Musicians, how do you define a healthy work-life balance?

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Actually, I found it interesting that Brian Eno, in an interview a number of years ago, said that if you're 100% serious about making it in music, don't get a "day job". And I can see the logic in that, having tried MANY times to hit the balance between "day job" and music and finding that the "day job" demands more of you than your art...which already demands A LOT.

This won't get fixed for a long time...at least, not until people start to remember why the arts are important, and start demanding that they be properly funded.
 

gogi93

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I don't have any great hidden wisdom, but I do have a few years' experience working a "day job" while also pursuing music. I was able to leave my "day job" back in the winter. When I was working, it was always part time, and I lived on less while i was doing it. I also tried to not compare myself with other people who seem to have more time, energy, talent, or money. For me it comes down to knowing what you want to do and also the idea of, "do you have what you need and are you happy?" Some people have a day job and are able to be musically fulfilled; music may not be their primary source of income, but they have a good balance because they have what they need but are also able to do what they want in music and the rest of their lives. But if that's not what you want, then that won't be satisfying. Of course, if the day job is taking all the time and energy you need to make music, that's not really balanced either.

It takes a lot of hard work to make a living in any creative field, but if you're pushing yourself so hard that music feels like a job and the joy is gone (either you don't enjoy making music or you don't enjoy life in general), then that's not balanced in my opinion. Your music will be worse for it because it'll absorb all that negative energy, and if you're not enjoying making music then what's the point? (That'll probably spread to the rest of your life as well, and you'll end up sad and lonely and probably die in a hole somewhere).
 
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Hibachi Pancake

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I think the most important thing is to find a community that drives you to pursue your passion. I don't have any interest in making music personally, but I've always found I accomplish so much more and have much more drive when I'm working on a team or in a loose grouping. Just having the ability to show progress, receive feedback on that progress, and a little healthy competition can work wonders for turning your down-time into something you're proud of.
 

greyetch

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Fellow musicians that have a non-creative/non-industry job as a main source of income, how do you define a healthy work-life balance? monkahhm
Easy, wait for an intense manic episode, believe god is speaking thru me, create bangers for 48 hours.


Stanley Kubrick 70Mm GIF by Coolidge Corner Theatre
 
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Fractalactals

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It seems every person has a different understanding of work-life balance in their mind that is hard to articulate.
For me it's as little work as possible to survive.
I have a full time software dev job, sometimes I get to do 2 hours of work a week, sometimes I have to pull 60 hours a week. The ideal is always to work as little as possible, I can make ends meet comfortably so I have no interest in more responsibility at work, more pay but more stress would affect my life outside too much.
 

Jungos Revenge

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It seems every person has a different understanding of work-life balance in their mind that is hard to articulate.
For me it's as little work as possible to survive.
I have a full time software dev job, sometimes I get to do 2 hours of work a week, sometimes I have to pull 60 hours a week. The ideal is always to work as little as possible, I can make ends meet comfortably so I have no interest in more responsibility at work, more pay but more stress would affect my life outside too much.
This is pretty much the exact philosophy I follow as well. I have a full time job that provides me with a decent amount of autonomy. Some weeks are more jam packed with work than others, and other weeks I may only have to work a few hours on the job. The less work I have to do, the better. I am comfortable enough that I don't want to add any more responsibility and stress to my plate. I deeply cherish the free time I have to work on music and other hobbies, and it wouldn't be worth losing that for more pay at this point in my life.