Yes, I'll do that

“You will have the chance to take two paths. One you can say ‘No, I don’t do that’ and keep going down the path you’ve always gone down. Or you can say ‘Yes, I’ll do that.’ And you don’t even have to be good at it but you have to try.”

—Phil Snedecor

Wise words from trumpet player, teacher, composer and entrepreneur Phil Snedecor.

Especially in today’s scary and uncertain times, a lot of people in the music business are going to have to say “Yes, I’ll do that” or whoever is doing the asking is going to move on to the next person.

Literally everyone has already had their lives turned upside down by this global pandemic. Some more than others, of course. But everyone is having to make adjustments to what they do, how they do it, when they do it and where they do it.

Even those lucky enough to still be doing what they did before this hit are having to change the how, when and/or where. The future is going to reward two types of people: leaders who will take us where we need to go in these unchartered waters and those who are adaptable enough to help those leaders make their vision a reality.

Things have changed so much in the last 20 years and this trend was already well underway. But this pandemic is like throwing a can of gasoline on the fire. This trend is now expanding exponentially.

So start figuring out how to say yes to things, even when you’re not sure. But keep in mind the last part of Phil’s quote:

You don’t even have to be good at it. But you have to try.