8 tips to be a successful performer

In a lecture I watched on Ted.com, speaker Richard St. John explains what it takes to become successful and why people experience failure once they're successful. Here are the eight things he lists that people need to do in order to become successful, and that once people have achieved they stop doing. Let's see how they relate to performing, and which one we really need to remember.

1. Passion: this is is pretty much a given in the arts, otherwise we would probably have chosen a simpler lifestyle!
2. Work: I don't know any musicians or actor that doesn't overwork. We got this one covered too.
3. Focus: This one can be tricky at times because we tend to overwork, making ourselves tired and less focused. Work is quantity and focus is quality. We have to make sure that they go hand in hand, and that one doesn't take over the other.  
4. Push: I think that we do that after every bad lesson, every bad rehearsal and every bad performance we have. We do it every time we doubt ourselves and wonder if we'll ever be good enough.
5. Ideas: We often practice for technique, but for success we always want to have our own ideas on how to be musical, how to be theatrical. This one is our art itself, and our how we express ourselves through it.
6. Improve: I think this one is a combination of all of the previous. It's maturing as an artist and a performer and learning how to balance all aspects of our jobs.
7. Serve: That's the one that I think we need to remember the most. We need to remember that everything we do is to please our audience. It's hard to remember that when you're playing in an orchestra, singing in a chorus, playing a piece you don't like, playing on a poor instrument; all of this that happen frequently to professional performers. But this one is key. We have to serve our audience, serve the conductor, serve the music. Not ourselves.
8. Persist: No need of an explanation here. Just good luck!

What are your tips for success?

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