It’s all about Priorities.
Finding it difficult to manage your finances? Suz explains some key concepts when it comes to having a healthy money mindset + how to manage your finances without the overwhelm & judgment.
You’re listening to Episode 8 of the Music-Preneur Mindset Podcast.
Hello and welcome! Thanks for joining me for another episode of The Music-Preneur Mindset Podcast. I’m your host, Suz, and I am honored you’ve decided to spend some time with me to learn what it takes to think like a
music-preneur!
If this is your first time listening, welcome! This is episode 8, and you can catch the last 7 episodes using your favorite podcast platform or by going to www.therockstaradvocate.com/podcast.
As this podcast is all about getting into the right mindset to grow a sustainable career in the music industry, I’ve created a freebie for each episode so that you can immediately download it and apply what you’ve learned in an episode in order to work the muscles of a new skill set or habit before the information you digested goes out the window.
You’ll find these freebies in the show notes of each episode so be sure to check them out!
Now that I’ve walked you through what to expect, let’s dive in!
In this episode I want to discuss a little money management & mindset. This isn’t the first episode on the topic and it sure as hell won’t be the last. I dived into income streams and some tools to help you manage your money in Episode 6 – The Art of Being a Music-Preneur.
Today, I want to focus on how you know what to spend your money on when growing your career in music. In Episode 3, I discussed the many missteps I took in my previous businesses with my former business partner,
and one of those missteps definitely included money management.
Not only did we not know how to price our services in a way that allowed us to be sustainable, but we also invested a lot of money in the wrong things, or sometimes in the right things but at the wrong time.
So I want to jump in and discuss some ways you can identify what a good investment is for you at a given time as well as ways you can figure out what to charge people for various products/services and plan for future growth without getting completely overwhelmed.
I do want to start off by saying this is in no way financial advice, nor am I a financial planner, accountant, or any time of money management professional. I simply want to point out a few ways to take action in your business without feeling constantly in the dark when it comes to balancing your books.
The goal for almost any individual, let alone any music-preneur, is connected to financial freedom – making enough money to support themselves by doing what they love. Right?
But, much as I pointed out in Episode 6, you can’t just focus on what you love and not see the bigger picture of how to cover expenses, invest in growth, build a team, and so on.
While a goal for you may be to hire a bookkeeper or accountant and not worry about the day-to-day finances or filing taxes, it’s important you get comfortable familiarizing yourself with the basic expenses & revenue streams of your career in order to ensure you’re putting your energy in the right places to get where you need to be.
If you don’t know how much you need to be bringing in each month to cover your basic needs you’ll never have any idea how many downloads you’ll need to sell or how many clients you’ll need to sign in order to stay out of the red.
We avoid tasks when we fear the outcome or we have told ourselves we’re no good at something. After all, who ever wants to focus on what they’re not good at, right?
But, rather than seeing money management as an incredibly stressful endeavor that we’re bound to fail at, let’s take a look at some basics and see how understanding certain things about our money can actually empower us in other areas that often bring us stress & anxiety.
I first want to point out some Rocksources that I’ve learned from and then list a few things you can do to gain more control over the income you bring in and your plans for future growth. You’ll be able to access these Rocksources through links on the show notes page.
Most recently I signed up for a trial of the app You Need A Budget, YNAB for short. I had tried using Mint.com for a while and, as YNAB points out, the system Mint uses merely tracks what we’ve spent and keeps us stuck in the past – focusing on what’s already been done rather than what needs to be done moving forward.
I’m far from considering myself well-versed in YNAB, and I’m not an affiliate of any sort, but what I have liked so far is that it focuses on the future and helps take the judgment out of past financial decisions.
It focuses on assigning every dollar you bring in a specific job. Using their budgeting tools you aim to zero-out your income by assigning every piece of that income to a specified use. Whether that be to add to your savings or cover rent or treat yourself to a night out, YOU are in control of where that money goes.
