I just got back from the Southwest Regional Folk Alliance Conference in Austin and as usual, I’m really stoked about the whole experience. I heard some amazing young singer/songwriters…Daniel Neihoff was one of the most outstanding…and it just renews my sometimes flagging faith in the future of live acoustic music. This morning I was contemplating how much I enjoy sharing some knowledge and experience with folks in panel/workshop presentations and it occurred to me that I probably learn the most when I’m teaching. If you don’t want to sound like a bumbling idiot, you’d better spend time thinking about what you know and figuring out how to present it in the clearest and most concise manner. I also was thinking about the fact that as a professional musician/author, having opportunities to learn from and network with my peers is super important. Last summer, I once again attended the Western Writers of America conference and as always, I learned a lot. Next month, I’ll be attending the International Western Music Association Convention/Gathering and I know I’ll learn a lot there as well. Not only are we never too old to learn something new, if we want to keep up with this changing world/evolving marketplace, we absolutely HAVE to try to keep up with the best practices in our chosen fields.
Every word true, Jim. I was advised early on to recognize that I know more about what I write and how I go about it than anyone. When I stopped to take that to heart, it opened a whole world of experiences.
Yeah, I finally figured out that it’s okay to acknowledge that we actually know quite a bit about what we do. Glad to hear your Ruidoso event went well.