Until you dare to start knowing, being, and sharing your true self with honesty and vulnerability, your music will suffer—just like you. Mastery of your Self-Instrument is what will allow you to both “be yourself” and master your art with ease.

After many years of wondering and trying hard to be myself, feeling like I just couldn’t do it, I now know that there is nothing easier in the world. In fact, the answer is so simple you might scoff at it, thinking it can’t be that easy!

The key to being yourself is simply knowing and accepting that there’s nobody else you could be.

You are already you. And you’re already sharing who you are without even trying! If you feel unable to be yourself, then that’s just an indicator that you might not know yourself very well, and you’re not really OK with who you are.

If that’s the case, then you’re probably not giving yourself full permission or freedom to be and express yourself without hiding behind a mask of who you think you should be.

As a human being traveling through time on this planet called Earth, I want you to know that you are the hero of your own life story. This is a role nobody can take from you, and paying attention to your Self-Instrument is the way to embody the unique character of YOU in this story.

Your musical instrument, whether it’s a violin, trombone, voice, or conductor’s baton, is a vital tool on your unique musical journey, but it is only your secondary instrument. What is happening to your primary instrument from moment to moment is always of primary importance; everything else is merely secondary.

As you travel the path of artistic mastery, it’s absolutely essential to grasp that your musical instrument and what you do with it are less important than embracing the essence of who you are and attending to what you do with your whole self—in the presence or absence of your musical instrument.

Since YOU are your primary instrument, you need to become the #1 expert on how to use (think, move, control, or direct) your own mind-body-self in the most efficient and effective ways possible if you sincerely wish to experience success and fulfillment as a musician AND as a human being.

If you want to play notes that are in tune, with good timing, and accurately reflect the emotions of the music, you need to know how to tune your Self-Instrument first. THIS is what needs to be practiced, above all.

Jennifer