What does it take to get your foot in the door?

Ok guys, just wanted to sort of keep you up to date with what im looking at at the moment. So I realise I need to do a lot of research and I really wanted it to be not only helpful to my inquiry but also helpful to my career. Im currently sitting staring at a pile of biographies and autobiographies from the like of Jessie J, Lilly Allen and Amy Winehouse and more. I can feel my inquiry adapting as we speak...from what it takes to be succesful more into the relms of how do you get your foot in the door? What are the first steps to entering the music industry. I've basically picked out about 7 books to help me get an idea of how these fairly musically successful artists started out. I'l be looking at their early ays and picking out key points. I mean, this is obviously the tip of the iceburg but its a start. Where I can I will try and follow a couple of the points that re occur and see how they work out for me, and/or speak to those in similar situations who are just starting out. I want to use the biographies and autobiographies to get an idea of what mental state the artists were in before they began to crack open the door and see what comes of it...