When I was working in music supervision for feature films, I had an awesome boss who taught me a lot. I wasn’t always fond of how he did it, but it’s made me a much better employee. The main things were to pay close attention to detail, exhaust all possibilities and be really nice. If you can’t pay attention to detail, it’s a non-starter. In order to be good at any job, you can’t let details slip through the cracks. We all make mistakes, but there’s no worse mistake that the kind that result from carelessness. Working as a Mac consultant comes with a lot more pressure than my other job, believe it or not. It’s all eyes are on you. Sometimes the client is literally watching everything you do. If you miss a detail, either the client will catch you or you’ll realize what you missed after you’ve spent too much time diagnosing a simple issue. Missing one small detail can make the difference of solving a problem in 1 hour or 4 hours.

I used to think that checking things online or calling someone else that might know a little more than I do would come off as weak to a client. Boy was I wrong. Clients are impressed by it. You know where to look and who to call to solve a problem. Having a second opinion is always nice too. I’ve even called Apple a few times when I’ve gotten real stuck. And the client was happy I did. You have to exhaust all possibilities when you’re trying to problem solve. There’s nothing worse that saying you can’t figure out why a computer won’t power up and then a client notices the power strip isn’t turned on. Many times, it’s the obvious stuff.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from working with some of the biggest egos in the music and movie business, it’s that being kind, saying thank you and smiling will get you really far. My Mac clients are no different. I would say that the vast majority of Mac users are cool, creative and hospitable people. When you’re kind in return and stay positive even when you’re sweating bullets, it can make a big difference. They may even buy you lunch or dinner.

Sometimes I forget a lot of this stuff when I’m doing my regular job. Doing a little consulting on the side helps keep my brain working and helps me think more critically when I’m at the office. Just like anything, you gotta practice to stay sharp and if practicing means I can make a few extra bucks, then I’ll be doing as much of it as I can.

I don’t think my parents were ever really happy with the choices I made once I left the house and went to college at the University of Kansas. My dad always encouraged me though. My hunch is that he didn’t share all of the details with my mom, who was either more disapproving or just quiet about her disapproval. Either way, I didn’t really talk to her about any of it. I always talked to my dad, particularly about the music business. My dad was pretty much responsible for getting me interested in music at a very early age. Instead of fairy tales, he would tell me stories about Barry Gordy starting Motown or Quincy Jones producing a hit record with Michael Jackson. I assume he read books about these people, but now that I’m thinking about it, I never saw any books on them in the house. But there were lots of records to listen to, and I listened to all of them over and over.

As I grew up, I became obsessed with music. Whether it was listening to Casey Kasem’s American Top 40 or buying punk rock records at Streetside Records in Overland Park, Kansas, I knew I wanted to be a part of music. Since I wasn’t a talented musician and couldn’t sing, I decided that I was going to work behind the scenes. It all culminated when I went off to college and Lawrence, Kansas was probably one of the best places to be in the 90s if you weren’t in Seattle or Athens. I started working at KJHK in the production department and eventually worked my way up to hosting “Plow The Fields,” which was the local music show. I was also a college marketing rep for Sony Music and started as an intern at Red House Recording Studio (now Black Lodge Recording), but what I really wanted to do was to start a label. I asked my dad if I could take some money from my life savings account and with that deposit and an amazing band called Action Man, I started Barber’s Itch Records.

In 1995, I went to New York for CMJ. My dad was always urging me to meet with people when I went to New York, but I didn’t have any connections. My dad was active in the ACLU and served as the President of the affiliate board. At some point, and I can’t remember when, he testified as a psychologist against the PMRC and if memory serves (and it may not), that’s where my dad met Danny Goldberg. I’m sure he talked his ear off too, but he also used this meeting as a way to get me a meeting with Danny in New York, which he did. I vaguely remember meeting with Danny, playing him some music and seeking his advice on how to get acquired by a major or get my artists signed to Mercury. I think the meeting lasted all of about 15 minutes, but I was anything but discouraged. He told me to work hard, get my music out to as many people as I could and only then might something happen, but chances weren’t good. And that small chance was what drove me to keep at my little label. I didn’t sell many records, but it was an experience that I will never forget and it helped me decided what I was going to do for the rest of my life.

I’m a week in to the workout and while it’s not easy, it’s pretty fun to do and is a great, energetic start to my day. I’m taking a photo of myself after each workout, and will do one of those fancy time-lapsed movies at the end of the 6 weeks. Hell, maybe I’ll go for 200, but I don’t wanna get to far ahead of myself. If you’re curious about what I do pushups to every morning, my choice:

The Black Angels - Directions To See A Ghost
Download from Amazon

In addition to the pushups, I bought a new skateboard over the weekend and plan on skating around Hollywood a little during lunch and to blow off some steam during the day, when possible. It’s a Mark Gonzalez Krooked deck with Independent trucks, Bones Swiss bearings and Spitfire wheels. After years of not skateboarding following a nasty fall, I’m super rusty, but getting my confidence back little by little.

I may need to add another activity in there somewhere, but I’m totally determined to get in shape without stepping foot in a gym.

8/20 San Francisco, California - The Independent (w/ Two Gallants, Howlin Rain, we have a large guestlist so check in with me!)
8/23 San Francisco, California - Outside Lands Festival (w/ Tom Petty, Ben Harper, M. Ward, Devendra Banhart) San Francisco, California
8/24 Sacramento, California - Old Ironsides (w/ Parson Red Heads, An Angle)  Sacramento, California
8/26 Seattle, Washington - Tractor Tavern (w/ Parson Red Heads, Elder Mason)
8/27 Salem, Oregon - The Space (w/ Parson Red Heads, Easterly)
8/28 Portland, Oregon - The Artistery (w/ The Parson Red Heads & Oh Darling)

Related: Check out their photos from the recent European MMJ tour and pick up Ghost Notes at Amazon.com if you don’t have it.

Deastro Keeper’s
I originally heard Deastro on the free and absolutely amazing Ghostly Swim compilation. The whole thing is pretty stunning and you can’t beat the price. The Deastro album is only available through eMusic for the time being.

Fleet Foxes Fleet Foxes
If you haven’t heard of these guys yet, you probably will at some point this year. They get compared to Band of Horses and My Morning Jacket, but that’s only because of the lead singer’s voice. The similarities stop there. This band must be experienced live as well. They put on a Majestic show.

Jubilee In With the Out Crowd & Rebel Hiss
Jubilee hasn’t released their debut album yet, but that didn’t stop me from giving them the best $20 I’ve spent this year. If the singles are any indication of what’s to come, this band could be on their way to greatness, which they deserve. Powered by Topspin, this is some of the best rock I’ve heard in a long time.

KiD CuDi A Kid Named Cudi
One of the best hip-hop mixtapes I’ve heard all year and another free album that I would happily pay for. Save your money for his debut, which is due later this year. Everyone is gonna be talking about this dude.

The week flew by. It was an exciting first week of getting acquainted with the culture at Buzznet, how things worked, what things weren’t working, looking at comps of the new layout for the site, sitting in on a few meetings, getting to know people, trying to remember names, showing people qik, Yahoo! Live, setting up promotions for bands on Buzznet, catching up with label people and lots of other stuff. One of the great things about working at a startup is that your job title doesn’t necessarily reflect what you do. You do 3, 4 or maybe five different jobs and it’s fun. I look forward to going to work in the morning and I’m fortunate to have been able to say that for the past few years of my life. It feels good to be excited about work and starting something new is always fun.