How to get in the game and stay there
Once upon a time, I graduated with my Master’s from a top conservatory and moved to a brand new city on my own. My now home, Chicago. I knew one person and knew no musicians. I grew up on a farm in Michigan and knew nothing about city living.
I remember signing a lease, putting down the first and last month’s rent on an apartment with bullet holes in the glass of the entry way and realizing I only had $300 left. $300 total to my name. And bonus, I had no job lined up!
All I had was my horn on my back and a dream. I wanted to make it gigging in Chicago. I wanted to take the L and go listen to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. I wanted to win an audition. I had no idea how it would work, but I knew it would.
Once upon a time, I joined a mastermind for women entrepreneurs led by a spiritual money coach I adore. It was at the peak of the re-ignited civil rights movement in the wake of George Floyd’s murder. It was all about building conscious businesses and impact in alignment with a world we can all be proud of. It was about being part of the solution through our businesses.
I logged on to the first call. It was amazing! I was blown away by the women I was surrounded with and deeply inspired by the coaching we received. I knew I was in the right place and felt a deeper call than ever before for the mission of Mindful Music and my expanding offers.
After the first call, I connected with each of the mastermind members on social media. Much to my extreme surprise they all had thousands, I’m talking 40,000 plus, followers and were all six-figure earners. Some were even millionaire dollar earners.
*Gulp*
I was part-time doing Mindful Music on the side, had about 200 followers on social media and was just starting to see sustained and reliable income of any kind. I thought, “How did I get in this room?” I wondered and at the same time I knew, I’m right where I belong.
Once upon a time, I called up my former boss and quit my job during a global pandemic. The future of my industry was up in the air along with the political landscape and health crisis. It was a reliable job where I had built a solid client base and amazing relationships with people I care about.
I remember shaking on the phone call, tearing up and at the same time a deep knowing that it was time. It was time to go.
The first Monday morning of being a full-time solo entrepreneur I woke up, meditated, did my work out, showered and sat down at my computer. I thought, “Now what? Did I just quit my job during a pandemic?!”
Yes, yes I had. It was 100% the right thing, 100% exciting and 100% terrifying. I knew I would succeed, but I didn’t know how. The only thing I knew was that I knew.
All of these “once upon a time” moments in my life are moments of how I got in the game. I got in the game that I wanted to be in and I did it on purpose.
The biggest part after getting in the game? Having the courage to stay there.
As I take a look in the rear view mirror of my life, each moment of success, fulfillment and expansion has this two-step recipe: Get in the game. Then, stay there.
Sometimes I did this consciously and sometimes not. Yet, the pattern remains. Even in moments where I found myself in a game bigger than anticipated, I had gotten myself there and chose to stay.
So, how do I do it? What have I learned about this process in my life so far? And how can you take it and run with it?
It really can be boiled down to one sentence. This one sentence could very well change everything for you. And, it’s a sentence that has infinite golden nuggets to offer all of us that stand the test of time.
Blind faith will get you in the game and wisdom will keep you there.
Blind faith rocks.
Blind faith gets a bad rap. It’s naive, it’s operating on incomplete information and in my opinion, it rocks.
Blind faith is taking action to enter the arena without having all of the answers or even the map. It’s jumping in the deep end and learning how to swim as you go.
If I had known all of the challenges, truths and setbacks ahead of me on my journey I would have been scared out of my mind to move to Chicago and might not have done it.
I may not have joined the mastermind with million dollar earners because of fear or believing I didn’t belong alongside them.
I may not have left my job during the pandemic because of all of the intense realities of starting a business solo during all that 2020 was.
The reason I love blind faith is that it has gotten me into all of the rooms I want to be in. It’s following the knowing in my gut and getting in the game.
How could I ever figure out the game and get good at it if I’m not even playing?
Blind faith has been my impetus to every meaningful journey I’ve undergone. And contrary to popular opinion, I think it’s amazing.
