An incredible quote from Naval Ravikant

The following is an excerpt from TEM253:

Here's this week's quote. Four words and it is powerful. This is from Naval Ravikant and it is:

"Escape competition through authenticity."

That is brilliant. The number of times in my life where I've said this much in only four words is exactly zero.

The only way to escape competition is to not be fungible or interchangeable. And the only way to not be fungible is to be yourself. That's the only thing you've got over the rest of the world and the only thing that I've got over the rest of the world is that I'm me. Double down on whatever it is that makes you, you.

That's what being authentic means.

But keep in mind that as soon as you have the courage to be authentic, people will come for you. There will be downvotes on YouTube and 1-star ratings on Apple Podcasts and replies to your tweets questioning why you had the audacity to think that anyone else needed to hear those thoughts.

This is because people who are authentic and true to themselves and have the courage to actually show that to other people are a direct threat to people who don't have that courage. So know this is coming, but also keep in mind that it is truly the only way to escape competition and to get traction in the music business and in the world in general.

So as Seth Godin likes to say, go make a ruckus.

You can listen to the entire episode below or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Why convincing someone to pay you $1 is the hardest part of selling yourself

The following is an excerpt from TEM253: The real reason your rates are so low:

The hardest part is not convincing someone whether you're string quartet is worth $1,000 or $1,500 for a wedding ceremony. The hardest part is actually convincing them that what you offer is worth even $1. No, really.

In this example of a string quartet, weddings are just ridiculously expensive. It is quite common for someone to get back a quote for the full list of what they want for their wedding day and then they have complete sticker shock. That's often followed by looking at what things can be eliminated from their wedding to get the cost down while still being the kind of day that they're looking for. If they are reaching out to you, they've already decided that they want to pay money for something that they could just as easily stream from a music platform that they already pay to subscribe to and just play it over a set of speakers. But they are talking to you.

You've already made the cut. The hard part is already done. So charging less than you're worth is not going to help you nearly as much as you think it is. And charging only $500 to play the ceremony, when you really want $1500, is still not going to convince the person who says, "Wait, can't we just get that song I want to walk down the aisle to off of YouTube?" Because $500 is ridiculously expensive to that person and they are never, ever going to hire you anyways.

So don't fall for the trap of keeping your rates low. and thinking it will avoid the hardest part of the sales process. It won't, and it will only end up costing you money for each and every happy customer who was going to be happy they paid the rate you actually think you're worth.

TEM Report - February 2022

TEM Reports are a monthly deep dive into my successes and failures as an entrepreneurial musician. I am constantly trying out new tools and platforms and I share all about it each month.

Let me try out that new program or app and report back so you don't have to.

This month’s TEM Report covers a lot of ground:

• Reporting on using two different Project Management Tools and which one is best (and why they have been amazing for my productivity)

• Why having a reliable intern has been the secret sauce for my productivity on the TEM front lately

• How I'm looking to partner with someone to put out some courses (is it you? or someone you know?)

• An update on the TEM Newsletter

• A simplified approach to Patreon

• Dealing with the frustration that my gigs have not come back even though things have started to kick back up again :(

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Join the TEM Patreon family!

Join the other entrepreneurial musicians who are already helping to keep the lights on around here and unlock a boatload of bonus content like this TEM Extra and monthly TEM Reports for around $8 a month. Thanks for even considering it! 🙏

Join the Famiy!

Tips on video editing

Hillier Smith is a world class YouTube editor and in this video interview he'll teach you some of the secrets he's used to make viral videos for Logan Paul.

The whole video is filled with great tips but it is worth the click even just for the bit at the 5:36 mark.

(A lot of the lessons in this video apply not just to video editing but to editing anything.)

Enjoy!

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TEM Extra: Bonus Episode with Eric Branner of Fons

The bonus portion of my conversation with Eric Branner of Fons featured a couple more questions and his answers were great!

• If you could go back 20 years and visit 2002 Eric, what would you tell him?

• How do you balance putting out fires vs. moving big things forward?

This portion of the interview touched on Stephen Covey's four quadrants, kanban boards (which I had never heard of!) and the power of using the internet to learn.

And his answer to the first question was only three words and the best answer I've ever heard to that common question. Really good stuff!

Enjoy!

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TEM Coaching Chat: The One Character Trait That Makes Any Deficiency Manageable

This week’s TEM Coaching Chat is all about not blending in. I touched on the following:

• Thanking every single one of you for helping me get to 250 episodes

• A great quote from Eric Branner in TEM250

• Why enthusiasm trumps just about any shortcomings

• What to look for when partnering with someone for a project or partnership

• Getting the right people on the bus

Enjoy!

TEM Extra: The Case for One Person Calling the Shots

This latest TEM Extra is all about who is calling the shots in a group or business:

• A 60-second clip from TBJ182 featuring Jeff Curnow of The Philadelphia Orchestra about how the legendary Empire Brass used to be run by two people rather than a democracy and how that was beneficial artistically

• The absolute dumbest question I’ve heard anyone get asked in an interview in my life

• What Jerry Seinfeld credits for the success of Seinfeld

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Unlock this TEM Extra

Join the other entrepreneurial musicians who are already helping to keep the lights on around here and unlock a boatload of bonus content like this TEM Extra and monthly TEM Reports. Thanks for even considering it! 🙏

Support the Show

TEM Coaching Chat: Don't blend in

This week’s TEM Coaching Chat is all about not blending in. I touched on the following:

• A 60-second clip from TBJ182 featuring Jeff Curnow of The Philadelphia Orchestra about his time with the legendary Empire Brass

• How Empire Brass stood out from other brass quintets and chamber ensembles

• The various ways a musician can stand out

Enjoy!

The perfect mindset for getting the most out of graduate school

In this clip from Episode 181 of The Brass Junkies, the incredible Kevin Newton of Imani Winds shares what his mindset was before heading into graduate school.

I will play this clip for every single student I have who is entering graduate school.

It is remarkable when someone as young as he was is this intentional about their life.

For so many students, graduate school is what comes after undergrad and that’s as far as the soul searching goes for exactly why they want to get a graduate degree.

But Kevin saw graduate school as having a specific role in the development of his career and he crushed it.

We can all learn from this kind of awareness while heading into any new chapter of our lives!

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