Why I'm Giving Away My Courses
So much has changed since I began work on the podcast and online courses for singers three years ago.
The world’s changed, I’ve changed, and singers’ needs have changed. Of course, making a living in the performing arts has always been challenging. The pandemic underlined that fact a million times over. Even so, there will always be those who feel called to make a life in music. For many of us, singing is like eating and breathing — it’s essential. I know that’s true for me. And even though a career in the arts has been challenging, it’s given me so much.
Now it’s time to give back.
When I began my career as a musician, I could never have paid for an online course like Becoming A Singer. There are 6 Modules, dozens of videos, discovery/worksheets, and more that encompass everything a singer needs to know before stepping onto a stage. Mindsets. Skillsets. Your relationship with your body, the songs you sing, your bandmates, and your audience. These topics and more have been scripted, videotaped, edited, and lovingly placed in an online home on my website.
Over the last three years, I spent countless hours working on this project, thinking it would be the next thing I’d teach to make a living. But then the world changed, and I did too.
I no longer need to make a living from teaching. So I’m giving the course away — making the content free.
Now for some people, the word free has negative connotations.
You might be thinking: What’s the catch? When’s she going to ask me to buy something else? Or, maybe if she’s offering it for free, it’s not worth much.
People don’t trust free — and with good reason. Most of the time, when someone tells you something’s FREE, it’s not. So you have a right to be skeptical. You’ve probably been burned before.
Some have told me that no one would take the course seriously if it were free. Unless students make a financial investment and have some skin in the game, they’ll likely devalue the course. And perhaps that’s true. We tend to value things more when we invest our hard-earned money and time in them.
Still, I know that for most of my life, all I could afford was free. And I squeezed every drop out of every resource when it was helpful to me. There are probably more than a few people out there who, like me, take a resource seriously if it’s valuable to them, especially if it’s free.
Others have reminded me how essential it is for artists of all disciplines to be compensated fairly for their work. And yes! That is true. I would never recommend that you sing for free or charge less than what you’re worth (unless it’s a unique set of circumstances.)
Yet, it just doesn’t feel right to charge money for this resource because I already have enough. I’m not incredibly wealthy, but I no longer have to have a job and earn money. Over the years, my husband John and I have chosen to live simply. And we’ve been incredibly fortunate. We have a piece of intellectual property — a song John wrote and I sang in the 80s called I Can’t Wait. It’s still out in the world, making money and sending it home.
So, my time is my own. I’ve retired from performing, our son is grown, and I’m not caring for aging parents. I have freedom from a schedule for the first time in my life.
So, what’s in it for me?
Since I don’t need to sell the course for financial gain, why even bother? What do I get from creating this content and sharing it with you? Why not just let it go and move on?
I’ve thought a lot about those questions. And what I’ve come to is this:
It’s simple, really. Sharing what I’ve learned over a lifetime gives me a sense of purpose in this chapter of my life.
Plus, making stuff is fun! Some people retire and travel, write a memoir, or volunteer with their favorite nonprofit organization. I love to write, produce and edit videos, and share what I’ve learned, so why not do it all in service to the music community I’ve been a part of for most of my life?
Now, you might be thinking, but wait a minute! What if I want to pay you for this work?
Maybe you have the means and want to invest in yourself or pay it forward for other singers. Perhaps you are one of those who need to have some skin in the game, so you’ll feel compelled to spend the time and do the work that learning requires.
If that sounds like you, then there is a way to pay. You can donate whatever you can, whatever feels right to you. Your contribution will help to pay for this website and the content creation apps I use.
But if you can’t donate, my offer still stands — the course is yours — for free. No questions asked.
You can find Becoming A Singer here on my website. If you love to sing, please take a look. And, if you find value in the course, please share it with someone who might find it helpful too.
