Not a face value kinda guy..............

Hey Heroes,

It's true, you know. I have a hard time taking anything at face value. I don't know if it's my Buddhist leanings, or if it's my Punk Rock background, but I question everything. That's right. EVERYTHING.

I've held the belief, for as long as I can remember, that in order for a person to honestly believe something, they have to completely deconstruct the belief and analyze it from the bottom up. In essence, blind faith is for the weak minded who can't think for themselves. Harsh? Maybe, but that's how I feel.

So, you're asking yourselves, "Paul, what the fuck does this have to do with music?". Well, everything actually. How do you know that the latest trend in PR is right for you if you don't question the motives, actions, and tactics necessary for pulling it off? How do you know if the record deal you're contemplating is right if you don't question how many hands are in the pot and where the incoming money is going to? You see, questioning things can make a big difference in the outcome of our efforts.

It can also play into who we surround ourselves with, what venues we play, what sponsors we align ourselves with, and much more.

It's all about being aware and knowing what it is we're signing our names to. It's all about taking responsibility for the outcome of our efforts. It's all about understanding the consequences of our actions.

Leave the blind faith to the thoughtless masses and question what it is that's shaping your life and and your future. What could be more Rock and Roll than that?

Later,

Show up and see what happens!

Hey Heroes!!!

Ever wonder why things may not be going as smoothly as they could, or should be? Ever wonder why our successes seem to be so choppy, uncertain, and certainly unpredictable? I struggle with that on a daily basis sometimes, but I think I may have found a bit of the answer. I don't always show up to work. Yep, sometimes I'm here, but I get caught up in the wrong things. I'm busy following that funny-ass thread on Facebook, or I'm busy restructuring my plan of attack for the 15th time, or I'm just wallowing in my lack of forward momentum. So, what's the cure?

I was just re-reading The War of Art by Steven Pressfield and right there at the beginning of the book he spells it out in crystal clarity. The Artist has to SHOW UP every morning, without fail, whether we feel like it or not, whether we want to or not, whether we're scared to or not, we HAVE TO DO IT!

I highly recommend this book to anyone who's aspiring to do anything in their lives. It may be the only true instruction manual for success.

Ok, so back to showing up. Whatever it happens to look like for you, do it! I'm about to sit down and make up a sign that reminds me to show up. I'm going to pin it to the bulletin board above my desk, in the inspiration corner that I look at every morning. It will occupy space with Buddha (who reminds me to not be too attached to any outcomes), Keith Richards (who reminds me that success is a long, long road of ups and downs), and Boba Fett (who reminds me that music is a Mercenary business and we have to take what we want). I'm going to put this sign there, where I can't miss it, and then I'm going to steel myself to the idea that I'm the one who will either show up or not. It's up to me, and it's up to you too.

Time for work.

Later,

Less talk, more action

You know, sometimes the hardest part of being an artist, in this day and age, is that it's so easy to get caught up in the promotion, marketing, blogging, and talking about what we do that we sometimes forget to do it. Make art that is.

For the do-it-yourselfers, there is a lot to do ourselves and if we're not careful we can end up chasing the wrong rabbit. I mean, it's great that we learn how to market the art that we make, in fact, it's a necessity. Have you ever caught yourself relating more to marketers than artists though? I know I have. That's why I've taken the last couple of weeks off from, not just this blog, but most all of my non art related pursuits. It's part of the self evaluation process I talked about a while back.

What am i doing right? What am I doing wrong? What's working and what's not? Am I digging myself into a hole or am I getting done the things that are important. I mean, the last thing I want to do is look up one morning and realize that I don't have anything to market.

Yep, sometimes it's good to just shut up and plug in the guitar, set up the easel, wet the clay, or fire up the forge. You know, whatever it is you do to express your inner god or goddess. Your tribute to the Muse. Your own unique view of the world and it's inhabitants.

It's important to talk about what we do, but it's soooooo much more important to just do it.

Later,

Are you standing in your own way?

What's up, Heroes?

Do you ever feel like no one is listening to you when you talk about your music? I know I sure do. Sometimes I feel like I talk about it all day long and people just don't give a rat's ass. Now, I know that's not necessarily the truth, because other days people are all over it and I really feel the love that folks have for what I'm doing.

This got me to pondering what it is about my message that's different from one experience to the next. How am I relating what I'm saying that makes the difference between a good response and a bad one?

