Sometimes we think that if we, say, win a big competition, we'll have a big career.
What competitions actually do is give the winner a bunch of concerts (if the competition is big enough to include concerts as part of the prize), which give the winner the opportunity to meet people. People like conductors, other musicians, audience members, and presenters.
If those people like working with the winner, musically and personally, she'll get invited to do more performances. Projects will emerge. She can invite others to participate in her projects, and they'll accept.
A couple of my teachers were top prize winners in big competitions and got a bunch of high-level concerts. One of them even had the break of a lifetime, filling in for an A-list cellist who was ill. Both of them sabotaged their careers by being arrogant, in one case, or, in the other, reportedly making fun of the cellist he was replacing at a party where the cellist's big-name-conductor husband was present.
Two more of my teachers had amazing, big-time performing careers. Not only were each known for their impeccable playing, but also for their kind, professional demeanor. No one tells stories of the "can you believe what X did?' sort about them.
So, we need to know people.
And if we need to know more people, we introduce ourselves.
Hence the introduce yourself to 10 strangers game. It's a skill, and like all skills, it gets better with practice. Write about your experiences in the comments section below.
Another thing to keep in mind: underneath whatever surface we present to others, almost everyone wants to be acknowledged and to connect with more people. It's part of being human. We act like we don't care. But we really do.
If you haven't seen it already (it was racing through FB like wildfire last week), watch this video in which Amanda Palmer talks about connecting with people.
