The Biz
BUSiNESS & MARKETiNG
McDonnell
makes
his living from blogging. And
he doesn’t just get by. He
especially bought an entire
house
using
his
YouTube royalties.!
!
Bringing this concept back to
you, dear readers, I
wonder whether a ‘record
deal’ is still deserving of its
place at the summit of the
metaphorical mountain that
represents your career
aspirations, or is that SO last
century? If the world has
changed, maybe our
dreams should, also?!
!
I wanted to end this piece
with one more little something
on content and creativity, for
those of you who are
accepting of the fact that
we’re all still developing our
art, in some shape or form.
The quote is from Ira Glass,
an American Broadcast
journalist.!
“What nobody tells people
who are beginners — and I
really wish someone had told
this to me . . . is that all of us
who do creative work, we get
into it because we have good
taste. But there is this gap.
For the first couple years you
make stuff, and it’s just not
that good. It’s trying to
be good, it has potential, but
it’s not.!
But your taste, the thing that
got you into the game, is still
killer. And your taste is why
your work disappoints you. A
lot of people never get past
this phase. They quit. Most
p e o p l e I k n o w w h o d o
interesting, creative work
went through years of this.
We know our work doesn’t
have this special thing that
we want it to have. We all go
through this. And if you
are just starting out or you are
still in this phase, you gotta
know it’s normal and the most
important thing you can do is
do a lot of work. Put yourself
on a deadline so that every
week you will finish
one story.”
Or in your case, one song.!
!
“It is only by going through a
volume of work that you
will close that gap, and your
work will be as good as your
ambitions. And I took longer to
figure out how to do this than
anyone I’ve ever met. It’s
gonna take awhile. It’s normal
to take awhile. You’ve just
gotta
fight
your
way through.” !
!
I take so much strength from
these words, and if any of
them resonate with even a
tiny part of your being, please
find the strength to keep on
doing what you’re doing. The
reality is that every overnight
success has been twenty
years in the making, in
some way. ■
QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FOR
BUSINESS&MARKETING
[email protected]
OLIVER SUSSAT
WHO IS HE? Based in Guildford, UK. Oliver has a diverse business and
entrepreneurial background spanning music, media and technology. He
built a multi-platform brand involving a roster of high-end music and
television talent for the pre-school marketplace. It achieved music
product sales well in excess of 2 million units worldwide and has been
linked with companies such as the BBC, EMI, Universal and The
Glastonbury Music Festival. He consults in Music, Media and
Technology and works as a Senior Lecturer at the Academy of
Contemporary Music.
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