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Taylor Swift: Lessons from the Eras Tour on How to Invest in Myself
Last Updated May 16, 2023 /
Even Stars Need Coaches!
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Last Saturday, I had the privilege of seeing Taylor Swift perform LIVE and I learned so much from the experience.
You learned SO much from going to a concert?! Yes.I.Did.
In addition to ALL the lessons I’ve learned along the way from Taylor about being an incredible business person, an inspiring feminist, and a political activist, her stage tour taught me 8 lessons about how to invest in myself as a woman, a mother, and an entrepreneur.
Taylor Swift taught me to invest in myself by leveraging my strengths and learning complementary skills.
I have always been impressed with the fact that Taylor writes all her own songs, writes the music, and sings. That's where she started as a 14-year-old. Those are the natural talents she developed first. That alone is a triple threat.
But, wait, there's more! She didn't stop there.
She learned how to dance. I know that she learned because her dancing has come a loooooooong way over the course of her career. Also, unlike Mariah Carey or Janet Jackson, she didn't dance during her early tours.
Now, she also directs and stars in her music videos. And, she conceived and build the Eras tour as a journey through the different musical eras of her career.
Mind Blown.
Taylor Swift taught me to invest in myself by charging what I’m worth.
Taylor unapologetically charged high prices for tickets and people willingly paid it <and more> for her show.
People value what they pay for.
I think people had MORE fun preparing for and attending this tour than past tours because of the high cost of attendance. For this tour, fans <new and old> went ALL out on their outfits, costumes, and accessories.
They also spent weeks making bracelets that paid homage to their favorite songs to trade with other fans.
Y'all, I went to the 1989 tour. She had a lot of super fans then, but they did not show up and show out like they did for the Eras tour.
Similarly, Taylor showed up and showed out at the Eras tour - singing 42 songs and dancing unceasingly for 3.5 hours.
Taylor Swift taught me to invest in myself by giving myself grace.
On Saturday night in Atlanta, Taylor messed up the lyrics to Gorgeous. Out of the 80,000 people in the arena, I think she and my husband were the only ones who didn't know every single word.
During the first pre-chorus, Taylor got tongue tied and mixed up the lyrics.
With a little embarrassed laugh, Taylor asked the crowd "Is 'whiskey' first or is it 'sunset" first?"
And, the crowd totally had her back and yelled "WHISKEY!"
She said, "I can't believe I forgot the lyrics, I've been practicing all day."
Then, she said, "When I make a mistake, I let myself start over. Is that ok with you?"
To which, the crowd roared and she started the song from the beginning.
No drama. No beating herself up. No apologies.
Having my ten-year-old daughter witness her idol fumble on stage and gracefully shake it off was worth the cost of admission.
Taylor Swift taught me to invest in myself by asking for help.
When Taylor encountered technical difficulties in the Folklore era and her ear piece went out, she asked for help from one of her producers.
She LITERALLY called for help.
When she realized that everyone's ear pieces were off, she paused the show and told a cat joke.
TS: A cat walks into a library and says, "I'll have a tuna fish sandwich, please.
And the lady at the library says, "This is a library."
So, the cat whispers, "Oh I'm sorry." <voice dropping to a whisper> "I'll have a tuna fish sandwich please.
Seeing her humanity in an otherwise VERY polished show was endearing. I was both impressed with her poise and tickled by her awkwardness. It was humbling to see a superstar ask for help.
Taylor Swift taught me to invest in myself by continuously evolving.
I've been a Taylor Swift fan since she was a young country star. She started singing and performing at 14 years old.
When she decided to record a pop album, everyone had all kinds of ideas about whether or not it would be successful.
Did Taylor have the appeal to "cross over"? HECK YEAH she did and she astronomically grew her fan base.
If she had been worried about whether she would be able to sell records or whether her fans would follow her, she could have gotten "stuck" as a country star and we would have missed out on so much incredible music.
Since then, she has recorded a folk album <which she referred to as cottage-core at the concert> and an atmospheric album.
She has stretched herself as an artist. She has continued to evolve. She has grown her fan base every step of the way as she's done it.
Taylor Swift taught me to invest in myself by investing in my physical health.
Taylor sang and danced for 3.5 hours. She could not have done that if she wasn't in peak physical condition. It takes a lot of conditioning to do such a grueling routine to perfection.
She finds time to invest in her physical health while writing new music, recording albums, directing and performing in music videos, and conceiving, designing, and developing a world tour.
If Tay Tay can find time to work out, so can I. She inspired me to up my fitness game.
Taylor is only ten years younger than I am and Lord knows that I was not in that kind of shape ten years ago. <or ever>
People keep asking me - "Was it worth it?"
- Was it worth the price tag? <$1,000 per ticket>
- Was it worth the hassle? <we tried for months to get tickets>
- Was it worth the hype? <I mean, how good could it really be?>
And, the answer is overwhelmingly YES! I'm so glad that I was able to afford tickets, that I kept searching for them, and even with all the hype, the show was LIGHTYEARS better than I expected it to be.
If you have an opportunity to go see Taylor Swift live, I highly recommend it.
But, regardless of whether you are a #swiftie or go see the concert, my life will be better because of the lessons I learned on how to invest in myself by:
- Courageously owning my talents
- Steadily learning new complementary skills
- Shamelessly charging what I’m worth
- Graciously allowing myself to begin again
- Fearlessly evolving
- Consistently investing in my health
Even Stars Need Coaches!
Become a leader that you'd be proud to follow. Reach out today for a complimentary Wayfinders Discovery call to learn how.
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