I’ve got a lot of ideas bouncing around in my head.  Some are pretty solid while others are still blobs of unformed thought.  Regardless, I have had a difficult time in the past trying to make something out of these ideas.  I would wait on them (or forget about them altogether) while someone else accomplished them before I did.  This was extremely frustrating.  I didn’t get frustrated with that other person that did it before me; I got frustrated with myself for not devoting the time and effort to that one, singular idea.

My wife is always right alongside me, hearing my crazy ideas and business plans as I spout them out at the most random times.  I think she might have grown tired of them which led her to make a fantastic suggestion:

Use an “idea journal” to keep track of all my ideas and thoughts.

Genius!  I am now able to jot down that million-dollar idea that I got after talking with someone about an issue at their company, or in the middle of taking a shower. (I come up with some weird stuff at some random times.)

With an idea journal my ideas have started taking much more shape and are taking off in their own directions.  Without this outlet I’d still be tossing them around in my head instead of holding brainstorming meetings with other people.

Shortly after starting my idea journal, I realized that I was still not able to actually accomplish any of them; I was only able to keep track of them.  This prompted me to scrutinize how and on what exactly I was spending my time.  I am still in the process of this evaluation and am always trying to improve the use of my time to better facilite the cultivation of my ideas and projects.

I’ve started implementing the following habits that have helped me increase my productivity:

1.  Limit your interaction on multiple social networking sites.

This could very well be the biggest timewaster of them all.  Facebook.  Twitter.  LinkedIn.  MySpace.  Four Square.  Ning.  And the list goes on and on.  A lot of the data is duplicated from one site to the other, which leads to overlaps that could waste more time.

I evaluated what I used (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, and Foursquare) and how/why I used them.  This evaluation led me to to a 30-day break from Facebook and delete my Foursquare account altogether.  My time spent on MySpace is very, very minimal (though I make plans to interact more but never do), and Twitter is one of my main sources for gathering news and local updates from businesses and individuals.  It’s easier to sift through Twitter than it is Facebook.  LinkedIn is another site that I use with minimal time spent on updating.  I’ll do the occasional search for jobs and gigs in the area, but this is time spent being more productive than it is wasteful.

Do you have to completely give up one or the other?  This is up to you.  For me, I don’t get enough value back from Foursquare to justify the time spent interacting with it.  Maybe you do get a lot of value out of it.  Free wine or parking?  Each service varies from person to person and how they use it, so there is not definitive answer.  I do believe, however, that as a whole we’ve become infatuated with the newest services popping up and trying to be beta testers and early adopters.  For the record, businesses need to engage on many different platforms simultaneously in order to best reach the widest audience possible.

2.  Get into a routine.

Even if it means making your coffee at the same time every morning (or programming it the night before) and writing out the next day’s agenda on a real piece of paper.  Sometimes it can be beneficial to abandon technology for simple tasks such as to-do lists and similar items.  I’ve tried many iPhone and Mac OSX apps to help with this but find that I wind up getting sidetracked and eventually waste more time.

My routine is as simple as setting my coffee the night before and then sitting at my desk (not the kitchen table; I believe that your surroundings do affect your ability to focus in on things) to write out my list for the next day.  Otherwise I wind up getting up in the morning and spending 20 minutes trying to lay out my day instead of jumping right into it.  That first 20 minutes could have been spent knocking off an item from the list had I laid it out the night before.

3.  Track your results.

If you make progress on something, make a record of it.  Use Google Analytics to track extremely useful data on your website.  Use that data to make informed decisions regarding your next marketing campaign and where to focus your efforts or which pages to revamp that are not getting hits.

By tracking your progress you are able to look back over time and see how far you’ve come.  You’re able to see what worked and what didn’t.  Those things that didn’t work so well?  You’ll know not to do them again in the same context because you documented it.  Without this information, you might very well do it all over again in a similar scenario and fail again.  We want to avoid this.

Update your ideas and make notes regarding your progress.  If you don’t know how far you’ve come, you run the risk of losing motivation that could otherwise be just what you need to make it over the hump and release your product or service to a new market.

To keep up with me, follow me on Twitter – @josh_walker.  What are some of your ways you improve productivity?  Let’s hear them all.

Here’s my short list.  It is in no way exhaustive, though.  I will be doing more in depth posts on some of these topics in the future, so get the RSS feed now!

6. Have some talent.

You don’t have to be the best, but at least try.  And if you don’t have any talent but have lots of passion, try another part of the music industry like management.  Just because you’re not cut out to be in a band does not mean you can’t have an integral part in the industry.

