Happy Wednesday Heroes!
Hey, are you like me and have a hard time letting stuff be what it is? I mean spending too much time over thinking and rethinking every little detail? It's a wonder ANYTHING gets done, right?
What is it that makes us want everything just perfect before we share it with the rest of the world? Are we worried that people won't like it? Are we scared that we'll fail? Shit, all of that is inevitable. Not everyone will like what we do, and not everything we do is going to be a rousing success and bring us millions of dollars, so why not just let it be what it is?
That's the million dollar question right there, isn't it? I mean, I know that this probably seems a little bit at odds with what I talked about yesterday, you know, Quality and all, but it's really not. It's about getting your product, your song, your album, your video, or whatever out for others to benefit from. You can always tweak later. You can record another "better" version later. You can enhance, sharpen, brighten, clarify, or whatever, LATER. But what's wrong with getting the idea out there for people to benefit from NOW?
It's really all about killing the resistance that is keeping you from sharing yourself with the world. Think of how you're robbing the world of your gifts by not sharing them. Quit being so selfish already!
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
The High Price of Low Quality
Hey Heroes!
The Web 2.0 world is in full swing now. Even the most die hard traditionalist CEOs and purist Hipster bands are realizing the power of YouTube. What was once a burgeoning but isolated means of standing out has now been flooded with crap from every glory seeker with a camcorder looking to be the next viral video success story.
Where does that leave those of us who see the opportunity that video and audio products can afford us? How do we get our stuff noticed in the vast sea of mediocrity?
One way that comes up for us, time and again, is quality. Look at it this way. Every single person on the web is using low quality video products. Sure, there's a lot to the argument that timeliness is more important than quality and I do agree with that to a point, however we all have projects that are not hinged on taking advantage of today's news stories. I mean, come on. The video for our new song, the live performance video from last week's gig, the trailer for our new album or book or art exhibit, or whatever. Think how putting in the extra effort in can make the difference between catching the eye or being skimmed right over like the rest of the Internet video chum.
The same can be said for our recordings, bands! What sets your album apart from the rest of the late night discount recording sessions with the local caffeine zombie of an engineer? What does sounding average cost you? What does looking average cost you? The best written song in the world still struggles to be noticed in a bad recording.
A little quality goes a long way and skimping always shows.
The Web 2.0 world is in full swing now. Even the most die hard traditionalist CEOs and purist Hipster bands are realizing the power of YouTube. What was once a burgeoning but isolated means of standing out has now been flooded with crap from every glory seeker with a camcorder looking to be the next viral video success story.
Where does that leave those of us who see the opportunity that video and audio products can afford us? How do we get our stuff noticed in the vast sea of mediocrity?
One way that comes up for us, time and again, is quality. Look at it this way. Every single person on the web is using low quality video products. Sure, there's a lot to the argument that timeliness is more important than quality and I do agree with that to a point, however we all have projects that are not hinged on taking advantage of today's news stories. I mean, come on. The video for our new song, the live performance video from last week's gig, the trailer for our new album or book or art exhibit, or whatever. Think how putting in the extra effort in can make the difference between catching the eye or being skimmed right over like the rest of the Internet video chum.
The same can be said for our recordings, bands! What sets your album apart from the rest of the late night discount recording sessions with the local caffeine zombie of an engineer? What does sounding average cost you? What does looking average cost you? The best written song in the world still struggles to be noticed in a bad recording.
A little quality goes a long way and skimping always shows.
Monday, May 3, 2010
Building an EMPIRE off of your left overs.
So, I've been reading a really awesome book and I'm going to have to insist that you read it. Okay, I guess that really won't make much difference, but I do highly recommend it. The book is called Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson. Check it out for yourself!
It's a great look at taking the bullshit out of business. Awesome read, but what really stood out to me was the section on selling your by-products. It's an idea that is WAY under used in both Indie Music and the Indie Business worlds.
Whenever we create a new product we inadvertently create by-products. If we record a new song, clips can be cut for other purposes (web audio, jingles, background music for commercial use), hell you can even create your own album trailers from it. What else can you use your creations for? What can you do to multiply the impact without multiplying the effort?
Do you film your recording sessions or demos to spread as viral marketing pieces? Acoustic demos can be a great free bonus to your diehard fans, or even as a way to generate more fans. Who doesn't love the intimate nature of seeing the creation process, up close and personal like?
Challenge yourself to find ways to utilize the by-products of your creativity. It could just be the foundation of your success.
It's a great look at taking the bullshit out of business. Awesome read, but what really stood out to me was the section on selling your by-products. It's an idea that is WAY under used in both Indie Music and the Indie Business worlds.
Whenever we create a new product we inadvertently create by-products. If we record a new song, clips can be cut for other purposes (web audio, jingles, background music for commercial use), hell you can even create your own album trailers from it. What else can you use your creations for? What can you do to multiply the impact without multiplying the effort?
