The Worst Musical Advice I Got as an Artist – Part 1

One of the worst pieces of advice I ever got as a musician and an artist sounded deep, spiritual and inspiring:

“Follow your passion and the money will come.”

You see it on Instagram quotes, motivational posters and in self-help books.
The problem? For most musicians this sentence doesn’t create freedom. It keeps them broke, confused and passive.

Let me explain why.

Passion doesn’t pay your bills

If I look at my own life, I have a lot of “passions”:

playing tennis
gardening
binge-watching Netflix
with a six-pack of beer, two Domino’s pizzas and a big bag of potato chips

Now ask yourself one simple question:

Who is going to pay me for that?

Exactly. No one.

“Follow your passion and the money will come” ignores one brutal reality:
the market does not care what you like to do – it cares what you can do for others.

Money follows value, not feelings

Here’s my personal philosophy:

You don’t earn money by having passion.
You earn money by adding value to the market.

Value means:

solving a real problem
helping someone reach a specific result
creating something people actually need, want and are willing to pay for

If your passion and value overlap, that’s fantastic.
But if your passion lives in a completely different universe than what the market needs, you don’t have a career. You have a hobby.

And there is nothing wrong with hobbies – as long as you don’t expect them to pay your rent.

Why this advice hurts musicians specifically

For musicians, “follow your passion and the money will come” is extra toxic, because it:

Makes you passive
You wait for the universe to “reward” you for loving music instead of learning how the music business actually works.
Mixes up art and business
Art is about expression.
Business is about value exchange.
They overlap, but they are not the same.
Creates entitlement
“I work hard on my music, so I deserve success.”
No. You deserve nothing. You get what you can create, communicate and deliver.
Distracts you from real skills
Instead of learning production, arrangement, marketing, communication, audience building…
…you keep polishing songs in your bedroom and wonder why nobody hears them.

A better mindset: earn first, then fund your passion

So what should you do instead?

Flip the sentence:

Don’t expect your passion to create money.
Use money to support and protect your passion.

That means:

focus on work that actually adds value to other people’s lives
stop obsessing over whether the job is “creative enough” or “artistic enough”
accept that any honest job that creates value is valid

If that’s inside music – great.
If it’s completely outside music – also great.

You might:

produce or write for other artists
work a “normal” job in a shop, warehouse, office or restaurant
flip burgers at McDonald’s, drive deliveries, do IT support, whatever

None of that makes you less of an artist.

It makes you an adult who understands that:

Your income doesn’t have to be your identity.
Your job pays for your life. Your art gives that life meaning.

Then use that income to fuel your own music:

buy better gear and instruments
book time in good studios
pay session players
invest in promotion and marketing
create the projects that matter most to you

Now your passion is not begging for survival.
It is funded and protected by the value you create in the real world.

Passion still matters – but not the way Instagram says

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not against passion.

You need passion:

to stay in the game for decades
to keep learning when it gets hard
to say “no” to the wrong projects
to keep your standards high when everyone else cuts corners

But passion is the fuel, not the engine.

If you want a career in music:

Passion without value = frustration
Value without passion = burnout
Passion plus value = a sustainable career

The sentence I live by

If you remember one thing from this article, let it be this:

Don’t sit around waiting for “passion” to magically bring you money.
Learn how to create value – and use that money to build the musical life you want.

“Follow your passion and the money will come” makes a nice quote.
But add value, then use the money to fund your passion is how you actually survive as an artist.

Transcript

This is Wouter Baustein, music producer and music coach. The worst musical advice that I got as a musician and an artist. Part 1.

“Follow your passion and the money will come.”

My passion is playing tennis, gardening, binge-watching Netflix with a six-pack of beer, two Domino’s pizzas, and a bag of potato chips.

How is this going to make me any money?

My personal opinion: earn money by adding value to the market.

With the money you earn, you can fund your passion.

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