While
giving a presentation on book publicity trade secrets to a group of recently
published authors in Nashville, I had an interesting cab ride with an Uber
driver who is a struggling songwriter. I never quite thought of things the way
he stated them to be, providing insights for authors.
The
driver perhaps a decade younger than I am, said he moved to Nashville after he
lost his job in the tech industry five years ago. He decided to pursue his real dream – writing
songs for musical talent.
“I
have met some really talented people,” he admitted. “Some are way more talented than me – and
they’ve been here longer.”
Hmm,
sound familiar?
“I
think you have to have talent and work really, really hard,” he added. “But you have to have luck. Maybe it’s 20-25% talent, and 75% luck.”
Again,
sound familiar?
He
told me how he came close to a breakthrough.
One time a famous singer accepted his song and recorded it in a studio,
but it didn’t make the final cut to the album that was released. If it had been published, he might not be Uber-driving
today. Instead, he toils away, knowing
the odds of success are low.
But
he’s passionate about song-writing and believes or hopes he will break through.
Sound
familiar?
Here’s
this middle-aged guy driving strangers around the world’s music capital, hoping
he gets lucky and lands a deal, believing that even with great talent and a
determined work ethic are not enough to succeed.
But maybe luck comes to those who work a little smarter, a little harder, a little differently.
In
our capitalist society there are huge winners and heart-crushing losers. We all
have a shot, perhaps an unequal one, but one nevertheless, to break through and
become who we believe we can be. But the process can be brutal and challenge us
on so many levels.
But
like this Uber driver who has not given up, you shouldn’t either. Your day could come – today, tomorrow, in a
decade, or never. As long as you keep
trying – and look to take different approaches – you can break through the
clutter and build a satisfying writing career.
Maybe
what this guy should do is hand out his cards to everyone, maybe even samples
of his songs. Who knows who will be in
his cab – maybe his breakthrough will simply come from a conversation. It’ll be a lucky thing, but it’s luck that derived
from his ambition to write songs that led to him driving an Uber. He’ll have earned his success.
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