Do you film your recording sessions or demos to spread as viral marketing pieces? Acoustic demos can be a great free bonus to your diehard fans, or even as a way to generate more fans. Who doesn't love the intimate nature of seeing the creation process, up close and personal like?
Challenge yourself to find ways to utilize the by-products of your creativity. It could just be the foundation of your success.
New Look!
Hey all,
I've been threatening it for a while now, but I've finally changed the look and focus of the blog.
I've been wanting to start reflecting a focus on how Indie Music and Indie Business have collided and they way they play together. I hope you all enjoy.
I've been threatening it for a while now, but I've finally changed the look and focus of the blog.
I've been wanting to start reflecting a focus on how Indie Music and Indie Business have collided and they way they play together. I hope you all enjoy.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
No one can sing your praises if you don't hum them the tune
No one can sing your praises if you don't hum them the tune!
This is a funny little phrase that I came up with a couple of years ago, but it's stuck with me.
When I came up with this phrase, it was as a way to remind myself that it's ok to talk about what I do. In fact, it's more than ok to talk about what I do and to even be proud of it. To go even further, it's essential to doing business or making music or whatever I put my efforts into.
I've never really tried to be egotistical, though I've certainly been accused of it. It's not a matter of ego though, to have a high level of excitement about what you do. It's a sign that you have a passion for your work. So what's more natural than wanting to talk about it? To share it with the world? To scream from a mountain top that "This is what I do with my time and I'm totally and madly in love with it!"?
Let's face it, no one will pay any attention to our efforts at all if we're not proud enough of them to shine a big old spotlight on them so the world HAS to take notice.
I love what I do, I'm good at it, and I'm cheating the world if I keep it under wraps. There, I said it!
This is a funny little phrase that I came up with a couple of years ago, but it's stuck with me.
When I came up with this phrase, it was as a way to remind myself that it's ok to talk about what I do. In fact, it's more than ok to talk about what I do and to even be proud of it. To go even further, it's essential to doing business or making music or whatever I put my efforts into.
I've never really tried to be egotistical, though I've certainly been accused of it. It's not a matter of ego though, to have a high level of excitement about what you do. It's a sign that you have a passion for your work. So what's more natural than wanting to talk about it? To share it with the world? To scream from a mountain top that "This is what I do with my time and I'm totally and madly in love with it!"?
Let's face it, no one will pay any attention to our efforts at all if we're not proud enough of them to shine a big old spotlight on them so the world HAS to take notice.
I love what I do, I'm good at it, and I'm cheating the world if I keep it under wraps. There, I said it!
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
New look, coming soon!
As you may have noticed, I've been kinda talking a lot about business lately. Well, I guess I just realized that being an Indie musician is just as much an Entrepreneurial effort as any other small business. With that in mind, I'm going to be redesigning the blog to reflect my interest in, not only Indie music, but Independent Business as well.
Please bear with me, and stay tuned! It's an exciting time for us here at Serious Vanity Music and I hope you'll all be a part of it!
Please bear with me, and stay tuned! It's an exciting time for us here at Serious Vanity Music and I hope you'll all be a part of it!
Get on with getting on with it!
Pop Quiz hot shot! What do you do when you've planned everything into the ground?
You get on with it and just do it already!
Yep, this last week has been an exercise in getting on with it. It's one thing to think about your growth potential, to talk about how you want to reach new people and make new connections, brag about how you're going to rule the freakin' world, but it's a whole other thing to just shut up and do it.
The best laid plans are nothing but scribbles on paper unless you take the steps to initiate them.
I don't know how many others may do this, but I have a tendency to analyze things to death before I act on them. I guess it's from being raised by parents who were anything but risk takers, so I like to make sure that everything is well thought out and risks are minimized before I take any leap. This isn't always the best way to be though, because I've ended up missing out on some really great opportunities because of a fear to leap.
So, I guess what I'm trying to get at, is that while it's never a good thing to leap before looking, it can be just as bad to over plan and over analyze.
Write that plan well, but then get on with getting on with it, already.
You get on with it and just do it already!
Yep, this last week has been an exercise in getting on with it. It's one thing to think about your growth potential, to talk about how you want to reach new people and make new connections, brag about how you're going to rule the freakin' world, but it's a whole other thing to just shut up and do it.
The best laid plans are nothing but scribbles on paper unless you take the steps to initiate them.
I don't know how many others may do this, but I have a tendency to analyze things to death before I act on them. I guess it's from being raised by parents who were anything but risk takers, so I like to make sure that everything is well thought out and risks are minimized before I take any leap. This isn't always the best way to be though, because I've ended up missing out on some really great opportunities because of a fear to leap.
So, I guess what I'm trying to get at, is that while it's never a good thing to leap before looking, it can be just as bad to over plan and over analyze.
Write that plan well, but then get on with getting on with it, already.
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