AriKoinuma.com

I just commented on Derek Sivers’ recent entry, a quick questionnaire to the marketer-extraodinaire Seth Godin.

I won’t repeat what’s been said there, but it got me thinking about the term Remarkable that Seth Godin coins.  I can’t remember which book that was — I’m not a fanatic follower of Godin, just followed his blog for a while and skimmed through one or two books.

First of all, my understanding of Remarkable is that when people learn of you or your offerings, they get so excited that they can’t stop talking about it with everyone they know.

I do believe it was Godin who said something like “if your product isn’t Remarkable, then don’t spend any more money on marketing.”  Go back to woodshedding — come back when you have something Remarkable.

This, my friends, is definitely my quest.  I hate to sound inmodest, but I always believed that I have something, something rather uncommon.  And by that,  I don’t necessarily mean musical talent, though it’s definitely a part of the picture.  I’m a passionate person at heart and there’s a tremendous energy in how passionately I love some things.  For example, after 20  years, I’m more madly in love with my electric guitar, than ever.  It just keeps surprising me — for such a long, long time, I feel like I’ve been suppressing my love of playing the guitar.  Why?  There are many reasons, but one of them is that there are so many guitar players — and so many of them Great and Remarkable — that I can’t believe that a wee little me can possibly have anything else to offer.  I realize that I am perfectly allowed to play it just because I want to, I also don’t think it’s a sin to want what you love so passionately to be something more than just your little fetish/indulgence.  When we love something, we naturally want to share it.

Anyway, I think what makes one Remarkable is often not a singular trait (though some are) but a unique combination/conglomeration of diverse (and seemingly incompatible) assets.   Sivers often talks about a singer/songwriter who is a sailer and writes songs about sailing, for example.  It’s Remarkable music to sailers.  My guess is that that artist never set out going “I bet it’ll be a big hit if I make music about sailing.”  The artist made music that was a natural and honest expression of who s/he is and what s/he loves — and success is a sweet bonus.

Hmm, as I think about it, I don’t think I’m going to hit upon my Remarkability by thinking and consciously looking for that sweet spot where things come together.  That’s not the way to go about it.  I just said it above — I need to seek out Natural and Honest Expression of Who I Am and What I Love.  I hate clichés but “follow your bliss” probably applies here.

By doing so, somewhere down the line, I will hit upon something, a spot — whether it’s a music or a concept or business idea — that will strike a chord.  People’s eyes will light up when they hear about it.  It will be clear and free of confusion.

Then — I will have arrived. I can’t wait.

I’ve said this before and I’m sure this won’t be the last time, but I can’t believe how many people don’t really use their public libraries.

It’s free, people!  Your tax dollars are actually doing something good for you.

As a person who listens more than he reads, I love to browse through the CD section of the library.  Some days I don’t find much I’m interested in, but today I found a good load.  They are:

• The Derek Trucks Band: Already Free
• Chicago Blues Reunion: Buried Alive in the Blues
• The Rolling Stones: Hot rocks 1964-1971
• Bruce Springsteen: Magic
• Staind: 14 Shades of Grey
• The Jimi Hendrix Experience: Live at Monterey
• SlipKnot: All Hope Is Gone
• Sleater-Kinney: The Woods
• Sonny Landreth: From the Reach
• Martin Scorsese Presents the Blues: Son House
• Gary Moore: Bad for You Baby

So they include a health doze of blues.  Being primarily a modern rock guy, I tend not to discover any blues records I like, unless I can check them out and live with them for a while, and the library is the perfect place for that.  I discovered some albums there that I would have never encountered otherwise.

Plus, I just put a hold on Ignore Everybody by Hugh MacLeod.  It’s book that my hero Derek Sivers is enthralled in right now.

So, what are you waiting for?  Go hit your local library, see what you can dig up!

This is a blog response to my hero Derek Sivers’ recent post What do you hate not doing?

1. I hate not playing my guitar to make up new music. That’s really the heart of what I like to do.  I’m a guitar-based “make-uper” of songs.  Every time I pick up a guitar, I can come up with at least one cool bit that can be used in a song somewhere.
2. I hate not being in touch with a big picture. I am obsessed about big pictures.  Life plans, career visions, big dreams.  I always look forward to my peer-mentoring sessions with my collaborators, because those are my dedicated time for talking big pictures.
3. I hate not talking to people about big pictures. I could care less about the weather or what you had for lunch.  If you come up to me and say “hi, my name is Tom, and the dream of my life is to go around the world in a yacht,” that’s the stuff that turns me on.  Let’s talk about your secret ambitions and cure for the world’s problems.
4. I hate not seeing my family.  Every once in a while I have days where I leave before my family wakes up, and gets home after they go to bed.  I hate those days, and I don’t have them often at all.

Wow, I can’t think of much else I can’t live without.  I really don’t need much.

What about you?

I’m a firm believer in Kevin Kelly’s theory on 1000 true fans.  But while that seems totally attainable, even 1000 can seem like an overwhelming number when you’re getting started.

Just as a marathon starts from the first step, it helps to think small, especially at the beginning, which is the hardest.  Let’s say 100.  Do you have 100 true fans?  It’s OK if you don’t.  (I don’t, myself)

How about the first 10? 20?  Just shrink your view to the point where you can confidently go “yes, I have them.”  It’ll give you a positive energy to focus on what you have, instead of what you don’t.  That’s a good starting point.

Then from there, you can set the next goal, whatever is the reasonable, attainable number above where you are.  I’m going to pick 100 for myself. I’m not going to worry about dominating the world.  I’m not going to worry about making a living.  I’m not even going to worry about making a profit.

I’m going to focus on building a group of 100 people who believe in my music.

It’s still a tricky proposition.  It’d be much easier if I said 100 people who believe in me.  I have a long history of great relationships where people like and appreciate what I do — and they recognize goodness in what I have to offer.  However, my music is a separate entity from me — or should I say, me as a recording artist — and I haven’t quite figured out how to build relationships through that role/persona.

It’s even trickier because my music is a type where people expect a band, not just a single artist, to be behind the music, and traditionally that type of band builds audience by a lot of gigging and touring, which is a method I am intentionally downplaying as of right now because of the strain it will create to my family life.  It’ll make a bit more sense if I were primarily a folk singer/songwriter or electronica artist, but alas — my love lies deeply in modern progressive rock/metal.

I want to explore a different path, one where a 30-something musician can pursue without straining his family’s relationships or finances.

I released my first album in 2007 and did a modest campaign on MySpace for a year or so, where I got burned out and took a detour to professional blogging for a while.  I do wish if I had read the notion of 1000 fans when I started, but nevertheless, the blame is squarely on my shoulder for promoting myself with unsustainable/ineffective methods and letting myself burn out.

So this time, with my gaze on more attainable goal and much better awareness of both my own muses and the reality of online promotion, I’m setting out to figure out how to win the first 100 true fans as a recording artist.

Here are a few tid bits of wisdom I gained so far:

• Real life connections are 10x stronger than online ones.  That’s why gigging and meeting people face to face is the better method, if you can sustain it.
• You have to be aware of what people want.  It may not be the same thing as what you want to give them.
• Building a fan base is about building a community.  Music is the starting point and the glue.
• Persona/branding is important, and it’s hard to get rid of one if you build it the wrong way.  Don’t muddle your picture by being too many things (note to self. )
• Derek Sivers is my hero.