It lets you know how far you have to go till you cover the expenses & goals you’ve listed out for yourself. You could pay off your credit card with your next paycheck, or cover most of it and put some other dollars towards an upcoming purchase for your business.
In addition, they have a running list of focused & digestible webinars {each are 20 minutes long} that cover everything from how to look at credit card debit to how to plan for future income as a freelancer or independent contractor {or what we call a music-preneur ;-)}.
What I love most about using it {or any money management tool for that matter} is that it forces me to sit and take inventory of what I need to bring in each month to cover my basic needs. It’s less about dollars and more about priorities.
If I know what I must bring in each month, I can then decide what else I would like to bring in each month to cover other future goals or personal luxuries. Whether that be a travel fund, a 401k account, or other business expenses, knowing what I have to work with enables me to set realistic and quantifiable goals.
And, when goals are realistic and quantifiable we all know they are more likely to be reached.
The other beauty of all this is that, as they often say, knowledge is power. I don’t have to feel weird about what to charge people or lost on how many clients per month is a good goal to have.
When I have the numbers in front of me I know that I must bring in x amount if I want what I want and I need what I need. That stops me from charging too little or stressing over bringing on truckloads of clients when it turns out I only need a handful of clients each month in order to reach my goals.
Same goes for musicians – why set random goals like selling x amount of downloads or pricing merch at a random price when we have tools that can empower us to approach these tasks more intelligently.
I know many of my clients feel overwhelmed when it comes to figuring out what to charge or what goals to set in terms of sales/downloads. Opening your eyes to what you need to be pulling in each month can help take a lot of that guesswork out of your decision making.
Another great Rocksource I’ve used when it comes to figuring out how to best manage my finances is the Money Personality Quiz hosted on Brunch & Budget’s website. It’s a simple 2-question quiz that can really open up
your eyes to what your tendencies are with money and how you view money.
Brunch & Budget was founded by Pamela Capalad Kushner, a Certified Financial Planner. She’s a good friend of mine and has been my financial for over two years now.
I’ve learned so much from my consultations with her and my Money Personality was one of the first things she opened up my eyes to understanding. While she didn’t invent the quiz or the matrix that the results fall on,
she makes it incredibly easy to digest.
What’s important to remember, and this is something she taught me – it’s not about judgment, but rather awareness.
Too often we put too much judgment on how we or others spend money. What is important to you is not necessarily going to be important to me, and vise versa.
It may be quite easy for you to give up eating out at restaurants when funds are tight, but there is no WAY you are giving up your access to cable & streaming services.
I, on the other hand, may be fine saying goodbye to cable {which I did over 7 years ago and have yet to miss it} but would be devastated if I was left to my own devices in the kitchen.
If you understand how you view money, what your relationship to money is, and what your priorities are when it comes to spending that money, you’ll be better equipped to make decisions that work for you.
If you’re looking for guidance on where to invest your money or what tools you should have in place for various transitions in your life {i.e. types of insurance, savings accounts, etc.}, consider making an appointment with Pam or find out when she’ll next be in your area giving a free workshop.
She also hosts a radio show with her husband, Dyalekt, on Bonfire Radio and you can find all of that information on her website, which is listed in the show notes. Again, I am not an affiliate, but rather a highly satisfied customer who wishes to pass on a good thing.
The last Rocksource I want to mention shameless plug alert is my Rock/Star Life Planner. I mentioned in Episode 3 that it was the brainchild between me and my very good friend, Alyssa B. Jackson.
I now want to talk about some of the tools we’ve equipped this weekly planner with {a planner that is now available on Amazon in a dated & undated version}.
In the back of the planner we’ve included a Financial Review section so that you can track what you’re bringing in from various possible revenue streams and what you’re spending each month on your business within various tax-deductible categories. We’ve also provided space to track quarterly progress.
Additionally, we’ve included access to digital downloads of other Rocksources, including my Financial Workbook, to track your income and spending without the need for self-computing, and my Inventory Workbook, to keep track of your Cost of Goods & how much product you have on hand at any given moment.
