My life has been bizarre. It has been a strange kind of progression off the beaten path down an interesting and often surreal avenue of experiences.

At 18 years old, broke, homeless, and with nothing but a small backpack of essential resources to survive on, I fought the current and decided to change my environment and the circumstances I found myself in.

I’d been here two other times by now, (homeless that is) as i was kicked out at 17 and given the big boot into the real world.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this for me!

I wasn’t supposed to be here...

Oh well.

I turned it into an adventure.

I'd never want to have to go do it again, but the things i've learned have been the best education i could have ever 'paid' for.

How to survive with nothing more than what you can carry, how to fit 10 lbs of crap into a 5 lb sack, how to pay attention to detail, how to fully utilize all the elements contained within an MRE, how to write and get your thoughts out of your head and on paper, how to maintain a weapon system, how to write a song, how to mop a floor, how to rely on your self, how to survive when people are shooting at you and trying to kill you, how to operate a gun-truck, how to operate a digital audio workstation, how to set and achieve a goal…

But what I have learned from all of it that frames and underpins the key to success in anything, more so than any other factor I've ever seen is this...

The most effective learning and performance will allows occur when the individual has all the necessary ingredients and resources they need to complete the mission.

Let me ask you a question...

What happens to a plant when it doesn’t receive the proper nutrients required for it to grow strong and healthy?

It will shrivel and wilt, and eventually either die, be stunted in its development, or somehow find a way to receive those required nutrients and recover.

But a plant doesn’t know exactly what it needs, does it?

Sure on some scientific, instinctive level it understands how to execute its functions to do what it needs to once the nutrients required for it to do them are provided… But what’s needed in order for this little plant to grow-is known as a development system, an external dimension-known as the systemic dimension, something outside of the plants control, that delivers the nutrients it needs to do it’s job.

For our plant to become a strong, healthy plant that fulfills it’s purpose in the eco-system, and the universe, God (or the scientific philosophy you believe in) created a development system.

But what does this have to do with Artists, you might be asking yourself?

Well Artists are the same way… They require development and growth, to develop and grow.

But much like the plant, most Artists don’t realize, nor can they communicate what they need in order to do that. At least, at the systemic level.

Most of us will have some idea of something that we “need,” before we can have or do something else. For many Artists this takes the form of funding, new equipment, or other external resources…  These are all extrinsic.

Yet, the problem isn’t usually the lack of resources as much as it is the lack of resourcefulness.

That intrinsic (internal) characteristic is fostered and developed starting as a systemic idea or belief, a mindset. But without the proper systemic “environment” (an idea or belief system/mindset) needed to cultivate those intrinsic thoughts and feelings, the plant, much like the Artist will be fighting a losing battle.

Yet despite external conditions, Creators have the capacity and responsibility to transcend circumstance, conditioning, and programming. Thus, regardless of the reasons, the cause of the problems, and the apparent symptoms, there are some simple facts that clearly present some unacceptable problems. It is up to both you and I to solve them. I commend you for being here, because that means you are taking the right steps to move yourself into your custom made version of paradise that awaits you once you master the skills and mindset required to fully realize it.

How To Perform At Your Best In Your Music Business

What's needed is a career development system that guides you there.

The key to acquiring those habits and skills and fully making those breakthroughs in perspective and mindset comes down to finding/developing an optimal environment and workflow structure for you to perform at your best, AND get the support you need.

This balance of your operational and management workflows prime you to play at your best, to properly test, integrate, refine, recover and master the Main Moves and core processes of your music business.

The development, production, performance, distribution and sales of your unique content and stories.

STEP/Rule #6: Modern Musicians Focus on The CORE to Achieve Optimal WorkFLOW

Rule #6 is what leads modern musicians to optimal workflow, cashflow, and 3D growth that is both grassroots authenticated, and naturally propels efforts and workflow organically.

Effective players, those who’ve upped their game ­remember both sides to this coin. Artistically ­i.e. their craft and content, and Entrepreneurially, i.e ­their fans and career.

Entrepreneurially, we focus on the CORE process for generating and building your fan relationships, The Fan Engagement Cycle. As we’ve already discussed.

Artistically, this means getting to the core of your productivity and achieving optimal performance.

Instead of diluting your efforts and fragmenting your focus, effective players, those who’ve upped their game beyond a basic survival mode of operations... Modern Musicians focus on the core, the main moves, the current mission, project, and/or campaign, and persist in sticking to their roadmap and GPS.

The core also references the several Core Functions and Systems, and areas of your content business to direct your attention to 90+% of the time in order to grow your career, keep yourself sane, and steer you away from the myriad career growth mistakes, or the debilitating creative growth traps that we can all easily slip into, even with the best of intentions.

Modern Musicians commit to becoming masters of their GAME. They see several Core Systems, specific processes and their toolkit, which all boils down to several Core Focus Activities we call our Main Moves... Activities which we will forever seek mastery of.

By simplifying our core focus, we are able to deeper tune into our content, as well as zoom further out and think independent of any one particular platform or format. The structure and simplicity allows us to stay out of the swirling sense of overwhelm and distraction that lures us all into her web, and achieve optimal performance.

This includes mastery of the Modern Toolset. More on that coming up. That’s what you’ll be learning in Rule #7.

The Key To Optimal Productivity and Creativity

There are two components to achieving Optimal Performance.

Optimal Workflow Structure & an Optimal Development Pathway. (W​hich you learned about earlier)

The right strategy, the right focus, the right tools, and the right systems and processes will take your music business to another level. The purpose is to achieve optimal performance by creating an optimal workflow structure where you can integrate your creativity and artistry right into your entire workflow.

Modern Musicians create strong systems that leverage technology in an effective way to support and encourage and incubate potential growth.

It’s all a puzzle. Once you have all the pieces required, and you’ve learned how to connect the dots designing and developing functional and effective processes, It’s like everything syncs into grooves. We just want to make sure you aren’t paving over cow paths and lay down world class tracks ­complete with great habits and a solid workflow doing the most valuable things.

Optimal performance grows from optimal workflow structure.

Having sophisticated systems and processes doing what they could be doing for your career automatically, as well as building and refining an optimal workflow structure is exactly how you free up your energy and focus without worrying about lost opportunities or overwhelming to do lists-­and concentrate more fully on the message and the experience you are delivering. The content and the all important connection with your fans is where I want my clients and students to be 90% of the time.

For most Artists, this is exactly where they’d like to be, and while they seek some outside 3​rd party to indirectly close that gap­, what they don’t realize is that they are on the right track in terms of finding a solution to do more of the things they love-­but they are inadvertently going about it the wrong way.

At first, at the ground level, most Artists are hoping someone with deep pockets will swoop in and take them on a magic carpet ride. What they are unaware of is that what they most likely need is to upgrade from DIY to DIWY, (Do It With You)­ and build the ideal support team and simply a better creative structure.

A better workflow structure, and/or a better environment that supports them and meets all their needs while they grow their career and achieve micro­progressive goals. They’d benefit from the two pieces in the equation for optimal performance. Optimal workflow structure, and an Optimal development pathway.

There are often small­ subtle environmental factors that hinder optimal performance. Optimal performance is the goal. A bad environment. Lack of structure will absolutely hinder your creative output and can often derail or create unneeded friction along the development pathway.