Worn Down by Your Business? Beat a drum!

I originally wrote this Blog one year ago, after taking a long-needed vacation during which I attended a seminar on the bodhran, a type of drum played with traditional Irish music. Last year, that meant a few days in Milwaukee. Little did I now where that would lead. On the suggestion of my current music teacher, this year I attended a one week international school for the bodhran, held on the island of Inisheer in Ireland’s Aran Islands.

The school, known as Craiceann, hosted 70 bodhran payers from around the world.When 70 drummers get together, different things may happen such the Gathering Concerto, as seen  on YouTube. Also, here is a link to that concert, as seen on Irish television news. The piece will also give you a taste of the Gaelic language.

I am writing this on Sunday morning of the first vacation I have taken in 2 years. There is so much to do that I don’t know how I can take a vacation right now. I am sure that many if not most entrepreneurs and small business owners often feel this way. Yet, if I allow myself to be completely burned out, my business will suffer. So, here is an idea to help you sustain yourself during busy times. Beat a drum!

Well, maybe not literally, although in my case I do mean so. Several years ago I attended a fund-raiser for a friend’s dance company (Chicago Dance Inc., if you are in or near Chicago, it would be well worth it to catch a performance). I bought tickets for a raffle, and won a free class at the Old Town School of Folk Music. Being of Irish descent, I have long been interested in Irish and in particular the bodhran, a Celtic drum. I enjoyed the class and took another. After the second class, I decided to try my hand drumming at an Irish music session in a pub, where I met my current teacher, John Williams.

I now spend a half an hour practicing every day and 3 hours on Sundays playing the bodhran at a pub. The physical exertion of playing the drum has helped to reduce my stress levels and be more relaxed. The camaraderie of the other members of the music “session” and our common love of Irish music has given me an outlet for conversation that has nothing to do with business, so that I am able to focus on something completely different. As well, playing music in a session is just plain fun! How many of us small business owners and entrepreneurs ever do something just for fun?

Now, I don’t think that every entrepreneur in the world needs to play a drum, but taking up a hobby of some sort, even for a few minutes a day, will help you increase your energy and clear your mind so that when you return to your business you will do so with new enthusiasm. My Irish mother in law used to have a saying, “A change is as good as a break!”, meaning that it can be just as restful to do something different as to do nothing at all. I highly recommend it.

If by chance, you would like to hear some great Irish music, stop by Tommy Nevins Pub in Evanston, Illinois any Sunday between 3:00 and 6:00 PM. You might even spy the Bulldog beating on a drum!