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’A Drummer’s Guide To...’ is the podcast that dives into everything it takes to thrive as a professional musician beyond the practice room. Hosted by Emily Dolan Davies, a drummer since 1999, pro since 2008, and a passionate mentor since 2018, this show unpacks the real-world challenges, triumphs, and strategies for building the career of your dreams. Whether you’re chasing gigs, navigating the music industry, or balancing passion with practicality, Emily’s got your back with honest insights and inspiring stories. Find out more about Emily at EmilyDrums.com
Episodes

Jul 29, 2023
Jul 29, 2023
25 min
What are/were some of your favourite games, and why? Can you think of a way to reverse engineer your love of those games into areas in your life you want to build upon? Share your thoughts in the comments :-)
If you're like to support this podcast, now you can by going to www.patreon.com/emilydrums
#promusicians #musicianproblems #musiciansofig #sessionmusician #musicianlifestyle #diymusician #sessiondrummer #musiceducation #musicianslife #behindthescenes #musicindustry #drumgear #gearslutz #drumpractice #drumsound #drummer #drums #drumming #lessons #drumlesson #drumlessons #drumtuning #remoterecording #homestudio #remotesession #gearporn #allthegearnoidea #productivity #advice #ama #askmeanything

Jul 22, 2023
Jul 22, 2023
33 min
How do you get past your own fears when you come up against something that triggers nothing but a want to run away from a situation?
Join me as I share how I make the potential for opportunity outweight the fear I feel in taking action.
Hopefully this episode will inspire you to find your own way to say yes to more opportunities despite the fear you may feel.
#promusicians #musicianproblems #musiciansofig #sessionmusician #musicianlifestyle #diymusician #sessiondrummer #musiceducation #musicianslife #behindthescenes #musicindustry #drumgear #gearslutz #drumpractice #drumsound #drummer #drums #drumming #lessons #drumlesson #drumlessons #drumtuning #remoterecording #homestudio #remotesession #gearporn #allthegearnoidea #productivity #advice #ama #askmeanything

Jul 15, 2023
Jul 15, 2023
20 min
How do you deal with rejection?
Ah it's a tough one, and it's inevitable if you want to move forward in anything, so in this episode I lay out how I personally deal with rejection and try to take some positives from every situation.
#promusicians #musicianproblems #musiciansofig #sessionmusician #musicianlifestyle #diymusician #sessiondrummer #musiceducation #musicianslife #behindthescenes #musicindustry #drumgear #gearslutz #drumpractice #drumsound #drummer #drums #drumming #lessons #drumlesson #drumlessons #drumtuning #remoterecording #homestudio #remotesession #gearporn #allthegearnoidea #productivity #advice #ama #askmeanything

Jul 8, 2023
Jul 8, 2023
21 min
One of the questions I get asked the most is, 'how do you do so many things?!'
Well the answer isn't big, clever, or sexy... what a great way to entice you into this episode eh?! What I can tell you is that what I do WORKS, and if you want to do more, then take these lessons away and take action on them!
If you're enjoying this then please like, subscribe, and support at Patreon.com/EmilyDrums

Jul 1, 2023
Jul 1, 2023
17 min
Welcome back to A Drummer's Guide To... !!!
It's been a 2 year hiatus (I can hardly belive it!) and now I'm BACK! Tacking all the subjects surrounding what it takes to be a professional musician that ISN'T playing your instrument! (Well maybe there's a bit of that, but not much!)
This week, I am mainly talking about why I stopped doing episodes, and how I have decided to tackle those things head on so I can be doing more of what I love in life, which is helping you essentially! :-) It's inevitable that when you do anything in life, there will be friction points, so best to try to anticipate those points, and put in place some sort of plan to deal with it if/when they come up. As my dad always says, 'there's always a reason to not do something' - so why not tackle it before it blindsides you if you can!
If you're enjoying this podcast, like, subscribe, and support at Patreon.com/EmilyDrums

Nov 23, 2020
Nov 23, 2020
6 min
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Join me as I geek out about routines and how it's made me the person that I am today for all the good and all the bad!
I also share how I'm trying to maximise my routines as in these crazy times to give me focus, purpose and hopefully keep me sane (although you wouldn't think it looking at me! Ha!)
PS If you wanna read a great book on routines, check out John Lamerton's Routine Machine:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Routine-Machine-successful-guarantee-themselves/dp/191060027X

Nov 16, 2020
Nov 16, 2020
10 min
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Join me in this episode as I talk about one of my favourite books - Malcolm Gladwell's, Outliers, which talks about the 10,000 hours to master a skill.
I share with you the moment I was nearing this milestone but was nowhere near a master of the drums. Then, how I changed my trajectory to make sure that the next 10000 hours counted to my successful career.

Nov 9, 2020
Nov 9, 2020
6 min
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Well, I bet you thought I'd never be talking about Cardi B's WAP, but here we are!
It made me really think about my attitudes and reactions to certain things, how they've changed, why they've changed and why I'm so happy that's the case!
I've officially gone from feeling very angry and upset, to taking lots of positive action, and it feels GREAT! Would recommend :-)

Nov 2, 2020
Nov 2, 2020
8 min
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Join me this week as I talked about the Curse of perfection, and how it breeds overwhelm, anxiety, and complete inactivity! So useless! I share with you exactly how I stop myself from being perfect, and as you can see I'm doing a great job! :-D
Don't be perfect, it means you can't grow any more, and growth is so much more important and INTERESTING!
Hope this helps you take that next step from going from a scared perfectionist, to brave action taker!
Sending you lots of love x

Oct 26, 2020
Oct 26, 2020
10 min
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In this episode, I wanted to address the idea of having a choice on what you can focus on in this life and how to get through tough times especially in relation to the current global pandemic.
I share how I literally employed the process of wearing blinkers when it matters (to me), affording me the energy and motivation to do the things that truly matter to me - like being here for you.
Sending you lots of love Em x