One of my mentors, Brendon Burchard, describes something called the “perfectionist lie”. He describes people’s beliefs that they need to be “perfect” or have it all figured out before beginning as a lie.
He says that “to perfect” something means making it, putting it out there and then adjusting and improving based on experience and feedback.
Blind faith works because it never allowed me to get caught up in the lie of perfectionism. I just started. I followed where I wanted to be, what felt right. From there, I was in the game.
It’s worth noting that blind faith can seem more complex as I age. I’m not a post-grad leaving school for the first time.
As I gain more life experience, I know more about what could go wrong. I also know more about what could go right.
In the end, blind faith is still always part of my ventures. My younger self has a lot to teach me about staying receptive, expansive and not falling into jaded thought or living. My younger self reminds me that’s it’s not complex at all actually - its still simple.
It gets me in the game. It can get you in the game too.
I say, go for it. Get in the game! Allow blind faith to lead you to the game and rooms you want to be in.
Blind faith will get you in the game and wisdom will keep you there.
No back up plans. Necessity works.
There is a reason why I never got a music education degree. Other than not wanting to be a band director, I didn’t want a back-up plan.
I knew that if I had a backup, I wouldn’t give my complete heart, soul and being into becoming a professional horn player.
This was the complete opposite of every piece of advice I received from everyone else at the time. Professional orchestral players told me to have a backup plan. My parents wanted me to get a degree totally unrelated to music as a backup.
Everyone relented on how hard the path is for orchestral musicians, the realities of taking auditions and how the stars had to align perfectly to even have a small chance at success.
Yet, I knew that if I had a backup I wouldn’t give it my all. So, I ditched the backup idea and went for it one hundred percent. Because I had no other game I was half-way playing, I could fully play the performance one.
The “safety” of a backup plan doesn’t provide safety at all, other than “protecting” me from achieving my dreams.
This mindset and choice led to me having literally countless faceplants, learnings and ultimately me winning a full-time playing job. The dream happened for me. Not just because I got in the game, I chose that as my only game.
I got there and fully chose it.
Did I have a day job while I pursued auditions? Absolutely. This supported me playing the game I wanted to. It wasn’t a back-up plan. It was part of the plan I chose. It was part of my ecosystem of success.
The same has gone for every “blind faith” moment in my life. Chicago, quitting my job, the mastermind and beyond.
No backup plan. Create necessity and you will rise.
Blind faith will get you in the game and wisdom will keep you there.
Now, stay put.
Many people think the first part, getting in the game, is the toughest part to any venture. Whether it’s a dream, a relationship, learning a new skill or even something as simple as changing your workout routine, the real courageous act is to stay in the game.
I can tell you in all of the moments I’ve mentioned - moving solo to a new city, quitting my job, joining the mastermind and being on the audition circuit - there were very intense moments where every cell of my body wanted to sprint back to my comfort zone.
I was scared. I didn’t know what I was doing. I was sad. Remember the “blind” part of “blind faith”? Yeah, that’s a thing.
As new information and setbacks flooded in, there were moments where I wanted to leave the game. I was playing, but I didn’t know the rules, the other players or even myself for that matter. I wanted out.
So, how did I stay amidst all that?
I tapped into mindfulness, my emotional intelligence, my wisdom and did not let my nervous system or emotional state run the show.
Instead, I felt all of my valid feelings. I let them wash through me rather than projecting them out to the world.
All the while I remained committed to choosing and living from my highest and wisest self. The part of me that whispered “Let’s do this” right before a leap. I stayed committed to that.
This mindfulness practice and wisdom guidance kept me in the games. And after long enough in each game, I started to get better. Eventually, I got good. And then one day, I was in flow state and creating the visions I had before I was even in the room.
That never would have happened if I bolted.
So, don’t bolt. Fight every urge you have to leave the game even when it’s uncomfortable and scary.
If it’s uncomfortable and scary, that’s actually a good thing. That means you’re growing! You’re on the right track!
