give it to God and he'll take care of the details. i had the same problems. but, maybe different. my parents encouraged piano up until i went to college, at which time they vehemently disagreed about majoring in music. of course, being stubborn, i went to a college out of my town and majored in music. i haven't regretted it, but i have 'lived off' my husbands income and mine is sort of like 'play money.' the times i've made extra money teaching or etc. is usually used up halfway by buying music/cd's/ tuning the piano etc. etc.
whereas, my husband (who took physics, library science, education - and has several master's degrees) makes the main source of our liveable income. he took music as an elective in his studies and could easily be a vocal coach, a professional singer, etc. but it would be physically more exhausting for him.
i think, if you have a lot of energy and determination, you can make a liveable income on music (doing several things). for instance, working at a community college, or university as a prof. or conductor of orchestra, teaching lessons, and possibly theory or history classes. the more you can teach, the more you can make money through schools (lessoning your overhead and hopefully consistent payment and health benefits). or, if you like to perform - you must know you can handle the lean times - or have a patron of some kind. if you're really good, i guess scholarships help a lot. the main thing is to be able to pay off those dreaded school bills and make some money for yourself before 10 years are up. (apartment living gets old).
i know many people are skeptical of drug companies, and my husband certainly didn't set out to sell drugs per se - but he's into computers and has worked himself into a good position (very needed right now) and they even send him on trips to france and other places in the usa to represent and learn more about the system they are using. asm1469said, whatever you do, if you become really good at it (whether music or other field) people NEED you. not just want you. they need your superior knowledge or help in some endeavor and will pay you what you want, plus good benefits, possibly match savings, help you plan a retirement, etc.
i've heard a lot of the people who work for colleges and universities kinda complain about the amount of money vs the effort they put in. i guess it depends on where you end up working, what you do, how much control you have over what you do, how you learn to cope in the workplace. how much energy. so many many factors.
as a woman, i find some days i have a lot of energy and other days none. so i really rely on my husband to sort of fill in for my goof off days. whereas, he pretty much puts int he full week plus some (and basically relaxes on the weekend). he puts in over 50 hours per week and we are able to keep up with the mortgage, car pmt., regular bills, unexpected bills, taxes, going out to eat and etc. where we go over - and where i like to make up the difference when working is in the wants. buying music, cd's, clothing, stuff like that. also, my daughter loves volleyball. this year my husband paid for it. it was like $90. for a week session. you'll be surprised at how much activities for children cost - plus things like braces, and that! overall, it's pretty much how you want to live. some people get by on a lot less by being extremely frugal and not eating out much.
i never thought about dating anyone who clipped coupons at the time i was dating. or, even if they knew how to balance a checkbook. or, if they liked to borrow money or used a lot of credit cards. i suppose if i were to give my kids advice, it would be to only spend what you make - and not go into huge debt. you can be semi-controlled by the amount of spending of a spouse - or pleasantly happy by a more frugal one or at least one who keeps the books halfway (knows where the money goes and if the bills got paid). i had an impression when i first married that my husband should take care of bill paying, but he pretty much liked me to do it. at first, i was kindof put off. but, now, i feel a sense of control over understanding a bit more about how fast it goes. when you pay bills every month, you see where it's all going and it reminds you.
i would suggest for anyone just starting out, to buy one of those 'how to organize' books and get your papers and life into some sort of order. it's terrible when people don't know how to keep things in order because you can't find anything, can't keep track of bills, and get into trouble (first few years of our marriage). once you get a system going, it's much easier and helps you determine sometimes exactly what you should do with your life. when times are lean, i try to work much harder at bringing in extra income. when they are not - i try to take classes, etc. and further my education. it's really a toss up, as you say, because you need money to live - but, the more money you make the more you have time for the extras. so job is important, but not everything. sometimes it's just keeping tabs on your health.
we haven't ever had two extremely similar years. there's always some adjusting. unexpected things happen. that's why i rely a lot on God. i ask Him to bless what i do. usually if i ask, He does. i figure that He knows what my purpose is anyway. sometimes it's much different than i imagine. probably has higher expectations than me and yet lower in terms of just thinking of money. you also have to factor in including the needs of others (whether family members, children, church, someone in need). i find on the times that i take time to fill the needs of others, even if i am not blessed immediately by some physical blessing, i feel really good about it and then i feel blessed whether there is an immediate blessing or not. usually, when we are in need of any kind, there is a pretty amazing equalizing of blessings coming back.
Topic: What should i do with my life?