A Teacher's Salary

My homie Jorge, who is the MC for 4-piece hip-hop and funk fusion group from upstate Alaska, once remarked to me: “If I can do this [being a full-time, traveling musical artist] and make a ‘teacher’s salary,’ then I’ve won.”

This remark has stayed glued to the background of my mind for 11 years. He was right.

The first topic someone often explores when they ponder about becoming a professional-creative is sustainable income. It is natural—but moronic—to compare oneself to established and successful artists, broadly or within your artistic niche.

Bringing the conversation back to making a “reasonable” salary as an artist is a better starting point. Stay grounded as you aim for the sky and beyond.

I am going to sell 33 million copies of this silly, lil book and generate millions of dollars. However, on the way to those milestones, I can graciously accept and enjoy making a teacher’s salary as a full-time Writer-Fool.

But I am opting for paychecks from a ritzy, private academy. The type of institution that US senators and Saudi diplomats send their repressed offspring.