Finding A Mentor & Networking :: Producer's 20/20 Vision

Hi guys, hope everybody's well. I want to talk about networking and finding a mentor, and these are two topics that are very near and dear to my heart. Um, this is one of those industries where who you know is as important as what you know. Relationships really matter. In the music industry. So as you're coming into this industry, it would be really, really, really helpful for you to network with some folks that are at a level higher than you're at, a little more advanced than where you are. And when you're looking for a mentor, you want to find somebody that excels in Areas where you need help or you need guidance. So if the business side of what you're doing is kind of weak, then you want to find a mentor that has a good sense of the business side of being a producer. If you are really great on the business side and you just really need to up your game a little bit in terms of being a producer, then you want to find somebody that's excelling on the creative side and that can help you. Um, in terms of networking, you always want to network with people that are either at your level or at the next level up from you because you want to learn from them and you want to learn from their experiences. So for example, if you're a producer and you're trying to get placements and you're not quite at a point where you can get placements placements, it would probably be really helpful for you to network with some producers that are already selling tracks and that have already made income in, in track placement, because they can give you insight and some pointers on how to do what you need to do. So for me, I also, I like to network with everybody. I like to network with people that are a level above me, um, at the same level that I am, and even a level below me. Because I just feel like somebody that's coming up and that wants to be in the position I am is going to have a different set of experiences and different knowledge than I was able to ascertain when I was coming up. So there way smart in areas that I'm not. And for me, I'm always trying to be better at what I do. I don't really venture very far out of my lane. I kind of do the same things day in and day out because I just want to become the best at what I do. So I tend to interact with people that are equally as good as I am that are coming up under me, and people that are better than me. And those are the 3 types of people that I like to learn from. I'm not somebody that's afraid of not being the smartest person in the room. In fact, to be honest with you, I'm rarely the smartest person in the room, but I am smart enough to learn from the people around me, to ask a lot of questions, and to understand how others are succeeding so that I can follow their lead. And the great thing is other people have bumped their heads so that I don't have to. I've bumped my head so that you don't have to. And that's always the goal. If we can all share information with each other, we can all get better at what we do, and we can all sharpen each other, sort of like steel sharpen steel. So The best advice that I can give you in this relationship industry is to build great relationships. Find a mentor that's strong in an area where you need to be stronger and build relationships with people that you can learn from and people that you can also give back and, and teach so that you're learning stuff as you're teaching them stuff that you already know. Lastly, the last thing that I want to say about finding a mentor is don't just reach out to somebody cold and say, "Hi, you don't know me, but you should mentor me." Mentoring is not a position that you're looking for resumes for, right? A mentor is somebody that you know that can benefit you and you want to interact with them. You want to build a relationship with them. You don't want to just randomly pick somebody off of the internet and say, oh gee, this person should be my mentor. They're not going to see the value in that. They want to— they want to interact with people that they're comfortable with and that they feel they can offer value to and that can offer value to them. So I get so many people that send me emails saying I want you to mentor me. And it's funny because when I start to ask them questions, I realize that they don't even know what the fuck it is that I do, but they just want me to mentor them. And that's crazy because you should really find somebody that is doing either what you want to do. And in order to, to know what that, what, what that person's doing that you want to do, you actually have to know what they're doing. You got to have some understanding of what it is that they do. But really finding somebody that has a skill set that you're trying to learn or you're trying to sharpen within yourself is ideal. And when you interact with that person and they grow a little bit comfortable with you, that's when they can become a mentor to you. So I hope this is helpful. Network, mentor, go to as many industry events as you can. I know it's a little hard right now because of COVID so there's so much stuff online. There's so much free stuff online, like, I wish I had more hours in the day. I've been, um, texting the folks that are in my inner circle on my, um, community phone text list. I've been texting them different, um, free panel discussions so that they can become part of the learning experience, because the more you learn, the better you're going to get at what you do. And if you want to become part of my, um, text list, you can text me at 404, um— oh God, this is where I have to remember the number— 404-207-1907. That's not it. Um, I'm gonna put it underneath here so that you can— because I don't want you texting the wrong people. But definitely send a text and join my list, and I'm happy to inform you about all of the educational events that are coming up, especially the free ones. Okay guys, thanks for tuning in. Bye!