5.  Create a roadmap of where you’re going and how you’ll get there.

Take out a piece of paper and on one side put “I’m Here”.  On the other side, make a circle with wherever it is that you want to be.  Connect the two with a line and then put hash tags with “checkpoints”: people to meet, certain number of shows to play, marketing goals, etc.

Make sure that you stick to your roadmap.  Otherwise you’re likely to get lost on your trip and wind up playing cover songs in local bars for the next 20 years.  While that may pay the bills, it probably wasn’t the destination circled at the end of your roadmap.

4.  Cut a quality demo of some of your tracks.

You’ll want to put your best foot forward, so only showcase your best material.  Book time at a real recording studio and go into the studio practiced and prepared.  Don’t try to cut corners and do it yourself.  Choose some songs that show your ability.  You never know who you’ll run into that might be interested in your sound.  Speaking of…

3.  Network and surround yourself with other people who are likeminded and serious.

These people may see some potential in you and take you under their wing.  If they see that you are also serious about what you do, you stand a better chance.  Always have business cards and a copy or three of the aforementioned demo with you.  You’ll run into people in the most unlikely of places.  Be prepared.

2.  Run your band like a business, not a party.

Consult with a music attorney (here’s one – Kenan Farrell in Indianapolis) and they will help you determine how to form your business, tax guidelines, help you copyright your songs, and more.  That person can give you great advice on ways to navigate the industry and keep your head above water.  It will be much easier to take care of these details now as opposed to years down the road after things have gotten more complex.

1.  Take yourself seriously.

If you don’t, no one else will.

As I mentioned, that is the short list.  Obviously there’s a lot more to it, but if you start with these points, you’ll be well on your way.  Good music, passion, and persistance are what will get you through.  Knowing people and being in the right place at the right time can also have a helping hand.  That ties right into point #3, so you’re covered.

Go out, make a plan, and drive till you get to your destination.

Cheers,

Josh W.

So far, I’ve found this event to be rather hit or miss.  Some of the workshops have been very watered down with just enough flash and tech talk to get the standard hobbyist interested in buying some new gear.  The Producers Forum, on the other hand, was a panel of Geoff Daking, Fab Dupont, Ross Hogarth, Dusty Wakeman, and Mitch Gallagher.  They went into how they became producers and what all that means to them individually.  They hit on topics such as running a session effectively and how to accomodate artists on a budget.  As a producer/engineer myself, it was great to hear these industry veterans reiterate a school of thought that I already subscribe to.

Things such as:

- Just because you “make beats” does not make you a producer. There is so much more to producing than most people realize.

- Software and hardware are not what make you a good engineer and/or producer. Knowing how to get a particular performance and sound out of an artist is what sets the best apart from the good.

- Avoid mixing with a timestamp. For example, the snare reverb of the 80′s.

- Try to create an environment for the artist. Sometimes this means doing the tracking sessions out of their home town.

These are some points I have always thought to be true.  I realized at an early age that there were people making music and putting food on the table at the same time.  But I knew that if it were easy, everyone would be doing it (and it seems now as though everyone is trying).  I knew that you had to have an ear for the entire process and be able to communicate with all different kinds of people.

This can be a huge downfall for some engineers.  They could care less about the comfort level of the artist.  They just want the person to play so they can record and edit it.  If you can’t effectively communicate with an artist and make them feel at home and comfortable, you will not get the best possible performance out of them.  This ability is what makes a good producer/engineer a great one.

There is a lot that goes into being a successful and appreciated audio engineer and producer.  Always remember that you are never done learning.

So, if you’re looking to get into the audio industry and are not quite sure if it’s for you, shoot me an email.  Or drop by the studio during a session.  And you can always come out to GearFest 2011 next year at Sweetwater.

Thanks for reading another slightly random post!

Cheers,

Josh Walker

*DISCLAIMER* It is always a good practice to make a backup of your calendars.  The reader assumes all responsibility by following the steps listed below and understands that it is their responsibility to backup their files prior to beginning the sync process.

1.  Set up your Google Calendars

- If you don’t already have one, sign up for Google Calendar.  It’s free and easy to use.
- After you’ve set up your Google Calendar, go ahead and create multiple calendars if you’d like.  For instance, make one “Family”, “Work”, and “Church”, etc.

- Click on the down arrow next to one of the calendars and click on “Calendar Settings”
- Next, scroll down to “Calendar Address” and click on the green iCal button.  A dialogue box will pop up.  Make sure you copy the full address here!

2.  Set up iCal on your Mac

- in iCal, go to the iCal main menu and click on “Preferences”.  From here, you’ll click the + sign in the bottom left of the window.

