ariaready.net

The world of opera and classical singing has given me over 45 years of living the dream – world travel, meeting and working with some of the most famous singers, conductors and stage directors of yesterday, today and tomorrow. It’s been a successful and very satisfying journey for me.

Success means something different to everyone…..so let me ask you, what does success mean to you? It is different for everyone. Most people are afraid of both success and failure. What are you afraid of and why? Once you know the reality of what a singing career demands, are you still interested in pursuing this dream and why? And last but not least, how is your current career plan working out for you? Need some help? You’ve come to the right spot.

Here are my four key corner stones, the necessary foundation blocks on which to build and support your career.

• First and foremost, a solid and consistently dependable vocal technique.
• Knowing who you are, from the inside out.
• Having a destination and a solid plan to get there.
• Personal accountability in all areas of your life.

If you already have these things in place you don’t need me. If anyone of them is not stable, the higher you go, the further you will fall so - call me - Skype me - email me -right now while you are feeling the passion of possibility stir within.

Let me help you review where you are in your career, confirm what you already have in place and honestly works well for you. Together we can define any areas that might need some adjusting. Let’s set up a plan to make your career foundation whole and solid knowing there is no progress without change.

Before you leave this website, make sure you check out my Newsletter Archive. If you find one that really resonates with you, let me know about it. Or if you have an idea for a subject that you would like me to discuss, let me know that as well. And don’t forget to sign up for my FREE Aria Ready Monthly Newsletter to help keep you on track and inspired.

Check out the completely revised and updated 2nd edition of my book, “Aria Ready, The Business of Singing”. There are many books out there about singing and many books out there about business, but this is the only one available that explains the Personal & Business Aspects of building a singing career. I not only tell you what to do, but how to do it by giving you the tools and skills to create your very own personalized path to successful career building. It’s a great resource and reminder of how to do what needs to be done. To have an achievable purpose, creates motivation to get you where you want to go, even if and when you stumble and fall or just don’t have the vision for a while. You will be able to actually go into the book to read some of the materials to see if this might be a good resource for you.

Thanks for stopping by – bookmark my website so it’s a breeze to use as a great resource and also a place to discuss and digest subjects you are interested in. Let me hear from you.

Practice, Practice, Practice?

"Failure is not fatal, but failure to change might be." - John Wooden

How and what do you practice? Practicing is a commitment to excellence that starts with a solid strategy, defined goals, a realistic tactical plan, plus a brand story that will continue to develop your brand voice (singing voice) with authority and authenticity. This means getting relentlessly fierce mentally as you focus on how you do what you do. This then is backed with uncompromising accountability on your part. Annie Murphy Paul, the author of “Origins” and “The Power of Smart Listening”, says “The important thing is not just practice but deliberate practice, a constant sense of self-evaluation, of focusing on one’s weaknesses, rather than simply fooling around and playing to one’s strengths. Studies show that practice aimed at remedying weaknesses is a better predictor of expertise than raw number of hours; playing for fun and repeating what you already know is not necessarily the same as efficiently reaching a new level. Most of the practice that most people do, most of the time, be it in the pursuit of learning the guitar or improving their golf game, yields almost no effect.”

This might sound simplistic, even obvious, but it’s something most of us avoid. As you practice singing, play the piano, dabble at speaking another language, get your resume in order for a specific audition or competition, work on your plan of action, it’s usually because you like doing it or know it is a means to an end, getting to do what you want to do. It’s usually a quick fix or Band-Aid that you use to patch something up because you don’t want to spend your time, energy or monies on finding the source of the problem or issue, that will finally give you the solution. This often gives you a certain feeling of achievement, a level of competency that makes you feel good about yourself.

"Maintaining a complicated life is a great way to avoid changing it." - Elaine St. James

But what you don’t do is to look intentionally for the evidence, the ways that you are not fully committed to finding each shortcut, stumbling block, shortcoming, mistake or problem as they occur and addressing each immediately.