25
PREREQUISITES
To succeed, you should possess basic computer
ability, be organized, detail ori-
ented, self-motivated, and have a positive,
friendly attitude.
A DAY IN THE LIFE
By choice, Lee Swartz arrives at
the
office early, before other staff
members
arrive. "I have a basket that
songwriters
put the new material in. The first thing
I
do is check-in new songs so they
are
ready to go into the listening
meeting
our pluggers have each morning. If
there
are any songs that have not been
com-
pletely cataloged from the previous day,
I
will take care of that. Throughout
the
day there are special orders. We
recently
sold a catalog, so I have to track down
all
of those songs and get them to the
new
owner." Although Swartz is not
responsi-
ble for the lyrics, he receives them
from
the writers with the demo and
paper-
work, and then forwards them to
the
appropriate departments.
POINTERS FOR THE JOB SEARCH
Move to where a hub of the music business is
located. No one will hire you from a
resume or telephone call. You need to live
where the jobs are before you attempt to
interview for even an entry-level position.
Select a college with a music intern
program. "There is a law in Tennessee that you
cannot intern unless you're getting
Volunteer to work on music
events so that you can network
and meet people. It will give
you an opportunity to work
closely with music executives
you might never otherwise get
in the door to meet.
It may sound trite, but "A good
positive attitude is hugely
important," particularly when
working with a wide range of
personalities. "It acts as a
magnet for people. They are
attracted to somebody with a
good attitude."
CAREER
TIPS
THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT THIS
JOB:
"Learning the fine art of management, that's
been the most difficult for
me."
THE BEST THING ABOUT THIS JOB:
"The people I work with."
VOICES
OF
EXPERIENCE
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