- Under “Account Type”, choose “CalDAV”.
- For your username, use the Google email address that you used to sign up for your Google Calendar account.  The password is the corresponding Google password that you chose.  For the server, use google.com.
- Click “Create”.  You should see some of your appointments populating the calendar at this point (assuming you already added some in Google Calendar).
- Now, click on the “Calendar” menu and then on “Subscribe”.

- In the dialogue box that opens up, paste the address that you copied from your Google Calendar settings.
- Next, click on the main iCal menu and go to “Preferences”.
- Click on the “Accounts” tab and go to the right under “Delegation”; check the boxes next to your Google Calendars so that you can post to them directly out of iCal.  After this, you’re finished with iCal.

3.  Set up iPhone Calendar

- Click on the “Settings” icon.
- Next, open the “Mail, Contacts, Calendars” menu under “Settings”.
- Under “Accounts”, click on “Add Account”.
- Next, choose “Microsoft Exchange” from the very top.

- For “Email”, use the same address that you used for the Google Calendar.
- For “Username”, again, use that same email address.  And for “Password”, use the Google password you set.
- Under “Description”, I recommend labeling it as “Google”.  Click “Next”.
- When the dialogue box pops up, click “Accept” and then put “m.google.com” in the new “Server” field.
- The next menu gives you the option to sync your Google Mail, Contacts, and Calendars.  For the purpose of this article, turn off Mail and Contacts so that we’re only syncing the calendars.

- Now, open Safari on your iPhone and in the address bar type “m.google.com/sync”.
- From here, choose the calendars that you want to sync on your iPhone Calendar and click “Save”

That should do it!  Comment below to let me know if you have any issues, or how easy/hard you thought the whole process was.  Once it’s set up, though, you’ll never have to worry about saying “Let me check my iCal when I get home”.  Do it on your iPhone.  On your Mac.  Or on someone else’s computer with Google Calendars.

We’ve been using Facebook and Twitter now for awhile.  Some prefer one over the other.  Some only use one tool.  Others are addicted to both. (Then there’s MySpace.  Remember that?  Facebook needs to take a hint.  But that’s another post…)

Twitter and Facebook.  They’re two completely different platforms.

Like oil and water, they both have their place.  We use both.  Yet they don’t always mix.  Likewise, Twitter and Facebook are two very different mediums with two very different niches.

Facebook.

When Mark Zuckerberg was at Harvard, he had an idea.

He and three classmates got together and developed their idea into a platform that connected them with their friends.  They kept it exclusive to begin with (you had to have a .edu email address).  This allowed them to test it out and have their ideal demographic figure out how they wanted to use it.  Once they were able to set the standards, they slowly started opening the gates to other people.  This exclusivity only helped to build anticipation (can we say Apple?) for the release of updates and the allowing of everyone to participate.

On Facebook you are able to post native pictures, embed links, write comments and replies, send personal messages, and more.  You can see full conversations at a glance.  Entire photo albums.  All within Facebook.  You aren’t limited too much in terms of content length, either.

An interesting thing has happend with Facebook.  The original users (mostly college students) set the standard methods of use.  After a few years, we’ve seen the way Facebook is used transform into something that it wasn’t originally.  This is most apparent with all of the Farmville and Chef’s World updates you probably see in your Live Feed.  The people that started out with Facebook in its early days are easily frustrated by this and many other little things that have popped up, such as privacy issues.  Yet the new Facebook users have no preexisting concept of how it is supposed to be used; to them, it’s a networking/gaming platform.  Others use it specifically to share photos from family trips.  Still others use it for the messaging and chat.  It’s quickly developing into a catch-all platform where you can do just about everything you need.

These things aren’t necessarily bad.  It’s to be expected with anything.  Facebook started with an idea.  Mark Zuckerberg had no idea what it would become. Evolution and growth.  Adaptation.  These all propel success.

Twitter.

If you can’t adapt to this format, it’s probably because you wish it were more like Facebook.  But it’s not, nor is it supposed to be.  Twitter is a different platform where a different language is spoken.  Hashtags (#), replies (@), and retweets (RT) are just a few items.  Then there’s Follow Friday (#followfriday or #ff) and Music Monday (#musicmonday or #mm).  And the ever popular Tweetups (#tweetup) in their various formats and locations.

Twitter was developed to allow people to communicate and update what was happening in their lives at that moment.  It was not designed as a sales tool for businesses. Too often I see companies just using it to throw out their sales pitch in hopes that people will respond to the call-to-action and buy the product or service. These companies spew out their content without adding value to anything other than their own messages.  It’s a shame to see this misuse of a wonderful communication medium.  To use it effectively, listen more than you speak.  Create relationships.  Build networks.  Engage in conversation. Neither was it designed so much as a communication tool where you see a back-and-forth conversation, though this does happen routinely.  It is more of a tool that helps you propagate your content, ideas, and thoughts to the masses.  Let people know what’s going on.  Quickly and efficiently.

