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Turning a Love of the Arts into a New Career |
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Turning a Love of the Arts into a New Career
When Brian Johnson tired of his job at a small financial advisory firm in Madison, Wisconsin, he wanted to make the transition into a career closer to his passions.
“I knew I wanted something different, something more,” Johnson says. “After four years doing something I was good at but wasn’t crazy about, I knew it was time to find something I could really put my heart into.” Johnson always loved the arts. At the University of Oklahoma, he received a bachelor of music, focusing on percussion performance. And while living in Madison, Johnson spent his free time as a freelance musician as well as music arranger and instructor for the Madison Scouts Drum & Bugle Corps. Starting the Search After taking some time off to go to Thailand, Johnson returned to Wisconsin and scaled back to working part-time while he thought his career through. He worked on construction projects at his late father-in-law’s house, apprenticing under his wife’s grandfather -- it was a perfect forum for self-reflection. As Johnson trimmed and nail-gunned Sheetrock, he asked himself over and over again: What do I want to do next? A friend referred him to an occupational psychologist, who gave Johnson tests to find out what jobs appealed to him most. The psychologist helped Johnson understand he was searching for a career that could fuel and coexist with his happiness. “I was going about it the wrong way,” Johnson says. “All along, I was focused on finding a position where I could maximize my talents and have a big impact, but after talking with him, I realized that what was more important was to find an organization whose vision I agreed with; something in the arts.” Networking Turns into a Job Opportunity As Johnson set out researching potential professions by thumbing through headings in the Yellow Pages, a friend on the board of the nonprofit Madison Ballet mentioned the group needed a new business manager. Johnson was intrigued and applied. He got an interview. “As I started talking to these people, I realized that while the ballet wasn’t music, it was still very much the arts, which meant it was a way to facilitate creativity in young people while teaching them about life,” Johnson says. “The arts are laden with educational opportunities in a way that not much else is.” After a series of interviews, the ballet board offered Johnson the job. He quickly was promoted to executive director, a position from which he orchestrated tremendous growth. Under his leadership, the group amassed hundreds of new members, dozens of new dancers and launched a number of new programs. During Johnson's tenure, the ballet was also the recipient of a $210 million gift for a new performing arts center: The Overture Center for the Arts. Johnson left the ballet for a job with a high tech startup in January 2008 but says his time at the Madison Ballet was one of the most fulfilling professional experiences of his life. “Every day, we were helping these young artists learn about ballet and about life,” he remembers. “To me, there’s no greater calling than that.” Four Ways to Follow Your Own Passion Here are Johnson’s top four tactical suggestions for changing careers and following your own passion:
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