I Need A Turkey Sandwich

Listen. Understand. Act.

Listen. Learn. Act.

If the goal is to get to the Act (and know how to act), it’s important to know which equation you and the other person are utilizing.

Often in meetings artists talk a lot (instead of listen), explain explain explain (because they long to be understood), and then wonder why it wasn’t a beneficial meeting (no action).

I don’t have to understand you to act on your behalf. I simply need to learn what you need.

If my job is making sandwiches at a deli, the best thing you can tell me is that you need a turkey sandwich, rather than explaining how you got to be as hungry as you are and then walking away forgetting to order the sandwich. The explaining only distracts us from what you need and what I do.

The quest to understand or be understood can be a hindrance to action.

***Don’t get me wrong, both trains of thought are useful.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

The Least Amount Of Effort

Most people want the most glory for the least amount of effort.

So most people are willing to give a tiny bit of effort when they can visualize the potential glory.

Two things…

1. Make it simple for people to see that you the kind of person/artist that they will receive glory through…that way you will get at least a little effort from them instead of none.

2. Be very clear about what little effort you want from them


***Also, on Spotify if you click the three little dots next to a song you can select Album Credits and see who wrote and produced the track. This feature might be old news but I just discovered it today. It’ll take a while before the entire Spotify catalog has the associated credits, but there’s a lot on there and it will keep getting better.

The next step will be linking it all together to where you can click Album Credits and then click the producers’ name and see their entire catalog, etc etc.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

Dance, Monkey

As an artist you need to fully embrace the fact that you are the one on stage everyone is looking at.

And when they are looking at you they’re saying…

Entertain me!

Make me feel less lonely!

Tell me what to do (without telling me what to do)!

Take the pressure of wanting to have a good night off of me!

Dance, monkey!

I’m giving you the steering wheel.

You are in charge and we want you to be in charge and we need you to be the best at being in charge.


That’s a pretty heavy load to bear when you walk on stage. But you must take it on…you must take it ALL on if you want to be great.

You have to know that these are the expectations and develop such a deep understanding of them that you are fulfilling them on stage regardless of actually thinking about them.

We know when someone doesn’t have it and we know when someone kind of has it…and then the irony is we forget about it all together when someone has it.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

Mission Unknown

It’s much less painful (in the short term) to skip over the sobering work of defining the mission.

If no one really knows what the mission is its way harder to feel like a failure if it’s not panning out.

It’s risky and scary to dive into defining the mission because of the the UNdefined-ness. And undefined is unknown. Unknown is risky. Risk means everyone might laugh at you.

“If I can’t define or have a hard time defining the mission then maybe I’m not as passionate, smart, talented, thoughtful, deep, committed, in it to win it as I thought I was.”

That’s why you avoid defining the mission.

Defining the mission brings you face to face with whatever you’ve got deep down in there.

And you need to find out what’s there.

A need avoided is not the same as a need met. So stop avoiding it. Stop avoiding defining the mission.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

Mighty Forces

I included this in the Sunday Night Email last night and thought it was worth passing along here too.

“I didn’t ask for this role but I’ll play it. Now go do your best. ‘Be bold and mighty forces will come to your aid.’ Goethe said that. It’s not too late for you to become a person of substance, Russell. Get my son home safely. You know, I’m glad we spoke”- Elaine, Almost Famous

Two things…

1. Be bold comes before the mighty forces.

2. It’s never too late

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com

Enjoying And Working With

In searching for people you’re going to work with, it’s a good idea to simply ask yourself who you enjoy working with.

It’s Dorothy and the ruby slippers and everything she needed was in her own backyard.

The people you enjoy working with are probably a good choice for who you will (or should) work with.

***A common trap in our industry is confusing ‘who do I enjoy’ with ‘who do I enjoy working with’…one doesn’t at all necessarily equal the other.

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I’m always interested in your perspective, whether affirming or dissenting. Continue the conversation anytime: gabethebassplayer@gmail.com