One Song At A Time

 

Twitter Billboard

The journey to understanding what I want to accomplish with my music has been an evolving revelation.  My goal to  "brighten the world one song at a time" releases me to be who I am, an individual who processes life through creative expression and finds joy in sharing what I see, but in bite-sized pieces.  Sometimes what emerges is a collection of pieces as in record production or live performances, but it all starts with one song.

When I decdied to establish a web presence in 2003, I just wanted a place to post my music where it could be heard by whoever happened by.  Peter, the IT guy where I worked created my first website for me, the theme of a happy flower where each petal presented a different page.  It was fresh and sweet, representing my essence well.  However, Peter was the only one with access so when I wanted to input or change content I had to wait till he had a moment.


A change came when I produced my Vessel CD in 2004.  A musician friend, Georgette Dashiel, let me know I could sell my CDs on
CD Baby (an online music store specializing in independent music) which led me to also sign up with HostBaby (webhosting for independent musicians, authors and artists) where I have happily thrived since.  Hostbaby outfits you with tools that are fun, easily learned, and affordable for anyone on a budget! 

My next steps were MySpace, FaceBook and Twitter, in that order, where I began networking with other musicians, artists and people of all types.  The web is certainly a learn-as-you-go experience and you can't help but wonder how we ever navigated without it.  It's definitely connecting us to one another globally.  (Another blog entry for later lest I digress ...)

 

I can understand why some folks resist the social networking aspects of weblife.  But for those of us who have decided to jump in and let it do what it's designed to do have found the positives outweigh the negatives.  For instance, I resisted Twitter at first for the same reason many have - it can be lame commenting about what you had for lunch.  Instead, it turned out not to be about lunch at all.  When I tweet it's usually to announce a gig or a favorite musical quote or to pass on something great someone else has said.  Even your Twitter byline (the bio to explain who you are) forces you to define your identity in one memorable quote with only 160 characters.  Tweets are 140 characters so I've had to learn to squeeze my lofty thoughts into nutshell statements.  If nothing else, it forces the thinking/writing process which can't be bad for my aging brain. Each tweet is a virtual personal billboard, so to speak.  The good news is I'm not really limited to that 140-character tweet because I can link it from twitter to my blog post and blather on till I find full expression with as many words I choose to use, if I choose.

 

All this to say, my web presence, with all its honing qualities, has helped me discover who I really am and what I'd like my purpose to be.  I've heeded lots of advice posted by social network bloggers along the way, and though I've used what works for me, I've noticed some of it doesn't apply to my goals.  To determine my goals, I've learned to live with an honest assessment of my strengths and weaknesses which has come through trial and error, not just on the web, but in the real dimensional world as well. 

 

This journey to my true purpose has revealed to me there's a fine line between believing all things are possible and discerning who I am and what I am meant to do.  And for now, I believe it's to brighten the world, one song at a time. 

 

And with that, feel free to chime in what you have learned in your journey along the way.  I'd love to hear from you!

Leave a comment