Passion is one of the most important qualities in your career. Employers love nothing more than a candidate who has it by the bucketload and you'll find it hard to get out of bed in the morning (even when it isn't freezing) without it.
A career in the music industry is a great way to make the most of your passion, whether you have new music coming out of your ears, you're knee-deep in mud at every summer festival or you're always telling your mates what they should be listening to. But getting into it isn't exactly straightforward.
You could study; Brighton Institute of Modern Music recently announced that they are launching two new degree programmes focused on helping students get into the music industry. There are also diploma-level qualifications designed to help 'springboard' people into the sector.
But a qualification isn't always necessary. Ed Sheeran recently spoke to Radio 1 about his experience breaking into the world of singing and songwriting. He suggested that his time spent at college didn't help him as much as practical experience; going to gigs, writing his own material and putting on his own shows.
On Thursday 8 November from 1pm to 3pm we will have a panel of experts, all working in different fields, on hand to answer your questions and offer their advice. So if you need help knowing what roles are out there and how you can carve your path into the world of music, join us. Among other topics, we'll be covering:
• The variety of roles in the industry
• The skills and experience you need
• The different routes in to the different areas of the industry
• How to get ahead once you get your foot in the door
Taking part in the Q&A is easy; you can create a free Guardian account, or log in using your Twitter or Facebook profiles. Comments are open now so please feel free to post your questions to our panel early. Alternatively, you can tweet us on @GuardianCareers or email your questions to Chris Mandle.
Our panel includes:
Greg Cochrane is a music journalist for Radio 1 and Radio 1Xtra's newsbeat, and reviews music for the BBC in addition to reporting events such as the Mercury awards. Greg is a former assistant reviews editor for NME.
Mel Thornton Mel is the head of work based learning at the Brighton Institute of Modern Music. Previously Mel has worked in music PR for bands and events including All Saints, Five, Pink, Avril Lavigne and The Great Escape Festival as well as managing online PR campaigns for Basement Jaxx and Travis.
Caroline Beashel works in online and print PR for Inside/Out, working with recent Mercury winners Alt-J, Biffy Clyro and Gabriel Bruce. Previously Caroline worked at Warner Music for six years as digital promotions manager, in charge of the online press for all Warner Bros artists.
Robbie Wojciechowski is a freelance music PR and journalist who is also a label manager at Folkroom and Blank Mind. Robbie was previously music editor of Live Magazine.
Claire Wadsworth is a consultant from Handle Recruitment, who have 30 years experience recruiting for a variety of roles within the music industry for clients including Universal, EMI and Sony Music.
Tom Fazakerley is from DIGIHUBB, the first multifunctional online platform to bring fans the latest news, interviews, live shows and exclusive performances from the music stars of the social media world.
This content is brought to you by Guardian Professional. To get more content and advice like this direct to your inbox, sign up for our weekly Careers update.
