Franklin Taggart's Unconventional Life Blog

  When I retired from performing in 2022, I wasn't sure how music was going to show up in my life. For a couple of months, I didn't pick up the guitar - the longest stretch without playing since I got my first guitar. Even during the years I struggled with tendinitis, I would still pick it up and play until the pain stopped me. In the months since I stopped performing, I've regained my love and appreciation just for the time I get to pick up my guitar and play. That is the essence of this interview. My long-time friend Margo set up this interview with Jake Douglass. His mission is exciting. It's driven by the desire to turn people on to the joy of playing music for music's sake. We cover every aspect of the role of music in my life, from my first piano lessons to my last gig and beyond. It was fun and at moments, touching, to remember specific moments when a random encounter started a new trajectory of my journey. Please listen, and if you enjoy what you hear, give ...

I'd like to invite all creative professionals in Northern Colorado to what I hope will be the first of many happy hour gatherings. There is no other agenda for this event but to spend time socializing with each other. No sales pitches, no presentations, no obligatory business card exchanges...just having some fun in each other's company. You'll have the chance to meet the proprietor of the Backyard Tap, Zedrick Brooks. He's created a lovely indoor/outdoor gathering place right in the heart of Loveland. He's interested in making it available for special events like parties, club meetings, classes, paint n' sip events and any other kind of gathering you might want to host. There will be drink specials and a food truck, and we'll have time to make the rounds to sit and chat while enjoying a beautiful space on a hopefully beautiful almost Fall evening. Please let me know you'll make it, and invite anyone you think might enjoy such a soiree. RSVP Her...

Yesterday, My friend Jeff Finlin and I gave the pilot session of a new workshop called Making Your Own Way. In the last year my focus in coaching has largely become helping creative people to find direction, get things started and finished, and mostly to identify the real impact they are making with their work. Creative professionals frequently wonder to themselves and out loud just what the value of their work is. I know that's been a regular inner dialog for me. Some great discussions in yesterday's workshop helped to bring some clarity to the subject, and a comment in a message at church this morning also brought it home to me. Creative work matters for two huge reasons; it connects us on deeper levels and it feeds our soul. A big part of the workshop is about the distinction that I see between a person's gift and their talents. We talk about that often we lump the two into the same definition. I don't think that quite captures the essence of your gift. I've wr...