I learned how to get brave enough to perform my songs in public by playing open mic nights in Chicago, Boston, and a few other cities.  Lately, I’ve been thinking that we don’t have many opportunities for folks to try playing their songs in Rockford, Illinois, and maybe my restaurant could host an open mic.

I talked to our staff about it.  Logistically we didn’t have what we needed to pull it off.  Our sound system is dated and small. We don’t have many nice instruments. And we wouldn’t be able to offer food from the kitchen.

But I figured I could just put out some mixed nuts and see what happened. 

And that’s what we did. This past Wednesday, 7 brave souls showed up to our open mic.  It felt magical.  A 10 year-old named Georgia closed the night, and she brought the house down. 

And all it took was an open door, an open mind, and mixed nuts.

Reader, I’m reminded of this a lot, and I’ll say it again: there’s no need to wait for things to be perfect to do something.  Conditions will never be just right.  Sometimes you’ve just got to try with what you have.  Start somewhere, then keep growing.  

Just be sure to start.

Wishing you a scrappy week of playing your strengths and filling in the rest. See you next Monday. -Em