of managing doing remains that we spend so many years doing so much to the point where we begin to choose and exercise discernment around our time we can end up feeling so guilty it’s paralyzing. It helps to think of moderation and to clearly label what value and necessity activities hold.

If we all continue climbing for the one peak our training presented as Mt. Everest we risk remaining blind to the beauty of the entire range and susceptible to the dangers and pitfalls brought on by too many hikers using one path.

The way being busy makes us feel and what we need to do to cope with high-demand periods of work will change as we get older and more experienced. Intentional planning can create success and prevent burnout.

When was the last time you enjoyed a little silence?

The answer is the opposite of a hack. An anti-hack if you will. It lies in perspective.

Maybe what I knew deep down years ago and am just now able to articulate is that I didn’t want to teach music in the first place. What I wanted was to at least try to experience and teach the satisfaction of depth and exploration.

How to prepare musically and mentally for big performances.

Social media is unpaid work. Remember that we can all be empowered in our own choices about how we interact with our life, and especially in our enjoyment of the passage of time.

Hang in there. Stay in the present. A new season is always around the corner.

What are the ways you could explore your unique interests and skills to connect with others?

Our culture pushes make-your-own schedules, self-employment, and autonomy as the ultimate freedoms, but we’re missing the mark thinking that everything should be unbound. Healthy structures help us achieve our goals and enjoy the time we spend in work and activities.

“The more firmly you believe it ought to be possible to find time for everything, the less pressure you’ll feel to ask whether any given activity is the best use of a portion of your time.”

It is good to remember that there is meaning whether we reach one person or a thousand, or maybe we only reach ourselves.

Maybe that’s the answer after all. To be here. To hold space. To make room for my students.

We don’t move forward by simply reading or watching how someone else has done it. We have to feel our way through. Only by building on our own experiences do we continue to step forward.