#35 How To Quit your Job & Pursue Music – with Rob Hicks

soundtrack.academy

So many composers dream of being able to quit their day job to pursue music.

Maybe you do too?

The problem is : taking that leap of faith is a big deal. You need to have a huge amount of faith in yourself, as well as a mechanism to support yourself as you work towards your dream.

Well, today’s guest, Rob Hicks, took that leap of faith just a couple of years ago, and is already ahead of the target that he set himself before he did. And, most importantly, he’s loving living the creative life, and treating it with such enthusiasm and professionalism.

Before pursuing music full time, Rob Hicks had a successful career in IT – not just as an employee, but as the owner of a thriving internet services business.

So he had a lot to lose if it didn’t pan out.

Thankfully, his hard work as a business owner not only equipped him with some really important business and interpersonal skills to prepare him for the world of music, but it also gave him a financial buffer when he first decided to quit his job to pursue music.

I know that you’re going to get so much out of this episode – personally I found Rob so inspiring to listen to – and I hope that you can action some of the tips he gives in order to get yourself one step closer to being a full time composer.

Here’s what we cover :

[03:55] How Rob first learned music & the early technology that allowed him to make music
[10:04] How technology impacts the creative process
[12:40] What Rob did before pursuing music full time
[17:30] Balancing work and music while running a full time business
[18:30] Business skills that can help your career in music
[21:45] Quantity vs quality (or creativity) with production music
[24:52] How royalties / residuals work and can payoff in the long term
[28:02] Should you have a backup plan or a time limit?
[32:50] How Taxi can give your days structure as a composer
[35:56] What to do with ‘rejected’ tracks
[40:28] Should you transition gradually into pursuing music full time, or dive right in?
[42:23] Rob gives advice on learning where your weaknesses lie and how to improve them
[49:21] Rob’s composing process – starting with the vacuum cleaner…
[55:12] Recommended equipment that Rob uses
[1:04:01] A final piece of advice from Rob

Rob’s Links:

Website : www.rhicksmusic.com
Email : [e-mail]
SoundCloud : https://soundcloud.com/rob-hicks
Twitter : https://twitter.com/RHicksMusic
Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/rhicksmusic/
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/RobertHicksMediaComposer/