It’s Showtime
Young athletes practice until after dark, imagining themselves making the winning basket, hitting the walk-off home run, or sinking the winning putt. Unknown actors and actresses look at every theatre marquee and dream of their name being in the spotlights. There aren’t many musicians who have ever taken a stage who hasn’t wanted to be the headliner at a concert.
Yet, every “star” had to begin somewhere. Singing in their basements or church, shooting jump shots in their driveway in the dim glow of an old porchlight, or taking a bit part in some community theatre play. They toiled and tried. They failed over and over. They kept trying and they kept showing up.
It was 58 years ago tomorrow (March 9th) that four young boys from Liverpool, England set out on their first British tour. Americans Tommy Roe and Chris Montez were doing a tour of England and a young up-and-coming band named The Beatles had been assigned as their warm-up act. Their first single (Love Me Do) had just been released and was gaining momentum so promoters felt it was a good risk to take. Before the 21 concert tour over 23 days had concluded, The Beatles had been flip-flopped into the headliner position and, well…the rest is history.
Get on the Bus
So where are you in your career? Are you still practicing and dreaming about the big time? Do you attend your company or local board awards events and say “one day that’ll be me on stage”? Now’s the time to learn those scripts and dialogues and make lots of mistakes. Meet the right people, ask lots of questions, take lots of chances. Sure, you might look around and see some other “newbies” having some early success and think they are just getting lucky, but I’ve always found that people might luck into a few deals but if they have more than a few deals, it ain’t luck.
Maybe you’ve had a few tryouts and you’re starting to get a taste of what the “show” is all about? By now you realize that there is no one holding you back. Learn to overcome the objections and just keep trying. As Glen Frey of The Eagles once said,
“I thought about competition more in the earlier days. You know, once you become successful, you realize that you’re competing with yourself. Somebody else making good records can’t keep you off the charts.”
Perhaps you’re just now reaching your prime, getting to be in the spotlight of the business each and every day. As my friend Anthony Malafronte says, now you just have to “Get up, show up, and do the work.” You know what to do and you just want to keep doing more. The thrill of the spotlight is addicting and earning the trust and respect of your customers, clients, and community…not to mention your co-workers and competition is something you really appreciate when it happens.
Or maybe you’re headed down the “Reunion Tour” part of your career, content on finishing strong and letting the other new “stars” take their turn in the spotlight. A deal here and there, helping a former client or close friend with a transaction, or maybe allowing a rookie to shadow under your wing is all the satisfaction you need to remind yourself that you still got it.
Don’t even think of sitting this one out. It doesn’t matter where you are on the program or marquee because we’ve all got to be a warm-up act if we ever expect to be a headliner.
Grab your gear and get ready for your 2021 Tour. It’s called the “Building Relationships, Solving Problems, and Having Fun” Tour and it’s going to be amazing.