About Being a Good Sellout

Post 333:

            When I was a kid, I remember having to sell crappy merchandise to people to pay for practice time or some such; fairly sure this is a common exercise, undertaken by kids all over the country.

            I thought it was a joke. Being the cynical purebred that I am, I treated the entire thing as a game. I tried on different personalities and invented new stories and fibs to induce people to bend to my will.

            Funny thing—I was good. Really good, in fact.

            I remember going on serious runs. We’d have to work in pairs sometimes, and the guys that were with me didn’t stand a chance.

            Since then, I’ve made six or seven albums, three books, and have to sell myself on stage on an almost nightly basis.

            This, I find much harder.

            Sure, when you’re a kid, people take pity on you and just want to buy you off, make you go away…

            But there is something about dissociating oneself from whatever you’re selling. It can’t be so personal. You’ll be cut to ribbons if every time there’s a rejection, you're stymied from the next turn.

            I certainly don’t have the tried and true answer, but for my next attempt at selling, I’m going to put some distance between me and my work. Though I care deeply, I’m gonna take deep care not to act like it.

            Maybe that’ll work. Or not. Getting things right means tinkering. Or dumb luck. I’ve heard that can be huge.

            Cheers. See you after.