We’ve seen Twitter expand and adapt as well.  From the news anchors using it to update the world to the bands keeping fans posted on show times.  Twitter has helped me gain new real life friends and freelance work.  I’ve been able to meet some really great and interesting people thanks to Twitter.  When I first started using Twitter, I was overwhelmed by the fact that I had 13 followers while these other guys had 5,000 or more.  Then I realized that it’s not about how many followers you have, it’s about the relationships you build.  When people see that you’re using Twitter effictively and unselfishly, they will be more likely to follow you.  Then your numbers go up, and all without the help of a third-party app or bot.

If you’re looking to find ways to use Twitter more effectively and live in the Northern Indiana area, the #nwitweetup is a great place to meet people that are using social media in one way or another.  There are many, many more Tweetups around the country.  I encourage you to find one close to you and see what it’s all about.  It there isn’t one in your area, start one!

That’s about it for this post.  I’d love to hear your comments and experiences concerning Facebook and Twitter.  How do you use these tools?  And remember, it’s not that one is better than the other.  It’s not apples to apples here.  We need to learn how to maximize the effectiveness of each tool while realizing what works on one platform won’t always work on the other.  Now, go take a look at this video by @equalman that shows the magnitude of social media today.

As an Indiana commercial builder, he knows the importance of staying on the forefront of his industry and doing what it takes to keep connected to his potential customer base.  One way he does this is through multiple web sites.  If you’re looking for anything to do with construction, architecture, or the solid waste industries, you only need to visit one website for a Northwest Indiana general contractor.  Here you’ll find links to his blog, www.constructionandwaste.com where you can read about tips, insight, and more on these industries, and you’ll be able to access his site for Northwest Indiana design and architecture company, IN-Cambridge Architects.

If you or a business you know is looking for a company to handle your construction needs, or if you’re just looking for someone with experience to talk to, contact Jeff Eriks and his company one of the following ways:

On the website

Jeff on Facebook

Cambridge Construction on Facebook

Cambridge Construction on Twitter

As usual, thanks for reading!  I hope that I’m able to help expose everyone that reads to some new and useful resources in northern Indiana.

Cheers,

Josh Walker

It seems fewer and fewer people are turning to the Yellow Pages for help and research these days.  Anymore they go online to find what they’re looking for.  Successful people and businesses will go to the internet to be the providers of that information.  And that is exactly what Evelyn Johnston is doing.

If you’re looking for a house for sale in Elkhart, she makes your search that much easier.  Evelyn has put together a fairly comprehensive website that details all of the subdivisions in Elkhart and the homes for sale there.  On her site is a page that lists the local Elkhart schools and links to them as well.  She doesn’t stop there, though.  She also has a listing page for local movie theaters in Elkhart as well as garage sales and more.

I’m always encouraged to see people using technology to their benefit while helping make other people’s lives easier at the same time.  A lot of people think that you only need a website if you’re in the tech industries or build websites.  On the contrary, if you have any sort of information to disseminate, you should consider having a website to assist.

You can contact Evelyn by email at evelyn@evelynjohnston.com to find out more about what she does and how she can help you.

Cheers,

Josh Walker

If you’re online and have any sort of web prescence, you need to understand the importance of search engine optimization, or as it’s also known, SEO.  You don’t necessarily need to know all about SEO, but you should at least know someone who does.  And that person is Nate Findling.

The internet has transformed.  It is changing month by month.  Day by day, for that matter.  And we need to keep up.  If you are looking for a way to maximize your online presence, check out what Nate is capable of.  Todays internet, and our presence there, is much broader than just one url; now, all of our social media activity is a part of who we are online.  Our reputation and legitimacy.  Not all of us have a way with words that communicates our ideals fluently; that’s where a copywriter comes in.  Someone that can take your idea and concept and translate it into an understandable and comprehensible story.

Nate is that guy.  He can help your company or organization really reach your target audience.  In words they’ll understand.  Not only does he write for other people and companies, he’s writing a book of blues himself.  A book about the ups and downs of life, and how he got to where he is.  Where he’s going.  And everything in between.  As an internet marketing specialist for Chicago and Indiana,  he understands the importance of using digital media to help make his publishing dreams come to fruition.  Don’t think for one second that because you’re writing a book for print that you don’t need a solid and sharp online presence.  Let Nate take a look at your situation and set you up for a successful journey.

