As artists, what inspires us to create? What do we want to accomplish? These are some of the questions that New England Conservatory’s Entrepreneurial Musicianship (EM) Department helps students answer. A musician’s reality might seem bleak due to the lack of jobs and abundance of talent, but an entrepreneur would see that reality as an opportunity which also comes with a huge wealth of creativity and exploration. What you do with those two things is how you define the level of risk you want to take. For some people, the words risk and entrepreneurship are some of the scariest words to be uttered. This does not mean you have to promote yourself by plastering your face on the side of Symphony Hall. A simple risk could be to make or do something from what you consider the “normality” of your life. Personally, I am always looking for how to ‘one up’ my normality. One of the things that inspired me to create my one-woman show, Remember When, was to see how far I could push myself beyond my comfort zone. I wanted to test my capabilities and my capacity for risk and entrepreneurship while I still had the safety net of being in school. I wondered what my endeavors would indicate about how I would stand out later on in life. In an entertainment world that seems to stay afloat through remakes and comic book adaptations, shouldn’t every musician be making strides to find and create something new and exciting?

Finding something new doesn’t have to be complicated. For example, no one else has our perspective or style. For me, my “new” was to reach out in a way that could help groups of people who aren’t in mainstream society. By the time I reached graduate school, I had spent over seven years performing at numerous retirement communities and assisted living residences. A segment of this population that intrigued me were people with impaired memory. The opportunity and challenge became clear for me – the producing and performing of a show for the benefit of this group while appealing to a wider audience. I was fortunate to discover Cure Alzheimer’s Fund, where their scientists understand the power of music as a therapy for the disease. Massachusetts’ focus on Alzheimer’s research was a bonus. My experience, passion and musical skills, combined with grant opportunities from two supportive environments (NEC’s Entrepreneurial Musicianship Department and Live Arts Boston) resulted in the perfect recipe for creating my entrepreneurial venture.

Remember When was a crash course in entrepreneurship from all angles because I had never written a grant or a play, executed publicity, staged a play, hired people or performed jazz rep in my life. Most of the time I felt as though I was making it up as I went along. This attempt at entrepreneurship, however, taught me a lot about myself. It taught me how fast I could learn. It taught me a lot about the entertainment industry that one doesn’t necessarily learn in school. It tested my perceptions of quality; what I could and could not tolerate and helped me realize who would be there for me on my journey. I can say that the EM department was always there if I ran into issues and needed advice from someone. Realize, though, the heavy lifting of doing a big project like this relies on you.

My experience also taught me how to manage the negative side of risk – fear. When you create something, you are never certain whether people will like it. That’s when you have to have faith based upon truthful self-acknowledgement of your skill level and belief that you have something good and worthwhile to offer. When I was wary during my process, I would take my ideas to the EM office. I wouldn’t have been able to execute Remember When if I hadn’t received the affirmation of my idea. They asked me periodically how things were progressing, but I came in with a plan of execution and was prepared to follow through. NEC is forward thinking in having an EM department. It’s a treasure that should be utilized frequently by students and alums. Unfortunately, many may bypass this resource not realizing their own potential. The EM office helps make sure your creation is tailored to you and your abilities, but asks you to test and expand beyond your boundaries. If you remain true to yourself and execute to your liking, the risk will always turn out to be a reward. It’s a chance to tell a story, risk a performance, connect with someone, and grow in ways you might not have imagined. Test the waters of entrepreneurship. Successful or not, you went out there and you created something. As an artist, isn’t that what we live for?

Article by Morgan Middleton, originally posted on HuffPost Sept 11, 2017