The only battle worth fighting is the same now as it ever has been: the one for freedom.
But, I'm not talking about storming foreign shores to bring democracy to some third world hellhole, or setting up puppet governments in the middle of the desert in order to re-funnel oil money in the name of "liberty."
I mean the one for your freedom. Your personal liberation. Your very own independence from the tyranny of wage slavery and modern indentured servitude.
I don't suggest that we should spend our time feeling victimized, or at the mercy of some kind of oppressor- instead, take ownership over the idea that if you're still working a job you dislike for a wage you think is unfair...
and place the blame where it belongs: YOU.
We live in a time of unprecedented possibility.
An individual can have an idea, run it through the legal loopholes in a few hours, start a few social media pages, open an e-commerce site, create digital product, and be doing business at a profit all in the span of the same day.
I know- I've done it for years.
There was a definitive moment, after I made the commitment to be self-employed, burning my ships and safety nets and deciding "this is it."
I'm never going back to work at a "normal" job ever again.
Being self-employed is a bit frightening at first, but it's also totally exhilarating-
your life, your way, your rules, your profit.
Making money from the things you genuinely give a damn about.
And this is the first lesson I want to dig into about going into business for yourself, making money, whatever:
Giving a damn.
See, I never gave a damn about making money.
It was a source of pride to me as a teenager and twenty-something that I was able to get by so easily without having to have what I saw as a "real job," a concept my punk-rock mind equated with dying a slow death.
I played music, lived in a cabin in the woods that I had built with my brother, and bounced at a bar occasionally on weekends to shore up my always-dwindling finances.
As long as I had enough for beers, a little food, and the occasional pair of cowboy boots, I was sitting pretty.
The anarchist writings and lifestyle I was into at the time had me spitting terms like "trading economy," where value was determined by the individuals in a deal, like, "I can trade you a roadkill deer for a 24 pack of Busch" sort of thing.
I was young, I thought I knew everything about everything, and I despised people that would willingly "trade in their hours for a handful of dimes."
I didn’t understand at the time that making money has nothing to do with "working a square job," for one, something I would find out after the reality of debts and bills forced me into the backbreaking labor cycle of living paycheck to paycheck while working from sun-up to sundown doing tree-work or heavy construction.
I didn’t understand that money isn’t something physical or tangible, really, something that you trade time in exchange for like gold coins or a sack of grain.
It wasn’t until later, when I grasped the idea of money as an abstract, something that comes as a side effect of doing what you truly desire, that I started really "earning."
What I did give a damn about was doing something that found to be meaningful, enjoyable, something with heart, something I could sink my teeth into on a spiritual level.
There was a critical moment for me, as I was on tour with an older musician, who was sipping cheap bourbon out of a plastic jug in the center console of the tour van.
What he told me, or the gist of it, was that making money isn’t a dirty act.
It’s people wanting to give you something for what you’ve provided them with- a feeling, an experience, a good time, whatever-
They’re handing you something out of reciprocity, saying, "here, let me give you this, I appreciate you."
Most of the money we made on the road was *not* from guarantees provided by club and bar owners- they’re a tight fisted lot.
We made our money in tips, and through hustling whatever merchandise we had with us at the time- the only way you can earn that, is to connect with people, to discover what it is they need, and to give them that.
Whether that’s reading a crowd and knowing when to play a sad song or a fast one, who you need to look in the eye when you deliver a certain line, whether people would appreciate a good story about now, or if you should just shut up and keep hammering it out- it’s about understanding that people seek value.
They seek experiences. They are looking for stories. They’re looking for something to feel, something to believe in.
If you’re someone who can honestly provide people with the solution to a problem they’re having, and that solution is something you already want to be doing, you’ve made it, and you’ll never be broke again.
It doesn’t matter what that is- some people need shelter, and you love to build things.
Others need to taste good food, to take someone out for a memorable dinner, whatever- you love to cook and provide an atmosphere.
The point is: you don’t have to give a damn about making money, not really.
You just have to give a damn.
You have to give a damn about what you love doing enough that your passion drives you to be great at it, and then you gotta put it out there.
The money will come.
Too often, folks put the cart before the horse- they want to make money NOW, NOW, NOW. They put something together that they think can hustle a buck, and that’s fine.
For a while.
But they’re missing what’s most crucial: if you don’t love it, your lie will find you out.
Focus on that- focus on what you care about.
It’s a great big world. Other people care about it, too, you can bet on it.
And if you’re genuine, and you’re great at whatever it is, they’ll throw that $20 down in your guitar case and say "this was really an experience. I appreciate you."
This concept is worth thinking about deeply before starting your own brand or business.
Take a few days to meditate on this, start jotting down what ideals, pursuits, hobbies, pastimes, or philosophies you truly care about.
Write them all down.
This is important, and it's the first step on the road to distilling who you are into something you can use to not just "pay the bills," but to live free, to win the war against the drab, the boring, the enslaving.
So put those pens and paper to work, and we will continue from here.