You don’t want to be just good in your craft and career. You want to be GREAT, don’t you? You don’t want to just dabble. You want to leave a big wave, not a ripple. Well, my friend, here are some things you gotta stop doing right now:
#1 SOCIAL MEDIA ADDICTION
We all know this. We wake up in the morning, and the first thing we check is the number of new hearts our latest Instagram post earned overnight. Then we scroll, scroll, scroll until our phone starts to complain that it’s running out of battery. We say “last five minutes” but we all know five minutes could become fifteen or fifty. But it’s just Instagram. There’s Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and oh…our favorite motivational guy just e-mailed that his podcast is now up. Before we know it, it’s 10 am and we’re still in our pajamas.
But then we say “ Welp! We’re artists. We’re not like the 9 to fivers with a rigid routine. Besides, we need to get updated with culture and the latest trends. The internet is the easiest place for this” Uhmmmm…no. You and I truly know that if we want to make great art, we have to get our hands and feet dirty by walking on foot and actually paying attention to things— the good and the ugly, not just the pretty side of things which is what we usually see on these glossy social media apps.
If you have this a habit, if you spend more time tinkering with your online profile than with your guitar or camera, then I’m very sorry my friend, you will not be as great as you want to be. Here are some reasons why: 1. Instead of closing your eyes and looking inward to find your truth, you’ll be somehow influenced to look at the exterior and please the people and follow trends.
#2 BEING LATE!
Sure you show up, but you’re 30 minutes late. You might as well didn’t show up at all. Seriously. This is the number one peeve of almost all professionals out there. This is utter disrespect to the people you’re meeting. Don’t use the traffic or the weather or your busy-ness as an excuse. If you want to make a bad impression, be late. We guarantee you 100% that they’ll hate you instantly. Get rid of this habit. This is not good for your career especially if you’re just starting out.
#3 NOT SHOWING UP.
So you’re an introvert and you cancel on most of your meetings and events because you want to recharge or you are simply not in the mood. However, if you won’t show up, you will certainly miss out on opportunities to meet a kickass producer, an investor, a mentor, or a funder. Get out of that shell and show up. You never know what’s out there until you show up. This is where Woody Allen’s mantra is so useful: 80% of success is showing up. That means showing up to do your work and showing up for possible opportunities.
#4 FOMO mentality.
This is the other extreme of the one above. This is showing up on every single damn invitation just for the fear that everyone’s having fun without us or that there’s this slight chance that we might miss on a good network opportunity. Before you know it, you’re spending more time on these crumbs than actually using your time to do what you have to do–make more art. In everything you show up for, make sure they’re aligned to your big goals only, and not just because you’re scared that everyone’s having fun without you. Let them have fun, you have a bigger job to do.
#5 GOSSIP
Spreading gossip or listening to gossip is a total waste of time and it can harm relationships and your reputation too. Stay away from this useless pastime. Yes, it’s fun and addictive and on the surface, it seems harmless but make it a habit and you’ll start to feel rotten inside. You don’t want to be a gossip. As an artist, this is the last thing you’d want to do. Try not to indulge in superficial stuff and use your time , again, on more important things.
_____________________________________
Unified Manufacturing is an L.A. -based one-stop-shop that offers very affordable CD/DVD/USB replication, custom printing, promotional products, warehousing and fulfillment and many more. If you need an Instant Quote on a project and you want FREE SHIPPING, simply CLICK HERE.
