Confession: Concerts aren’t my thing. I’m always excited when I buy my tickets but as traffic slows down near the venue and I find myself waiting in a line of cars to park, it all comes back to me: Being herded around like cattle, sitting in the nosebleed section where I can’t see anything and drinking $12 wine from cheap, plastic cups. As a visual person, I get bored in those circumstances. I entertain myself studying the crowd, and I find myself wondering why I’m not at home on my comfy leather loveseat, watching the event on the plasma.
A few weeks ago, I discovered I’ve been doing it wrong all these years. My mom had procured two tickets to one of her favorite musical acts and asked me to accompany her. Imagine my surprise when the usher led us past everyone in the theater to the second row! In fact, we were sitting in the orchestra pit on folding chairs. For the first time in my life, I could see the expressions of every musician on stage — there were 14 of them — and I was mesmerized.
It wasn’t the front man who drew my attention. My eyes were glued to the orchestra, the crazy drummer surrounded by plexiglass to protect his compatriots from flying drumstick shards or cymbals; the serious cellist who kept exchanging grimaces with his violinist neighbor; the harpist who hefted his instrument into the air in enthusiasm; and the other cellist’s coy smile as she completed her solo.
I studied the relationships between the artists and concocted intrigues in my head. I got caught up in the atmosphere and even considered taking up music as a hobby. I mentally moved from one instrument to the next, trying to choose the one that most appealed. One of the strings! But what about on the high end of the scale when they get screechy? That would hurt my ears. Well, what about the drums?…That’s a lot to carry around. Definitely no to the brass section. Guitar?…Nope, not really feeling it.
And then I realized: It wasn’t the music per se, it was the artists’ passion that enthralled me. It was their dedication and commitment, year after year, to honing their craft, toiling thanklessly until they were the best in a fiercely competitive industry, and doing so not to be the front man — the name, if you will — but to be one member of the orchestra. Just thinking about that gives me chills. In order to succeed as they have, they must be driven by love, and that is magnetic!
My take-away:
When we’re true to ourselves and working from a place of both passion and dedication, we are magnetic.
If you allow yourself to believe that, does anything change for you? I’d love to hear what you think!
Happy Friday,
P.S. If the curiosity is killing you, here is a little hint on who we saw:
Kate Watson - Totally, Rebecca! My goal is for all photographers and visual artists to realize how playing to their strengths and acknowledging their motivations and vision helps to create a differentiated style and brand that attracts their ideal customers.
Rebecca Stees - I think love and style and closely related, too.