I wanted to thank Cole Masaitis with my whole heart for his incredible generosity with his time, terrific help and being a team player on a complicated and intricate musical event that took place recently.
Cole was a volunteer stage manager at this event. His duties included being responsible for 19 acts, interfacing with four creatives (they were very demanding), gracefully interacting with 19 composers, 8 musicians, and a 16-person choir. Cole handled a stage full of equipment, music stands and gear.
Each artist had a different setup (some were using amplification). Cole did a terrific job!
To frame his contribution in a broader perspective, I wanted to mention that I receive emails from emerging composers daily asking basically one question – HOW DO I MAKE AN IMPRESSION UPON YOU?
(The specific questions I get are: “can I work for you; would you listen to my demo; can I have lunch with you to ask you questions.”)
I try to reply to all of them individually.
Here is a global reply about how one can make an impression:
FIRST, BE A HELPER.
FIRST, CONTRIBUTE TO YOUR COMMUNITY.
Our business is a *business of giving* first, and getting opportunities later.
Cole Masaitis made a huge difference for our event. He was a great helper in a very stressful and demanding environment, working with strangers whom he met for a 1st time.
He met tons of people and made a meaningful impression upon them.
He made new friends.
In reciprocity, he is getting about 5 hours of career mentoring with two of the top professionals in our biz.
He learned about this volunteer opportunity right here, on this FB group.