If you have a website for your company (and if you don’t, you should), you need to talk to Nate about how to maximize the potential of your site.  You, like many others, may not realize the full potential of the content on your site.  Nate Findling can and will.

Again, thanks for reading.  We’re all in this together, so why not take a few minutes every day to get to know those around you?  You never know when they’ll come in handy.  Even if you never need their services or talents, they will bring a little joy into your life that would otherwise have been absent.

Cheers,

Josh Walker

I especially liked the track “This is Twice Now“.  It was a great example of how a piano can be used in rock music without being cliche.  And they don’t overuse it on the album.  When I first heard this song, I was actually surprised to hear the piano take center stage at the introduction.  At the first verse the rest of the band enters and it’s a beautiful balance of instruments and vocals.  The snare drum is a nice contrast to the overall vibe of the song.  It really helps balance the verses.  Right around two minutes the songs pulls back to more of a half-time feel to bring things down a bit and make it more contemplative.  Mindy White’s backing vocals at this point were the right amount of a feminine touch to help bring the song full circle and back to where it started with the soft spoken piano.

Another intersting track is “Hospital.  It has a very ambient, sluggish feel to it.  Leighton shows some of his range, building on the dynamics of the song.  Appearing as a guest vocalist on this track is Aaron Marsh, formerly of Copeland.  There’s just a touch of his influence on this track, helping add to the overall dreamy state. While this track isn’t the most technically difficult for drummer Craig David, he does a great job keeping it simple enough to keep it interesting.  You can tell a musician knows how to make great music when they show tasteful discretion.

Speaking of the drums, Craig’s work on the rest of the album gives the sound a bit of an easy going feel.  There are songs that are quick, but even they have this sense of not caring about what’s happening outside of the music.  His work on this album is one of taste and discernment.  I really think he’s got much to offer, and in holding back at times, he is only showing more of his ability.  I especially like his snare work.  He uses it to help you along with the sway of the music.

The entire group makes it easy to lose yourself in the music.  This doesn’t happen too often anymore.  Many bands find a formula that works and they beat the horse beyond death.  Lydia is able to stay true to their sound on “Illuminate” all the while showing their ability to diversify.  For example, “December” has a feel quite different from that of the rest of the tracks.  But it remains true to the sound of the album.  This track is a bit edgier, all the while still playing to the dynamics of the album.  There is an interesting arpeggio/flange effect during the verse that really helps set the guitar apart.  Then the guitar tracks carry a nice melody line on the chorus, coming together with the rest of the instruments to help solidify the sound.

Lydia will take you high, low, and everywhere in between.   The guitar work of Steve McGraw and Leighton is highly complimentary to Craig’s drumming.  I enjoyed the differences in playing on the track “Stay Awake”.  There was picking, driving choruses, and a subtle use of a wah pedal.  I feel that it can get over used quickly, but found them to really use the wah to add to the song in a minor way. This album shows that as a group this is a rock band from Arizona that is capable of producing intellectual and quality music.

I’d never heard of them till recently, but I’m going to make sure to follow them.  You can follow Lydia on Twitter, become their fan on Facebook, check out the Lydia MySpace, or view the official Lydia website.

Thanks for reading my weekly review.  If you have an album you’d think I should check out, tell me.  Keep checking back to make sure you don’t miss a review.

Cheers,

Josh Walker

I’ve had the opportunity to build and open a recording studio that will not only be used to track and mix bands, but also benefit the local community.  I’ll be using this space to host frequent workshops and seminars to educate and teach young and old alike about music, recording, and managing techniques.  There are many misconceptions and bad habits when it comes to making music; I’m looking to help curb this and fill that void.  There are young kids that have a passion for music as well as older people that have been around and creating music for decades.  I’m looking to foster community and education in the local area while helping artists and bands create the music they love.

I’m also doing artist management for a small venue.  I’ll be bringing in local and regional artists and bands to perform every two weeks.  If you or anyone you know might be interested in performing, get ahold of me.  These performance will include live streaming video and audio during the performance.  The studio is tied into the venue, and I’m offering live recording to any artists that perform there.

I’ll be documenting the progress of the studio as we build.  Right now, we’re in the framing stage with cabling, drywalling, and more.  I’ll be moving in recording gear throughout the next couple weeks along with studio furniture and lighting.  In the coming weeks and months we’ll be painting, applying acoustic treatment to the rooms, and completing the “vibe”.

You can keep checking back to keep up with the progress and see how it’s coming along.  And if you know of any bands that could use my services and experience, let me know.
Cheers,

Josh Walker