(Each Tuesday will be Productivity Tuesday. We’ll discuss ways to get organized and make the most of your time.)

As an independent artist, you wear many different hats. Those hats can be divided into two main arenas - the creative arena and the business arena. Here’s a general breakdown:

CREATIVE Arena

• Musician
• Singer
• Entertainer
• Songwriter
• Producer

BUSINESS Arena

• Booking agent
• Business manager
• Promoter
• Publicist
• Web designer
• Graphic designer
• Personnel manager
• Merchandise manager
• Production manager
• Equipment manager
• Lawyer
• Accountant
• PR person
• Secretary
• Sales rep

But I Just Want To Make Music!

Isn’t it interesting that the Creative list is far outnumbered by the Business list? In order to make a living at your music you’ll clearly need business know-how and a significant amount of time to research, plan, prepare and produce.

Get Organized. Break It Down.

The key here is to be organized. That BUSINESS list can look terribly overwhelming unless you’re able to break it down into responsibilities, projects and tasks. So let’s do that.

Those business roles can be grouped into three main roles:

BUSINESS Roles
These are the roles that if not done properly can get you into trouble. These are best handled by someone in the group or someone whom you trust as highly knowledgeable and responsible.

• Lawyer
• Accountant
• Secretary

PROMOTION Roles
These are roles that can expand your career.

• Booking Agent
• PR Person
• Publicist
• Web Designer
• Graphic Designer
• Event Promoter
• Marketer

MANAGEMENT Roles
These are roles that keep things running smoothly.

• Personnel manager
• Merchandise manager
• Production manager
• Equipment manager

Divide and Conquer

While you need to be the bottom line decision maker and aware of everything that affects your career, many of these roles can and should be delegated to others.

Some people who might be able to help:

• Band members
• Family members
• Friends
• Fans

The key is to outline all the responsibilites that you are delegating as well as the results that you expect. If you treat your career professionally, so will others.

HOMEWORK

Make your own list of the responsibilities unique to your career and then make a list of people who may be able to take on some of those responsibilites.

The key is to outline all the responsibilites that you are delegating as well as the results that you expect. If you treat your career professionally, so will others.

Next Week

Next week we’ll talk about breaking down these roles in projects and tasks.

(HT: Danny, Brad, Grimmy and Mark.)