You know they are there. They are lurking in the back of your mind. And you know they are stopping you from being the DJ you want to be. So why are you pretending that your weaknesses don’t exist?
Just fix them already.
Stop saying that you will fix them tomorrow, next week, next month, or next year and just do it.
Most people don’t realize that being aware of your weaknesses is a blessing. The problem comes when you are completely blind to them. If you don’t know what your weaknesses are, you aren’t pushing your comfort zone.
One of the great benefits of stepping outside your comfort zone is that it is impossible to ignore your weaknesses. When you are in unknown territory and doing things you have never done before, your weaknesses have a way of staring you in the face.
So don’t ignore them. Fix them.
Common Weaknesses
1. Your Mixing Skills
Honestly, where can you improve you mixing ability? Being confident in your ability to mix tracks well is one of the most important things as a DJ. If you are insecure about your mixing skills, you will avoid taking risks and booking new gigs. So work on it.
Mixing is a skill and it needs to be developed. So whether your weakness is beat matching, or scratching, or mixing different genres, start practicing that particular type of mix and you will improve.
2. Your Equipment
Do you have equipment that is barely working and can go at any minute? As a DJ, you need reliable equipment. So if you have a laptop that is freezing or a wire that is about to break, upgrade it. From my personal experience, it is not fun to be playing a gig with anxiety about equipment failure.
Also, are you confident in how to use your equipment? If not, make sure that you know how to use the full functionality of the equipment you are using.
3. Your Music Library
Are you confident in your tracks or are they lacking? If your music could use an update then don’t put it off. You can subscribe to a DJ pool site and get some cool remixes. Or you can search sites like Soundcloud that have unique tracks that you can download for free.
Either way, understand that you will always be working on finding good tracks that you enjoy playing. Usually the problems arise when you are first starting out or when you haven’t updated your songs in a while. The best advice is to stay on top of things and constantly be searching for new music.
4. Your Branding and Marketing
As much as many of us don’t like it, DJing is a business and it needs to be treated that way. A lot of DJ’s ignore their branding and marketing and just hope that their mixing ability will take them to the promised land.
Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way.
So if you have been ignoring your branding and marketing start paying more attention to it. You can use sites like Fiverr to get logos and flyers made. I promise whatever effort you put into it will be worth it.
5. Your Networking Skills
If you think you can become a successful DJ alone, think again. Networking is important if you want to get gigs faster and easier. A mentor is a crucial key to becoming successful. Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there and make contacts in the industry. Bartenders, DJ’s, bouncers, managers, and bar owners are all great people to know.
Maybe that means you need to work on your self-esteem or people skills. If so, stop ignoring it and start talking to people and offering them value.
Conclusion
If you are aware of you weaknesses, be thankful. Often times, it is in our nature to avoid dealing with our weaknesses or to just mask them. That is not the path to progress. In fact, it does the opposite and actually hinders your progress. So stop ignoring them and start working on them. You will be thankful that you did. Not only will you be more confident as a DJ, but that will result in you booking better gigs.