The Washington Post recently published an article outlining what happens when you present a few thousand busy people with some of the most beautiful music on earth.

What happens?

Nothing.

They engaged violinist Joshua Bell to play a few of the most reknowned musical pieces on his 3.5 million dollar stradivarius in a Washington subway during the morning rush.

Only a few people stopped to listen and he earned a whopping $32. His performances normally command up to $1000 per minute.

So what does mean for you?

Even the greatest musicians in the world can’t redeem a bad gig. Learn to identify gigs that are outside your target audience or that are likely doomed from the start (like rush hour subway gigs.)

Come up with a few creative ways to get the attention of your audience because great music sometimes isn’t enough.

And if you have a bad show, be encouraged that it happens to the best.