Johann Sebastian Bach, letter addressed to the Leipzig council dated 23/08/1730

A young violinist friend says:

"I don't know.. I'm fed up!
With studying every day, with trying to work every day, with doing auditions where 200 people show up for 1 spot where if... you come in first, you work 5 days a month. I'm fed up with having to choose where to work while being careful not to wrong anyone because when you are called, it is certain that there are two productions that overlap on the same days, and then you are home for a month.
I am tired of always being glued to Google to see if, by some miracle, a competition comes out that will punctually be won by the friend of the brother of the son of...
I am tired of working and earning money 6 months later without ever having the security of, not even that much, so many euros per month so as not to think about rent, bills, trains, and groceries. I am tired of comforting myself by saying that at least I do a job I like and that every now and then it lets me travel, if then every night before sleeping I think about how beautiful it would be to flee from all this to any other place in the world if only I had the money and the way to do it. I am tired of thinking that I wouldn't even have the freedom to change jobs because I have spent 27 years of my life and all my money on a violin, a bow, masterclasses, courses, degrees, experiences that seem to be good for absolutely nothing. I am tired of enduring those who tell me it was the same or even worse before, when we all know that it is absolutely not true. But above all, I am fed up when every day, before picking up the violin, I think about all this and I feel trapped and every feeling leaves me. At 26 years old, I am tired of feeling like I'm in a world without possibilities.
Sorry for the vent.
I'm going back to studying..."

What can be said... I am trying to invent a job for myself..

I want to align myself both with the considerations of this girl in her open letter and with antares86.

What I would say to the girl... "You are perfectly right, we live in a world where to survive it is necessary to adapt either economically or professionally, even if this is not entirely true, it is just a matter of perspective and points of view... At this moment you find yourself in the position where: economically, if you want to do the work you like, you earn peanuts; professionally, you have to give up your dream job to dedicate yourself to something else, perhaps even something you don't like, just for the purpose of bringing home a decent salary that allows you to live; it is truly difficult to do what you like and be well paid, but not impossible! Here I connect to the discourse of the good Antares86. In life, one also speaks of aspirations... He has glimpsed the path... I have a job that I like, and I am well paid; I don't consider myself lucky, because I worked my tail off for this position, and I don't want to stop here, I have never accepted discounts or compromises in my life, I loaded myself with energy and was positive from the start, trying to face things with a smile once and for all and with lots of positive energy. But I repeat to you: I AM NOT STOPPING HERE. So I urge you not to let yourself be defeated and to face life's challenges always with a smile on your lips, even in difficult moments. I know it's not easy because I was like you too, but then I decided to react and positivity is what made the difference".

This is what I would say to her.

But... (this time a discussion open to everyone) Have you ever thought about the fact that today the market has changed?

You don't need money to do business, you just need to invent something. There are companies that turnover hundreds of thousands of euros a year that invested less than 2000 euros to start. What matters, therefore, is not the search for the perfect job but inventing the work you want to do. We have all been educated for this, to be employees, starting from school where we had to do homework, and if you didn't do it, you got a note to have your parents sign... F@@@@@K this failed school system where they teach you NOTHING that will be useful in life, NOTHING!!

You have to stop and reflect on how you can sit on the other side of the desk and start thinking about how to carve out a piece of business, by observing people's problems, talking to as many people as you can, trying to discover their secrets and fears and using them to find a solution to sell that fits their case perfectly. The idea is born from necessity. Today the market leaves plenty of room; you can sell anything on a global storefront, you just need to know how to move. You no longer need to buy real estate to make money. Have you ever thought about the fact that today the largest companies earning millions of euros a year own nothing? Any examples? UBER rents TAXIS and doesn't even have a vehicle; AirBnB rents apartments but doesn't own any apartment; AliExpress and eBay sell objects without owning a single one; these companies make millions of euros a year and they own NOTHING, only an idea they believed in! Certainly, you must have skills. You must know how to do things yourself if you don't want to face significant costs, but do you realize that today it is not important to have money to invest to make money? Once upon a time, to make money you had to have money, I'm talking about real money. You had to buy a Hotel with some billionaire to make more money. Today, thanks to the internet, there is no such necessity. It is our system that is turned off... From now until 10 years from now, many new work sectors will be born.

Take a student and ask them what they want to do after graduation... They will tell you they want a good position in a company. But what kind of C@@@O desire is that for a future?

I want a personal Jet, a mega-villa with a pool facing the sea in the Caribbean with all the staff bringing me drinks while I continue to make money lying on a sunbed under the sun, not an employee. If you don't aim high, how do you think you will make money? Are you waiting for it to fall from the sky?

I have some projects and I will carry them forward, I don't intend to stop here; even if right now I can't complain, I want to grow and always grow more and more, I am hungry for success, there is no limit... Young people should think with this spirit.