Hi,

I've been wrestling with this problem for years. Anyone who gets into the arena of making a living at music has to ask themselves this question. There is no easy answer and maybe there's not supposed to be. Maybe that's why we keep doing it. We relish the getting better part.

I read an interesting book that deals with this issue called "The Artist's Way". I recommend it for one reason. It states that the biggest problem is our internal Critic which wants to destroy us. It makes us give up. When I was younger, I was an underacheiver in school. I figured what the hell. Sometime, I got out of the way of my self and things began to happen. I'm at the point now where I don't read any negative criticism of my work. I just do what I do and enjoy the process. That's not easy to do because I find that people tend to give me unsolicited opinions. It's hard to throw away hurtful criticisms and over the years I've found that those criticisms were not helpful in any way. This is true of professional newspaper critics or others with axes to grind. So, I do what I love and hope I can share it. Sometimes it works, sometimes not. I've found over the years that I am my own best teacher. Others can offer information but only I can learn.

I've found that being original, or being the best, or being popular is irrelevant. Being honest is what counts for me.

Hope I've offered something worthwhile to contribute to this important topic.

Frank Hamilton