In hindsight, this one really could be filed under pure common sense, but we all make mistakes along the way, it’s how we learn and get wrinkles.

Back in 2005, in the rugged lands of Chicago, I was balancing my life between odd jobs in a recording studio and a copy shop, odd design and web gigs and the ultimate end goal of “making it” as a music producer. I would make beats for a given client, run sessions recording them in the studio, then do graphics work for their projects on the side, then take them over to the copy shop for CD duplication. Then we would talk about websites and show flyers. I was the one stop shop for everything, and was grinding my ass off for “the shot” to “make it”.

And when one came by, I was so wrapped up in my own genius that I totally missed it.

The previous year, I had linked up with Chris Adams, a documentarian and filmmaker in Chi. He’d appreciated some of my beats and had done a little to get my name around, helped me land a couple of placements. He calls me up out of the blue with Very Big News. He knew A Famous Rapper from Chicago who had an entire album leaked online (treachery!) and they needed emergency beats on deck stat. STAT! Chris is a gent, and didn’t name names, but as he had done the video for “Kick, Push” I had a fairly good idea of who he was talking about.

Did I have some fire shit I could get to “his guy” ASAP? Absolutely! This could be greatness!

I jumped back into the lab, looked at everything in the 80%-done-and-better pile, and thought about what could be good for the nameless dude in question. I found a few things I liked, and started noodling. Tweaks and reworks, let’s switch out the hi-hats, fiddly biddly tiddly everywhere. But I had taken my time, and it was a few days before I was able to get back to Chris. And that few days included a weekend… so I should have known by the time I had those tracks together, disc in hand, it was too late. “Nah, he’s good. Found what he needed.”

At the time, I was too wrapped up in my various processes to cut through all of the pride with polish and pull the trigger on something immediately. Four tracks, on a CD, in Chris’ hand within an hour of the phone call. That’s what the situation could have used, and might have lead to other things. All things are clear in the rear view, and I have no regrets, and this particular situation yielded a good lesson for me.

If you do a thing, do it with a sincerity in intent that leaves as little room for self-doubt as possible. Believe in your work even if you don’t believe in yourself. Don’t waste time on the noodly doodly bits — the audience will either understand and appreciate your work or they won’t. Okay, the hi hats may be a little too loud, or even a lot too loud, but it won’t mean a make-or-break difference between someone loving or hating it. Your opening paragraphs might be a bit slow, but the story still demands expression.

Some moments demand speed, the slow hand catches nothing. The Game Don’t Wait.

Another lesson worth keeping from this one, but inter-related… never assume that what you are doing is so important that the world will wait for it. Arrogance and Hubris are wicked and seductive, and will ruin you in the end. Even if you are doing amazing work and you know it, remember to keep the standard of quality first and foremost, keep your head low. Always remain grateful and don’t believe for a second that your seat is guaranteed.