Career Roadmap
Mike's work combines: Music, Writing, and Communicating / Sharing Stories
See more careers and stories that connect to your interests.
Take Roadmap Quiz
Day In The Life
Skills &
Education
Here's the path I took:
High School
Santa Teresa High School
Here's the path I recommend for someone who wants to be a Musicians and Singers:
High School
Bachelor's Degree: Music, General
Learn more about different paths to this career
Life & Career Milestones
I've taken a lot of twists and turns
1.
Wanted to be a guitarist.
2.
Taught myself how to play at 13.
3.
Started a band at 15.
4.
Played terrible music at terrible shows.
5.
Realized I had more learning to do.
6.
Got better at guitar and taught myself digital music production.
7.
Released a solo album.
8.
Built a band and raised over $10,000 on Kickstarter to fund our second full length record.
Defining Moments
How I responded to discouragement
THE NOISE
Messages from Parents:
You need to finish college to have a real career.
How I responded:
My parents came from a different generation, and their words, while hurtful at the time, were just them expressing their concern. They weren't saying I wasn't talented or would never amount to anything musically, they just were raised under the "Go to college, have a career" model and it wasn't for me. Just like my own path might not work for someone else - everyone is an individual and you need to find what's best for you, even if you mess up on the way.
Experiences and challenges that shaped me
Humble yourself and do a job that isn't glamorous that pays the bills. I slung coffee for nearly a decade while I worked on music and many considered it a joke job but it helped me save up and fund my first solo record and get out of debt.