WHAT NEXT?

When I got my first opportunity to work in the music industry over 2 years ago, I never imagined how much my life would change. I remember the endless days working in various meaningless jobs, in a hopeless state of isolation from the world, dreaming of a seemingly impossible future of a fulfilling life.

Then a music venue opens up in your town, and everything changes. I jumped headfirst into every opportunity I could access. On the production training programme, I learnt about the role of an Event Manager and immediately knew it was for me. I quit my full-time job for a couple of days a week at Argos so I could focus on planning and researching opportunities. A few months after the course ended I became an Event Manager at the venue, it had paid off.

I said yes to every job I was offered and before long I was working full time in the music industry, with various jobs at the venue, festival opportunities and starting to promote my own events. I put a lifelong dream of travelling across Asia on hold to build on my initial success.

In a development I had never imagined possible, I became Sustainability Manager of the venue. A combination of my passion for the topic and ambition to always learn and evolve allowed me to develop fast, starting as a novice to now being an accomplished sustainability practitioner.  

Alongside this I tested many other routes – among other things I put on DIY gigs, briefly became a Tour Manager, tried to organise an open-air market and started a sustainable merchandising company. Some of these worked out better than others, but they all informed a process that has been immensely successful for me – try as many things as you can, and see what sticks.

Recently my progress has been accelerating ever faster. In the past 6 months I was part of the core team delivering a multi-venue festival in my hometown Birkenhead, worked in key roles in a number of large festivals and brought together a wide-ranging sustainability project that has received national and even international attention.

Next, my partner has got a job in Dortmund, Germany - I’m going to go with her. This will be the first big life decision since I went to that first training session in September 2021 that doesn’t prioritise my career, but it was never in any doubt. I’m excited for the challenge – learning a new language, moving our lives across the continent and looking for the next opportunity within this new life. Another one to tick off the bucket list.