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
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Love it! Thank you. Hope you do write a hit today, and thanks for keeping it real. It does get frustrating at times to feel like you’re “this close” to the right song, right connection, etc. But it really is about the journey, too. My goal (your blog helps remind me) is to be patient … and thankful for the many opportunities that do come my way.
Best to you, Brent. Enjoying the blog.
Casey Penn
YES! Thanks Brent. I can’t stand those I wrote with so and so, self congratulatory posts. Keep up the good/real work!
Amen, just keep working hard at your craft and enjoy doing it.
This timly for me. I was just doing this the other day. Feeling down about not being where I want to be. You put it into perspective. Thanks Brent.
Hey Brent!I have e-mail ( don’t do Facebook or Twitter or Instagram).I write Christian rock, mostly.Would your MvR VIP services match my skills? I recently lost my mentor, Cindy Wilt Colville, to cancer.And, at the moment, I feel like a rudderless ship. Any information you can provide will be greatly appreciated.Oh, by the way, I could find no MvR VIP link on my post. Thank you,t
tmv
Date: Mon, 22 Sep 2014 10:59:42 +0000 To: wvesnesky@msn.com
I’m sorry to hear about the loss of your mentor, Cindy.
The MvR VIP list is really just subscribing to the Man vs Row blog. It’s delivered to your email inbox so you never miss a post. Additionally, it adds you to a private email list where I share things to ONLY that group. These benefits include various discounts on products and services, extra content/giveaways, and early bird sales of my online workshops. There is no cost to join the list. The subscribe or join button should be on the front page of manvsrow.com – on desktops, it’s in the upper right corner. On mobile devices, it should be down at the bottom somewhere.
The other products and services I offer are open to everyone and can be found at http://www.manvsrow.contentshelf.com. I hope that helps clarify things for you.
God bless.