nobody else: Blog

I was asked recently by Derek Sivers, (founder of CD Baby and successful and inspirational Music Business Entrepreneur) to read the book Ignore Everybody - and 39 other keys to creativity by Hugh MacLeod and write in my blog about how, if at all, I felt it could help me in my music career. I think it is important that the reader understands my background as this is obviously going to inform my opinion. I am from a working class Scottish background and, as such have a tendency to scepticism. I’d like to think I am open minded but, honestly, I think I have always approached self improvement books tentatively and slightly cynically. Having said this, I have endeavoured to really think about my attitude to my band, its journey and what I want to achieve through my music. I plan to really consider each of the 40 pieces of advice in this book and decide if and how I feel I could apply the advice in the real world. I don’t live in Hollywood or New York or even London. I live 18 miles outside of Edinburgh in Scotland. An A&R rep is not going to drop into one of our gigs. This is the reality for the vast majority of independent unsigned artists out there so I really hope you guys get something out of this process and I would like to hear your opinions on this blog. There are forty short chapters in the book, each dealing with a different piece of advice. I sat down to read this book and had finished it within an hour. I then went back and read it again and again. The forty chapters are inspired by Hugh Macleod’s blog Gaping Void.

Rather than take each chapter individually, I am going to refer to the chapters that I felt I was able to take something from and I will talk about how I am going to put into practice what I have learned. One of the first chapters that clicked with me was; If your business plan depends on suddenly being “discovered” by some big shot, your plan will probably fail. As a singer who has musically “grown up” with the dominance of the major record labels, it has always seemed a daunting task to have my music reach a wider audience. I have been inspired and motivated by some of the opportunities offered to us by the internet but have always felt somewhat impotent in the face of the power held by the big corporations. This chapter advises us to build something on our own. MacLeod says “Big offers are a good thing, but personal sovereignty matters a whole lot more in the long run” (page 20). The implication behind this is that if you build something wonderful, people will be interested in it.

Maintaining ownership and sovereignty over your work is a recurring theme in the book. The idea doesn’t have to be big it just has to be yours deals with this. The message here is that if you are passionate and engaged by your idea, in my case, my music, then that is inspiring and attractive to others. You really can only feel that way if you are not prepared to compromise. Here is the crux of this book for me.

The chapter; Selling out is harder than it looks. Tells us that “Diluting your product to make it more commercial will just make people like it less” (page 90) It’s not that my band (nobody else) and I have tried to make our music commercial but I have worried about a band of 40 somethings playing music which is commercially associated with a younger audience. I have tried to adapt and squeeze press packs and demo cds to fit certain venues and audiences. This is unrewarding and feels apologetic. Something this book has reinforced for me is that we can’t always compete in the same markets as the large corporations. We need to make our own markets. My band may not be commercially appealing to large record companies as we do not fit the standard format and our image doesn’t fit with what a record company believes is easy to sell. I believe, however, that there is an audience out there for our music and so I need to take responsibility for reaching them.

As part of Macleod’s advice to Put the hours in he comments “Doing anything worthwhile takes forever. Ninety percent of what separates successful people and failed people is time, effort, and stamina” (page 9). He follows this with “Put the hours in, do it for long enough and magical, life-transforming things happen eventually.”(page 11). This is difficult for many of us to really believe, particularly when real life intrudes. I constantly question whether I am wasting time on this project and this book has helped me give myself permission to do just that if it makes me happy. As I said before the “we’re doomed!” element of the Scottish psyche has a tendency to pop up when I consider this type of statement. However, it is something that I will endeavour to put into practise.

Some of the chapters in the book didn’t resonate so well with me, these tended to be those that implied that we all have this creative ability inside us and that we can all do anything we want. I’m afraid that I find it difficult to believe that. I believe that there are things in this world that are more important to people than creativity and many people have to concentrate on surviving. It is not just the practical side of life but the way in which practicalities can suck ambition from individuals. Having said that if you are in a position in your life where you can dedicate time to  your idea and your ambition, the book will help you stay focused.

I am lucky to be in that category today. There have been times in my life that I was not and no amount of soul searching or self improvement books would have given me what I needed to break the cycle. This is not the case now. I am also lucky to have a job (as a music lecturer) that dovetails nicely with my musical ambitions. This means it is easier than some for me to follow Macleod’s advice to not give up your day job.

I do agree that it is difficult to be creative and inspired when you are struggling to make ends meet. It is also nice to hear that it doesn’t devalue your skills and music when you are unable to devote 100% of your time to it.

Overall I did find this book helpful. It found it inspirational in a quite practical and down to earth way. It didn’t so much tell me things that I didn’t know rather than reinforce what I already felt. Sometimes Macleod speaks quite forcefully with comments such as “everybody is too busy to give a damn” (page 93) about your particular idea and that you need to get on with it yourself. This approach appeals to me. I feel that Hugh MacLeod has given me permission (if you will) to be uncompromising in my belief and the love of my music; to filter advice and guidance carefully, to allow myself to work hard and not panic about how long it will take.

To quote the film field of dreams;  “If you build it, they will come”.  Hand me the hammer and nails……..;.

Please add your comments to this blog below.I would be delighted to hear them