It’s easy to get frustrated by facebook.

You scroll through your feed, and it seems like everyone in Nashville is:

“Writing a hit with ___ today!”

“Listening to new mixes – they sound awesome!”

“Just booked a show in ___!”

“Just got a cut today- wish I could tell you who, but I will soon!”

And it may all be true. I try to listen to my better angels and be happy for the success of others, even when I’m not getting as many cuts as I want.

But just remember- you only see what other folks WANT you to see. Certain people are going to overhype everything in an attempt to fake it till they make it. Others are overconfident or excited and really think every song they write is a hit. Others are so insecure that they feel they have to make things sound better than they are so they don’t get outted as the frauds they fear they are. Others are completely honest, but they only post the positive things.

All this can lead to the false impression that everyone is on the fast lane of success while you can’t get out of the garage.

So, how do we avoid falling into the facebook fantasy? First of all, don’t spend too much time on it. There’s probably something better you can do with your time, anyway. (Yes, I’ll post this to my facebook page, and I’m well aware of the irony.) Secondly, realize that the truth behind most of those posts is probably:

“Writing a hit with ___ today… and my publisher probably won’t even like it so it’ll never even get demoed!”

“Listening to new mixes- they sound awesome… and every label will pass on the song at least twice!”

“Just booked a show in ___ … and after gas and paying the band, it’ll cost me $100!”

“Just got a cut today- wish I could tell you who, but I will soon… as I google them because it’s some no-name indie artist that probably won’t even pay mechanicals on the 1,000 units they’ll print, anyway!”

While that’s kind of a fun game, don’t be a hater. But just as importantly, don’t let facebook make you hate yourself.
Now, if you’ll excuse me… I need to go write a hit and listen to some sweet new mixes.

God Bless,

Brent