Tales From The Lane
Living Your Best Life as Creative Artist
Category: Practicing
Why You Should Take Some Time Off
I just got back from 10 days in England and Sicily. I still get giddy from boarding a plane without a cello–Talk about luxury! The trip was 50% family and 50% vacation, but it was 0% work. The time was full of deep… Continue Reading “Why You Should Take Some Time Off”
Spotlight: Laura Sinclair– Violist, Educator, and Speaker
This month’s Spotlight interview brings me immense joy and pride. Not only is our featured artist amazingly inspiring, but she’s also a long-term client and friend. Laura Sinclair has created the artist’s dream life, with her ideal balance of performances (because one really shouldn’t… Continue Reading “Spotlight: Laura Sinclair– Violist, Educator, and Speaker”
Spotlight Interview with Jalayne Mitchell
You might know cellist and Seattle native, Jalayne Mitchell better as the brainchild of Classical Wellness, the brand and platform she created while studying abroad at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Scotland. With well over 60,000 followers on Instagram (@classicalwellness), her posts about… Continue Reading “Spotlight Interview with Jalayne Mitchell”
Time-Blocking: The Creative’s Best Friend
You know how “the experts” are always telling you to think about the thing that seems completely obvious to you, that other people aren’t doing, and then go out and teach that thing? Well, for me, one of those “things” is Time-Blocking. Clients… Continue Reading “Time-Blocking: The Creative’s Best Friend”
Easing Into the New Year
If you’re reading this in real-time, we’re waking up to week 2 of the new year. Now, I love any excuse for a fresh start–be it January 1st, the start of a new quarter, the 1st of the month, Mondays, or even my 5:30… Continue Reading “Easing Into the New Year”
Resetting the Thermostat On Your Life
When I lived in Boston, whether I was feeling broke or simply in one of my “I should save as much as possible” phases, I would decide that I could lower the thermostat in my condo, and cozy up in wool socks and warm… Continue Reading “Resetting the Thermostat On Your Life”
In Praise of the Expected
I was incredibly fortunate to have grown up in an almost surreal musical environment where everyone was good. Like, really good. As a group of young musicians, we were almost absurdly good. The bar was high, and in our own individual ways, we… Continue Reading “In Praise of the Expected”
An Artist’s Struggle for Balance
There’s been an interesting transformation over the last decade or so between what is now known as “Hustle Culture” (complete with those horrid rose gold embossed “Boss Babe” mugs—cringe) and today’s current “Self-Care or Bust” mentality. Don’t get me wrong–we need to take care… Continue Reading “An Artist’s Struggle for Balance”
The Surprising Addiction I Never Knew I Had
It’s been 3 months now since I made my decision to “retire” from being a professional performing cellist. There were a lot of expected feelings and thoughts that came up for me. I have missed the things I thought I would miss (the camaraderie… Continue Reading “The Surprising Addiction I Never Knew I Had”
Can Your Daily Habits Really Determine Your Success as an Artist?
The buzzword of the last few years has been “Habits” and I think we can all agree that we have James Clear, author of the #1 Best selling book (of all genres!) of 2021, Atomic Habits to thank for that. He goes deep… Continue Reading “Can Your Daily Habits Really Determine Your Success as an Artist?”