Meet Stacy James

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Stacy James a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Stacy, thank you so much for joining us. You are such a positive person and it’s something we really admire and so we wanted to start by asking you where you think your optimism comes from?

My Dad. He was the most optimistic person I’ve known. He taught me at a young age that it’s important to keep a positive mental attitude in life and especially in the pursuit of our dreams. And failure is a part of success. You have to be willing to fail to succeed. It’s heavy stuff when you’re young, but as I’ve walked through life his advice has really rung true and it certainly has helped me.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

I’m a transgender musician/guitar player. Guitar is a lifelong love that started in my teens and I’ve been a student of the craft for over 30 years. I still learn new things and believe that the fun of guitar, as with any craft, skill or artform, is buried within the journey of committing to doing the required work to be able to unlock new skill levels. I remember struggling for years before making real gains on the instrument. Then every small gain felt so rewarding, the desire to just keep improving became the norm or focus. I still feel this way. I think incremental improvement is often a painstaking affair, but longer term rewards outweigh the blood, sweat and tears.

I currently play in multiple bands and am a part of a unique original project called Dante’s View with a producer/ musician/collegue and friend of mine named Pepe Espada. It’s guitar driven and lyrically deep. It’s a ton of fun. I’m also working on releasing an album under the name Death Valley Daisies.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

I do feel I have employed techniques or attitudes over the years that have helped me stay focused on the fun of acquiring some tiny semblance of skill. Staying focused on small, achievable goals that are wholly under our control is one. I think in order to achieve larger, complex goals that we may set for ourselves, that it’s important to take consistent, but smaller steps. Staying committed to those small steps is what builds into bigger leaps. I also think it keeps us as human beings from focusing on outcomes. Outcomes don’t matter in the long run of our lives. Outcomes rarely define us. It’s our commitment to ourselves to stay vested in personal growth that we find the ultimate reward….to help get through the tough times and back to the rewarding ones. I firmly believe if someone wants to do or achieve anything, they must stay committed, stay positive and focused and the rest will take care of itself. Plus, the gift of surprising ourselves when we break personal barriers leads to big, healthy doses of self esteem and self respect.

Before we go, any advice you can share with people who are feeling overwhelmed?

I slow down and breathe. Not just regular breathing. Some call it “box breathing.” Inhale for 5 seconds, hold for 5, exhale over 5, hold for 5 and repeat. Of course we all let our minds get the best of us sometimes, but how quickly we can snap back is more important. Focusing on a breathing technique will change my focus from whatever is making me feel overwhelmed to just focusing on the task immediately in front of me. It’s ultimately about quieting the mind. It helps stop the thinking and the thoughts. I find value in the ability to quiet the mind and find a very simple, but laser like focus and work on that.
Another thing I like to do when I may feel overwhelmed is make a list of the thoughts. I try to get all cluttered thoughts onto paper to get them out of regular rotation and cluttering our peace of mind.
I hope I could share some positive mental energy with you all. Thank you so much for the interview and go after your happiness! Rock on!

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @Stacyjamesguitar
• Facebook: Stacy James Guitar
• Youtube: StacyJamesGuitar
• Other: @dantesviewmusic/Instagram
  @deathvalleydaisies/Instagram

Image Credits

George Schminky
Krystle Fox
Amanda Cox