Unexpected and Unlikely

If you do all the things an artist is suppose to do in order to be successful…then being a successful artist isn’t unexpected…but it’s still unlikely.

Even the best plan in this business is unlikely to bring fame and riches. But if you follow the plan, fame and riches aren’t unexpected…just unlikely.

»» I often hear artists talk about the ‘unexpected phone call’ to be part of a cool opportunity. But the opportunity has everything to do with what the artist is already good at…so while the call is unlikely, it’s not unexpected. On the other hand, it would be unexpected if the artist got a call to preform surgery on an elephant.

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Good Things. Bad Things.

Good things seem to take a long time.

Bad things seem to happen all at once.

And while there’s some truth to these broad strokes, not being able to calculate when the bad things might happen all at once isn’t a good enough reason not to build good things. Even if it takes a long time.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

TV Projectors

It’s easier than ever these days to turn a blank wall into a giant TV screen. Projectors are cheap and they even come with a remote that looks like your TV remote.

When the projector is projecting a short distance, the picture is crystal clear. To make the screen bigger you can move the projector further from the wall and the image still looks pretty good but up close it’s lost some of its crispness.

You can get the projector to fill the entire side of your house if you move it far enough away but the image gets pretty blurry. The definition is gone. The depth of color is missing.

It’s big but it’s not clear.

If we’re not adamant about staying clear in our purpose as we grow what we do, it’s likely we’ll go from small and clear to big and blurry.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

The Perfect Guest. The Perfect Host.

The guest and the host are sitting so close to each other. Sitting in identical chairs, speaking into the same brand of microphone, engaged in the same conversation…and yet the skill sets are completely different.

The perfect host uses the power of interest, curiosity, care, and excitement to highlight the guest and guide the audience into connection with the guest.

The perfect guest uses the power of imagination, presence, insight and humor to do more with the host’s prompts and questions than the host ever thought possible.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

Velvet Rope

We want what we can’t have.

We’re mystified by what we don’t know.

We long for what is just out of reach.

Even though many artists document so much of their lives for anyone to consume, the above statements still hold true. Just because people want more doesn’t mean that’s what’s best for the relationship.

A little mystery, a little wink, a little velvet rope goes a long way these days.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

Proximity To The Mountain

For lack of a better metaphor…

The further you are away from the mountain

the easier it is to see the top of it.

the easier it is to act like you could get to the top.

the easier it is to think it would be easy to get to the top.

the easier it is to criticize those who aren’t making it to the top.

And then the flip side…

The closer you get to the mountain and it’s top

the more you have to strain to see it.

the more you realize how giant it is.

the more exhausting every next step is.

the more appreciation you have of others on the same journey.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple