Culture, Money, and Building

The culture isn’t great because it’s a transient ecosystem.

It’s a transient ecosystem because everyone is looking for better culture.

Money helps keep people around. But if the money isn’t gonna get better, what is there to stay around for? Culture. But if the culture isn’t great…

You see the circle.

The thing that disrupts this frustrating loop is…ownership and responsibility. Choosing to be the one who builds rather than the one who only takes. It’s scary because money is easy to measure and culture is easy to complain about…and you’ll never get much push back if that’s the way you operate.

If you try to build culture and fail, now you’re the one others are complaining about.

If you turn down the big money, you look like a fool.

But it might be worth it.

»» And if you only chase dollars, the worst thing that can happen is you just might win that lonely game.

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Core Elements

Chemistry of the group

The voice and charisma of the singer

The songs…melody, lyrics and the packaging around them

A way into the songs…a belief, identity, trick, mindset, burden, responsibility that gets you reconnected to the songs night after night

And all of that rolled together gets you something else. A weird and inevitable synergy that can’t be calculated and yet it’s easy to point out the elements.

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When Your Product Is Good...

you don’t have to argue about it.

When the product is good you get to rest in that. You don’t need to be drawn into the other person’s game. You don’t need to fight for position or try to prove anything.

The product is good. Here it is. Here’s the problem it solves. Do you want this?

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

Chasing The Perfect Melody

By now know it’s never going to be perfect…so perfect isn’t the actual goal.

But we say things like ‘chasing the perfect melody’ with the wisdom that the goal is the chasing part not the perfect part. We dangle the perfect part out there just for fun. Knowing we won’t get there. Almost hoping we won’t get there because it’s the chasing is in our blood.

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Performer Affirmation

Before a performer is ever told they’re a great performer, they already are.

Being told doesn’t bestow the designation. Being told might help as a reminder, but the truth is there regardless.

So often the affirmation we receive is merely a byproduct of what’s been true for a long time.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple

Specialized

When someone is specialized not only are they good at the function of their craft, but their superior skills are the over flow of years of experience, care, learning, refining, and endless problem solving within the field. They’ve cared about this for a long time.

Specialized people help us feel extra good about the output or performance. Not only is the performance great, but we have added confidence that no matter what happens the performance will continue to operate at a high level.

Someone who is simply talented but not specialized might come in and do the same job. But the deep waters aren’t there. They haven’t cared for this specific thing for years of their life. As long as things are going pretty good, they’re pretty good. But when it gets shaky, there’s not as much of a foundation to anchor to.

We can’t be specialized in everything and it pays to be talented at least a few things. Let’s be sure to make our promises accordingly.

Hum Love on Spotify and Apple