As I sit here reflecting on what can only be described as my "salad days" I'm struck with a huge meaty blow to my knowledge of self. I would not be anywhere near life's silly salad bar if I wasn't poked, prodded, encouraged, shaked, kissed, slapped and manhandled by my contemporaries, friends, and colleagues. What I'm saying folks, is if you think you can be that one-person-
"Not based in reality"
With all of the opportunities the net offers to create your own environment and be the sovereign leader of your input/output, the world can seem totally manageable. I can upload this, click on that, get this file in the hands of this guy and I'm not wearing pants (I'm wearing pants).
But in reality the computer and the social networks and the Tweets and yes, even this blog, are just tools. They don't the replace human links. And not "I know this guy cos I get his RSS" links, or "Isn't that the midget from Zelda" - no.
I recorded an album, had it mixed and mastered, press shots taken, graphic design and artwork completed, horns recorded, guitars and bass plucked, background vocals sang, remixes mixed, press kits sent to various music blogs for review, and 4 videos shot and edited and uploaded. ALL of this was through connections and basically ALL of this was done on the understanding that everyone would get credit and when these people needed me, I would be there for them. That's it.
I did offer sexual favors but no one accepted.
"Step into my office."
SoapBox Moment:
I seem to find myself surrounded by inspiring people. All the time. I think what interests me in hanging out with people who are down to build things is that it forces me to not be full of shit, and if I am full of shit, at least it helps me find a novel way to present that to the outside world. When you stay in contact with people who are creative,smart , and hungry you can't help but snack on the buffet of motivation. And when the time comes for you to make something, you have a list of people you know you can trust to get that product into its tangible form.
That brings another issue to the surface and that is trusting other people to get things done. These might not happen the way you had envisioned which is the beautiful part of people helping people. They put a stamp on it, you put a stamp on it. It's instantly bigger than the both of you and therefore it's desirable to a larger number of people. An example of this is the inside joke. It's funny to those people who were there, but for people who were not, this is a huge waste of time. Notice how no one who is truly entertaining concludes their story with "You had to have been there."
Which dovetails nicely into....
The last part of people helping people is that working with others on projects gets you out of living a life of singular experience. We all are wrapped up in our own amazingly intricate, personalized episode of "The Young and the Restless" (or One Tree Hill, or Soul Food) - the story lines are unique to us and many of us choose to employ a shadowy figure with an eye-patch even if this person has no place in the narrative - regardless, we are wrapped up in a cocoon of self engagement. When you work with others you are extending your mental capacity to include other story lines, creating a tapestry of experience that enriches the quality of all involved. After I got married to my wife I realized what an invaluable resource it is to have someone who reflects your image back at you and how this sensitizes you to social interactions for the rest of your life. This is a great example of people helping people.
In conclusion - hit up your friends to help you with your ideas and projects, offer your services to friends working in your specific field, collaborate with someone outside of your field and fertilize each other's imagination crops....together it will be bigger than it's parts and you'll all have something to write home about.
NEXT EPISODE - CueBro; how we made the above happen....
But in reality the computer and the social networks and the Tweets and yes, even this blog, are just tools. They don't the replace human links. And not "I know this guy cos I get his RSS" links, or "Isn't that the midget from Zelda" - no.
I'm talking friendships.
I recorded an album, had it mixed and mastered, press shots taken, graphic design and artwork completed, horns recorded, guitars and bass plucked, background vocals sang, remixes mixed, press kits sent to various music blogs for review, and 4 videos shot and edited and uploaded. ALL of this was through connections and basically ALL of this was done on the understanding that everyone would get credit and when these people needed me, I would be there for them. That's it.
I did offer sexual favors but no one accepted.
"Step into my office."SoapBox Moment:
I seem to find myself surrounded by inspiring people. All the time. I think what interests me in hanging out with people who are down to build things is that it forces me to not be full of shit, and if I am full of shit, at least it helps me find a novel way to present that to the outside world. When you stay in contact with people who are creative,
That brings another issue to the surface and that is trusting other people to get things done. These might not happen the way you had envisioned which is the beautiful part of people helping people. They put a stamp on it, you put a stamp on it. It's instantly bigger than the both of you and therefore it's desirable to a larger number of people. An example of this is the inside joke. It's funny to those people who were there, but for people who were not, this is a huge waste of time. Notice how no one who is truly entertaining concludes their story with "You had to have been there."
Which dovetails nicely into....
The last part of people helping people is that working with others on projects gets you out of living a life of singular experience. We all are wrapped up in our own amazingly intricate, personalized episode of "The Young and the Restless" (or One Tree Hill, or Soul Food) - the story lines are unique to us and many of us choose to employ a shadowy figure with an eye-patch even if this person has no place in the narrative - regardless, we are wrapped up in a cocoon of self engagement. When you work with others you are extending your mental capacity to include other story lines, creating a tapestry of experience that enriches the quality of all involved. After I got married to my wife I realized what an invaluable resource it is to have someone who reflects your image back at you and how this sensitizes you to social interactions for the rest of your life. This is a great example of people helping people.
In conclusion - hit up your friends to help you with your ideas and projects, offer your services to friends working in your specific field, collaborate with someone outside of your field and fertilize each other's imagination crops....together it will be bigger than it's parts and you'll all have something to write home about.
NEXT EPISODE - CueBro; how we made the above happen....
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