Stay put. Keep playing. Keep learning. Keep expanding.
Use your wisdom and stay in in it.
Blind faith will get you in the game and wisdom will keep you there.
The positive ripple will blow your mind if you let it.
On the other side of getting in the game and staying there is a rip tide of love and positivity that blows my mind to pieces in the best way possible. Every. Single. Time.
It always goes back to my willingness to get in the game and stay there.
I have a beautiful life in Chicago. It’s truly my home. I have friends, a community, colleagues I love playing with, amazing families I get to work with, a wonderful neighborhood, and so so much more. All because I got in the game and stayed there.
I have a rock solid community of international business women who all support one another as they seek to make positive impacts in the world. One of the fellow women in the mastermind became another coach of mine, I met one of my closest friends through her program, I met my web designer through another person there and I now do breath-work with someone else I met through that community. This is just the surface of the ripple! All because I got in the game and stayed there.
I have an amazing business where I get to work with inspiring kids and families each day playing music at the piano! I get to work with 1:1 clients to support them with mindfulness and conscious creation! I get to teach yoga! I get to have my mornings full of bike rides, swims, meditations and reading with coffee. This is all because I got in the game and stayed there.
This is another reason why “blind faith” rocks. The blind part applies to the fact that I have no idea the extent of prosperity and love that will result from embodying my powerhouse sentence. I could have never fathomed it all!
Getting in the game and staying there will create a positive ripple like you have never seen.
Let it!
Blind faith will get you in the game and wisdom will keep you there.
So many people hem and haw and don’t do what they’d actually love to be doing.
They don’t do what actually exists in their hearts of hearts. Is this you?
What game do you want to be in? Are you currently playing?
What would it be like to go on “blind faith” and just start?
If you knew blind faith would get you in the room and your wisdom could keep you there, what is one thing you can do today to embody this sentence?
Coaching
Is there a game and arena in your life that you’d love to be in, but you hesitate to leap? Or, are you in the game, but totally miserable? There’s nothing wrong with you - it’s your conditioning and good news, these are the types of things I help my clients bust through!
Through conscious creation of your unique life design and mindfulness based empowerment, my coaching containers and 1:1 mentorship give you a place to learn, expand and rise. All with more love, more accountability and the acceleration that a coach can offer.
Want to play full out in 2021? Reach out to me or book a resonance call with me here. You will learn the details about coaching, experience a taste for yourself and see if it’s a yes for you! I would love to hold you high in your fullest life.
It’s time to stop playing small!
Mindful Music
Everything value I embody as a mindfulness coach, I gift to my Mindful Music students through mindfulness based piano lessons. My students get to learn from a young age what it means to get in the game and stay there! I’m so grateful to pass along this wisdom to them at such early ages.
I work with young people with all learning styles and have expertise working with neuro-diverse kids, mostly on the Autism spectrum. Young people in my lessons get to choose their own songs and have fun all while gaining an emotional intelligence toolkit for their lives.
Do you want this experience for your kid? I would love to co-create it with them! Please reach out to me here for details and to book lessons. I am delighted to be teaching virtually and for my local Chicago families, teaching in real life again!!
Yoga
Coming soon - online and in person yoga classes! I recently completed my 200 hour yoga teacher training and will be offering group asana, semi-private classes and private 1:1 sessions. This will be another container for you to deepen your relationship with yourself and live your truth through mindful movement and wellness.
Stay tuned for coming scheduling details! And if you're interested in 1:1 or semi private yoga, please reach out to me now. These offerings will be very limited so snag a spot today. You can get in touch with me here!
I will leave you with this. The POWERHOUSE sentence and recipe to run with in all part of your life that you see fit.
Blind faith will get you in the game and wisdom will keep you there.
Get in the game today.
You need you at your best.
You need you at your happiest.
You need you doing what you truly want to do.
The world needs you in the game too!
In love, your rise and unshakeable faith in your greatness,
⭐️ Adrienne
