We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Brett Wilkins. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Brett below.

Hi Brett, thanks for joining us today. One of the things we most admire about small businesses is their ability to diverge from the corporate/industry standard. Is there something that you or your brand do that differs from the industry standard? We’d love to hear about it as well as any stories you might have that illustrate how or why this difference matters.

I’ve found in my line of work, most musicians approach each performance with a planned set. Nothing wrong with that, because these sets are usually polished and played with accuracy. Even the big acts do it.

As a person that enjoys listening to live music, I found there is a risk of it stale if you see the same musician performing the same set multiple times.

I wanted to change that approach by performing songs in a different set order, during each performance, and finding new songs to add to the set.

Basically, if the bartenders at the venue where I am performing can’t tell how many hours are left in their shift based on my set, I’m doing something right.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I’ve been playing guitar for 30 years, but didn’t pursue performing regular live gigs until 2015. I played in a duo with a good friend at our local bar. It was a lot of work at first. Once I got more comfortable with performing and coming home with a few extra dollars in my pocket I chose to take things to the next level and approach other venues in the area.

After knocking on a few doors, I started to pick up gigs on the weekends adding to my income. By 2018, I made the decision to quit my day job and pursue music full time. Five years later I’m still doing it, and I’m grateful every day for the opportunity.

Can you talk to us about how your side-hustle turned into something more.

I was so happy when I found music as a side hustle. There I was playing guitar while drinking beer with friends and getting paid for it. When my wife wanted to quit her job to focus on motherhood, I choose to pursue music as a second income on the weekends.

Performing was very gratifying to me. One gig a week turned to two, then three, etc. It was starting to be a challenge to balance day job and weekend job life, as well as family life.

I hated the Monday – Friday 8am – 5pm cubicle life. But when I performed on the weekends, I felt such awesome energy. It was where I was supposed to be.

Once I realized I was turning down beach gigs during the week because of my corporate job, I knew something had to give. So I left corporate to focus on music full time. It was a terrifying decision because I had some self doubt. Fortunately, I fought it by keep my head down and just grinding it out. The experience has given me growth, amazing friendships, more time with my family, and quality of life.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Ego. Get rid of it.

My ego, held me back. I thought I was better than I was, I thought I deserved more than I did.

One day I was told “This isn’t about you.” and that statement rang true. I had to change my thinking and focus on the people I was performing for at the venue. So what if they don’t applaud after each song, as long as I can be part of a positive atmosphere to enhance their experience, then I’m doing a good job.

If I only had $5 in my tip jar, it was better than zero. If I was sweating in the hot Florida summer sun, at least my gig was not cancelled due to rain.

Once I made this mental change I saw the rewards come to me. More venues, better pay, bigger tips, and incredible interactions with people from all over the world.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://instagram.com/wilkinsmusicfl?igshid=MDM4ZDc5MmU=
• Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/WilkinsMusicFL