Now that I’ve gone over a few Rocksources that can help you gain a better handle on your money management, I want to address how to know what to spend your money on at any given time.
It should come at no surprise after everything I ran through just now, that it all comes down to priorities.
As I said before, what makes sense for one person may not make sense for you. So, like anything else we discuss here on this podcast – it comes down to education and mindset.
Educate yourself on your current financial situation. Understand what your future income will need to be in order to get you closer to your ideal lifestyle – whether that means putting yourself in a position to quit your current job that you hate {please don’t quit your job 5x like I did and keep showing back up to work out of desperation – see Episode 2 if you need to know what I’m referring to!} or move into your dream home or allow your spouse to quit their job.
Then empower yourself with that knowledge in order to make a confident decision. If you have money to spare – treat yourself! If you are on a tight budget – where will that money create the most positive impact for you?
All too often I have musicians approach me and say “I want to work with you, but all my money needs to go to recording my next album.” Now, for some, that may make sense.
If you have an engaged following, songs that are ready to record, and plans to leverage that album by booking shows and gaining more press – awesome! Then investing in studio time serves your goal and you should move forward.
However, if you’re spending money in the studio just so you can tell people you’re back in the studio and you’re paying to sit and write songs that aren’t ready to record and you’re not at all sure what you’ll do with the album once it’s done – maybe that’s not the best use of your money.
I’m not saying it should all go to me haha, but what WILL serve you right now where you are in your career? What’s holding you back the most? What will make a difference in your efforts moving forward?
If you’re unclear on your goals – get a coach! If you’re failing horribly at social media, take a class! If you’ve got great songs but your vocals are weak invest in voice lessons!
A lost little puppy follows the crowd and hopes to find an answer.
A music-preneur takes charge and does what’s right for them and the future of their career.
With that being said, I invite you to download my 5-Step Financial Audit Worksheet. Before you use an app like YNAB or hire someone like Pam, get clear on your tendencies, your goals, and your priorities so you can take a look at your finances with authority rather than with fear.
You can go to www.therockstaradvocate.com/ep8 and download the worksheet to ensure you’re making informed decisions when it comes to your hard-earned money.
I thank you for listening to today’s lesson in thinking more like a music-preneur. I know money can be a messy and even painful topic for many, but you should feel good that you’re taking steps to get control over your finances, rather than allowing them to have control over you.
If there is any way that I can help you figure out your priorities, learn better ways to have a healthier mindset around money, or get some clarity on what you’re going through, I’d be more than happy to!
Feel free to email me at any time: suz@therockstaradvocate.com.
Until next time, Rockstar! Have a wonderful week and I hope to see you back here next Wednesday so we can get grounded to get rising! Take care.
Key Highlights
- Mistakes I made with my last businesses re: money [01:37]
- The importance of understanding your finances [03:00]
- Why we avoid money management [03:33]
- Why YNAB is an important tool [04:16]
- Why I love Brunch & Budget [07:17]
- Using The Rock/Star Life Planner’s Rocksources [09:14]
- How to know what to spend your money on [10:12]
- The Music-Preneur’s money mindset [12:29]
Take control over your finances without feeling overwhelmed & emotional about a few numbers!
By downloading this freebie, you’ll be added to my weekly newsletter. You’re welcome to unsubscribe at anytime.
Links/Rocksources
- Theme music brought to you by DC-based Indie/Pop band Sub-Radio
- More episodes can be found here
- You can download a copy of the episode’s transcript here
- Sign up for a free trial of the YNAB App here
- Take the Brunch & Budget Money Personality Quiz here
- Purchase The 2018 Rock/Star Life Planner here
Thanks for listening!
If you liked what you heard, help get this podcast in front of others by subscribing, rating, and leaving a review using your favorite podcast app 😉
Spotify | iTunes | SoundCloud | Stitcher | RSS Feed