First off, if you don't love what you're doing, no one else will either. It's just a fact. If you act like you don't care if people listen to your new track, chances are they won't. I mean, why put in the effort to listen to something the creator doesn't give two shits about? Get excited about your product! Love your music, it is your creation, right? You wouldn't have spent all that time making it if you didn't love it, right? Make people see how much you love it! I know I love my music!

Second. Never apologize for your music. Seriously, it doesn't work. If you don't like the way it came out, start over. Don't present things you aren't happy with to others and expect them to be happy with them. Stand behind your work and don't give time to the people who don't like it. It just means that they are not your audience, and it's ok.

Third. Never compare yourself to anyone else. Not everyone is going to make the same connections as you do. This is something that's really struck me about other peoples thoughts about my music lately. I never would have seen the same comparisons. It's cool though because you can learn things about yourself that you never knew.

Fourth. Never be too moved by someone Else's critics of your music, good or bad. If people like what you do, that's real good, but it shouldn't shape how you make your music in the future. Make it for yourself, not for others.

If we stay true to ourselves and get genuinely excited about what we produce, that will shine out to the right following, but "genuine" is the key word.

Let's stop standing in our own way and let our music shine!

Taking Care of Business

Just a BTO song? Hardly. It's just a fact of life for the Indie musician, especially the DIY types. Every day is a work day and there's never, REALLY, any time off. It's a constant plugging of, well, ourselves.

There are almost as many plans for marketing your music as there are dollars in the deficit and Social Media is time consuming, not to mention confusing as all hell. So, how do we balance the time spent marketing ourselves with the time spent making sure there is an "our self" to market? This gets even more confusing for the ones of us that have to hold down a "day job" to keep our dreams alive.

It even seems like there's a new "Ultimate Marketing Tool" being introduced every day.

How's this for a little secret? We don't have to reach everyone with our music. We just have to reach the right people. I'm finding that the amount of time I need to spend sending out my messages is drastically reduced by the simple task of locating my specific, targeted demographic beforehand. Once you've done that, it's really easy to schedule the messages to go out and get a maximum result with a minimum time expenditure. In other words, quit wasting your ammo with a "spray and pray" tactic. Set your sights and become a marketing sharpshooter. You'll hit fewer people, but you'll also be getting better results.

Sum Of Our Parts

Hey Heroes!

It's been a busy week here at the Serious Vanity Music compound, but we're happy with that. It means that the actions we've been taking are starting to pay off. Gotta love progress!!

In addition to it being a period of building and growing, it's also brought up a lot of thoughts that require some serious reflection. Where do we, the we that we become, come from? In essence, to be the sum of our parts, we have to understand what those parts are.

It is a given fact that we cannot change the past, and dwelling there certainly hampers our future, but we can't change the reality that those things helped to shape who we are today.

How can we use that information to help propel us forward in our music careers? I mean, beyond using it as a never ending source for our angst ridden lyrics? How can we tap into the SOUL of our past experiences and make it work for us now? Are we comfortable enough with our past experiences to be open about them and use them as a connection to people with similar life stories, or are we using them as a measurement to know the kinds of people we're trying to escape from?

Either way, coming to terms with the past can help to build a solid foundation to build your future from. It's up to us though. Are we going to be the sum of our parts, or are we going to be the victims of our past experiences?

One way is very beneficial, the other certainly destructive. It seems everything in life presents a new choice to make, and a new road to follow. Even the past.

Active or Passive?

What's up my Heroes?!?!?

Hey, I was doing some new publishing research yesterday and got to wondering, how many Indies take a little bit of time each week to stay on top of the industry topics that can affect all of our careers? It's an easy thing to let slip, for me anyway.

Do you get bored with reading about download trends, or the newest and greatest marketing plans? Does it make you roll your eyes when Trent Reznor starts spouting about his brilliant new way to talk to his fan base, or who's selling advertising space in their cd liner notes, like this?

What do you do, on a weekly basis, to ensure that you're taking advantage of every possible opportunity to get your music in front of the right people? Are you keeping track of how well your current marketing plan is working? Are you distinguishing between natural sales lulls and fading effectiveness?

It's a constantly changing landscape for musicians these days, and staying on top of trends is just as imperative as creating new ones and it certainly is no time to let the guard down, even for a second. It could be the difference between spending your day in the studio or at the fry station.

So, that's what I've been thinking about.

Oh, and if you're interested in being a little more interactive, even if it's just to tell my how full of shit I am, add me on Facebook. Hope to see you there!