Maybe more than any other profession, music is all-embracing. More than a job or even a career, music is a lifestyle. Life doesn’t pause when the gig is over or even when you have finished practicing for the day. Even though you have other daily activities that don’t involve practicing or performing, you live your entire life through a creative lens, including how you hear, the rhythms and pitch, the structure of everything you hear.
Music dictates how you live. The fact that you typically work at night is a major difference from most other jobs. That means you have a different sleeping schedule as well as waking hours than most people. That also means that you have your days free, though, if you want to continue to improve your craft, much of your day is spent working on your business, including securing work, as well as practicing.
Your community is also shaped by your profession. If you are part of an established band, you not only work together, but practice and travel together. Your fellow players become your immediate family. As well, your audience is your community, the people who come to hear you play, the people to whom you are delivering the joy, and often the healing power, of music.
Because your work is on stage playing for people, you can’t afford a bad day. That is, you can’t hide if you’re not feeling well, emotionally or physically. You can’t go into your office, close the door, avoid phone calls, and tell your secretary not to bother you. You have to be on, doing your very best, every time you go to work.
And unlike other professions, you’re not likely to retire, not likely to ever stop playing music—and, well, why would you?