What a beautiful spring day! A perfect time to introduce our second Coach's Corner guest coach, Michael McMorrow. Michael is a fixture in the Seattle music community and beyond. Many know him as a producer of large scale events, like SeaFair, in Seattle, the Special Olympics, as well as the beloved educational fundraisers that he held for many years, Synergia Northwest. He has worked with some of the biggest rock stars on the planet, including Dave Grohl, and the late Taylor Hawkins, drum legend Alan White, Pearl Jam's Mike McCready and the list goes on. His past includes stints as a fisherman in Alaska, a traveling musician, and an on air radio personality at KISW, amongst other stations. He's an amazing dad and husband. He is also a compassionate, kind and loyal friend.
He has a super interesting story, and yet at the heart of it all, he is an artist: not an easy road, and one often filled with potential derailments. Here's his turn as Coach.
BL: Did you have a goal for your life when you were a young person?
MM: My goals in life when I was young primarily centered around how I wanted to live, not necessarily what I wanted to do. Though I didn’t realize it then and also as I grew, I never realized that that mindset totally informed my evolving life path and does still.
I knew I wanted to live artistically, creatively. Was always interested in music, theatre, street culture, nature, the arts, especially the performing arts from a very young age. I was fortunate to have found my first love in the piano my folks had in the house. This was a creation of magic, emotion, spark and wonder to me. It captured my fast-moving imagination. It still does to this day. It has been a major touchstone in my life and no matter what artistic, creative, business, or personal relationship endeavor I find myself in, I draw my artistic vision and actions from that formative deep well. This approach eludes a lot of friends, family and acquaintances. The few that see me understand the drive. This has been pretty consistent throughout my life. I can say that being open to the possibilities, willing to take chances and staying a few degrees from status quo has served me well over the years. It has given me the opportunities to live a creative life I dreamed of as a youth.
BL: Is the life you're living the life you imagined?
MM: This is an interesting question. You can never ever predict what life will throw at you, that is a constant. There is the life you imagine as a kid then there’s the life you go through. Then there’s the life that happens around you with the people and circumstances that you are dealt. In some ways managed to go all in on the creative, chance taking no matter what approach. Building off the successes and learning and working through dark times. I also find myself with beautiful lives I am so blessed to have near me. My boys. I would have never imagined in a million years. I am stunned at their depth, their beauty and vigor for life, and they get me.
BL: How do you get inspired?
MM: I get inspired by solitude. A solo walk in nature, love the woods, love water, oceans, lakes, rivers. Quiet time in my backyard soaking in some sun, a drive in my car to some remote nature type surroundings to just ground. To stop and breathe. Once I get to that space, the inspiration always wells up, the mind chatter starts to go away and the clouds begin to part. Space is created for creative vision, golden thought. There is also something to be said for inspiration from other people. Being in the company of a like minded soul. Moments with someone whom without discussion just knows. Admiring their spirit, their being is such an inspiration to me. These moments with like-minded peeps also backfill your own creative wants and tendencies.
BL: What do you do when you encounter obstacles? (In life, in work) How do you create resiliency when life is hard?
MM: I surely have had a lot of that! Life is never easy and for me I have traveled roads throughout my career and personal life that has brought a lot of obstacles and hard situations. Aside from the physical tensions and mental spinning that can come from these I allow myself to feel those things for a whil. I need to feel the pains, experience the loss, then move on. Being a creative and seeing and experiencing the world through the heart of an artist, it’s super easy to be really sensitive to pain and trouble, just as it is for beauty and wonder. For me, working through and letting go is the best for me. It helps me hang on to the beauty and wonder I have for life. Helps me live more joyfully and without hang-ups. There is this amazing James Taylor song called “Golden Moments” on his ”In the Pocket” album that sums up that feeling.
BL: What advice would you give your 20 something self?
MM: At 20 I was fishing in Alaska, playing music back home, taking all that living in the Pacific Northwest offered for a 20 year old, sowing some wild oats. You could say maybe course correcting from a bumpy childhood. I’d tell myself to keep being you. Maybe look a little further out to the horizon but keep being who you are. You have a pretty wild ride ahead, but when that wind changes direction, don’t fight it, don’t give up, just change course. You’re going to be fine.
“Now if all my golden moments could be rolled into one They would shine just like the sun for a summer day And after it was over, we could have it back again With credit to the editor for striking out the rain very clean And all it really needed was the proper point of view” James Taylor –“Golden Moments”
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