I got a call asking me if I wanted to organize a beat battle with very little notice.
I said yes.
As I write this a lot of the details are still foggy but there should be 12 people down to participate. There is still marketing and other things to bang out quickly. When this event goes off on the 17th of May, one day before my PorchfestNDG performance, there will be a cool sense of pride in my soul for another random accomplishment on my belt.
The path to autonomous revenue lies in proving I can pull stuff off.
This time around instead of representing my own brands, I’m helping others achieve their goals.
The experience/reputation gains will only unlock the path to my future goals.
Far too often in my past I was presented with opportunities I let hesitation ruin.
Even a smidge of doubt can kill a moment
One time someone worth a lot of money invited me to a Rosh Hashanah dinner.
I had expressed that I lacked Jewish family to celebrate with, and at the time I was curious about my heritage.While that one dinner probably wouldn’t have changed a lot for me, being in the presence of his home may have inspired me.
He extended his arms and my first thought was to think about how hard it would be to get home after.
Now in my 30’s I’m aware that paying for a taxi (it was pre-Uber) home would have been worth it.
Later on this person ended up offering me mentoring sessions that really shaped how I approach my content empire today.
I often think back and wonder if my 22 year old self going to that dinner would have served as a catalyst. Or maybe I would have gone and nothing changed. Either way, the second I doubted it, he rethought it as well.
I ended up going home alone because I didn’t say yes.
You don’t need to know how to do something to start a project
It’s often our fear of making a fool out of ourselves that prevents us from taking on the unknown.
In truth you may look dumb if an idea doesn’t manifest as you expected.
However the real ones are going to respect you for trying and failing, even as they clown on you. No one that achieved success did it without failing a few times along the way. Each road bump teaches something that is used to be more prosperous next time.
While you may lack the knowledge to achieve the goals when you say yes, you probably know some people who have the experience you need.
You can buy them a coffee, or flatter them, and chances are they will help you.
Most people love the idea of teaching others when their expertise is respected.
As you go around asking for help, people will say yes and you should track those people. All of a sudden your solo adventure gets a foundational team of those who want to see the project succeed. It’s worth looking into project management a bit, but really all projects start with some research.
What’s important is you say yes when the opportunity appears, without hesitation.
People don’t give you chances to win randomly, you probably are good enough
Every single time someone has trusted me with something important, they had some commentary on why they trusted me.
They had seen some attributes about how I operate in life that convinced them I could handle the situation. My reputation, built via the sum of my actions, showed various gatekeepers that I bring something of value to the table.
The more you deliver when people trust you, the more you end up being trusted with bigger things.
The more expensive something costs, the less random it is you were chosen as the instrument of success. People see your track record and are giving you a chance to prove yourself. At this point, it’s on you to step up.
Any doubt you have is misplaced, unless folk are acting on fake information.
If you promised you could do surgery and never went to med school, that could be a problem. If you self produce podcasts and someone thinks you can throw a beat battle, jump at it.
The beat battle not going well is fine as long as the way you conduct yourself in the process is professional.
Always communicate truthfully when you mess up and people will still trust you.
Trust is only lost when you completely drop the ball over gross negligence or you lie.
So say yes, regardless of the bag (at first)
Don’t be afraid of saying yes to free work
Inevitably some of that free work turns into paid opportunities.
As an example I did several stage managing gigs for no cash. I have worked behind the scenes to coordinate events where I made no money. I also threw my own events, where in fact I lost a bunch of money.
That being said, the last event I threw for myself was profitable.
It took 7 events, but through our failure we figured out a way to make it work.
Between the willingness to help out for clout points and the willingness to lose my own money, certain folk look at me as reliable.
Whether or not that is factual is up to debate, many people would discourage you from trusting me.
Both opinions of me are probably right.
Sometimes I say yes and my passion is there. Sometimes I say yes and regret it. Either way by saying yes often enough you’ll start to learn when to say no.
It’s probably not a bad idea to accept some gigs like stage manager/host for free if you’ve never done them before. See how it goes. Test the waters.
What’s important to remember is that the people you say yes to for free work, will remember you first when there is paid work.
Life is nepotistic.
Keep saying yes and one day the paid gigs will be in your face
Lately new opportunities are opening up before me.
There is a lot of money out there to get and once you start saying yes it will manifest for you.
The biggest thing about the yes mentality is attracting other people who want to make stuff happen. The more go-getters you surround yourself with, the more opportunities to make other people money appear.
When you make people around you money, somehow money ends up in your pocket too. The question of value is often a question of how much money you can make someone else.
Identify people who are successful that you want to be around and find out what they need help with. No matter what the task is, be willing to say yes and show you are down to help them. Then, with their success, they will remember you when the time comes when something profitable you desire appears.
I’m saying go kiss ass with your grunt work if it’s about working for an industry leader.
Maybe had I gone to the Rosh Hashanah dinner I would have been able to help that person with something that would have changed my career.
In the meantime I encourage you to say yes to people who need you, especially when it’s boring.
Live Long and Prosper Everyone
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