Related Posts
I was born with an overactive planning gland. That, coupled with my acute case of perfectionism, can be a diagnosis for disaster. Especially when it comes to organizing a last-minute benefit concert in the midst of the spring album-release-avalanche/tour craze.
It all started when my roommate, Nicole, and I found out we were moving to Southeast Asia. We decided our going away party should be a fundraiser (“Rock for JWOC”), and what started as an excuse to get all of our friends together and raise money for a good cause, has evolved into something far more complicated.
We got Highline Ballroom—a music venue in Manhattan that can hold 700 people—donated for our event (thanks to Nicole’s boss). However, along with the blessing of having a large space comes the curse of filling it.
After weeks of e-mailing with bands, publicists, booking agents, and managers, I’m no closer to getting a headliner than I was when I started. Big names have shown interest, but there is always something standing in the way: they’re in the studio, on tour, or contractually obligated against it because they have a local date booked near our event.
I’ve become so personally invested in making this a huge fundraising extravaganza, that I’ve lost sight of why we planned this in the first place: we’re leaving for a year and this will be our last chance to spend time with our friends before we go.
Luckily, some of our friends happen to be amazing musicians and they’ve agreed to play the benefit for free. Unlike the bands that can actually afford to play something like this for free (who were asking for thousands of dollars to play for charity), our friends want to help us get this fundraiser together and play for the benefit of others.
I need to let go of my grand hopes and plans to make this the fundraising event of the decade and just do what I can with the time and resources I have. According to Psychology Today, “A desire to do well, to do your best work and to explore your full potential can give you sense of satisfaction and personal fulfillment, but you have to learn when something is ‘good enough.’”
My overwhelming desire to do well and my tendency to be a planaholic may not be useful when it comes to certain things, but it sure will come in handy as a Tour Director in Laos. When you’re traveling across the world to a foreign country THAT is when you want someone fussing over every last detail.
I think I’ve found my calling.
posted by: Kristina (April 14, 2008)