Brady Helps

From The Alchemist, “The future belongs to God; and it is only he who reveals it, under extraordinary circumstances. How do I guess at the future? Based on the omens of the present. The secret is here in the present. If you pay attention to the present, you can improve upon it. And, if you improve on the present what comes later will also be better. Forget about the future… Each day, in itself, brings with it an eternity.”The future belongs to fate, and fate will reveal herself to us under extraordinary circumstances. But unless that happens, all you have are the omens of now. How you decide and what you do now will open the door to a better future. Each moment brings with it an eternity. I finished reading The Alchemist and there is no better book to start off a year than that. That quote above, whether you believe in a god or not, can quickly set the tone for your day.

Your parents are the child of someone else.The aggressive driver on the road is someone’s child.Your partner is the child of someone.We are all children of someone else.When you frame people in that way, you start to think differently about them. When I think about my parents. I realize that their parents are gone, and would want me to do my best to look after their child. When I think about myself, I imagine my parents want me to do what I can to take care of their child. We are all someone else’s child.

A professional gets things done, serves others, and is compensated for that service. They approach their work with the mindset of “serve”. A professional’s work is art - not just anybody can do it; a professional is not just anybody.A commercial musician is a form of professional musician. They are skilled at playing all forms of music in all kinds of settings. They get compensated for that work. Their work is art because not just anybody can do it - they truly serve.Somewhere in the commercial musician’s wardrobe you’ll find black pants (typically black jeans) and a black shirt. It’s our blue collar uniform. Black-on-black, or “all blacks”, plays two important roles.It reminds the musician that it’s not about them, it’s about who they are a part of. It keeps the audience’s attention on the star. I started wearing this outfit years ago when I desired to be a commercial musician. I would see touring Broadway shows and spend most of my time watching the pit orchestra players - who wore all black - and imagined myself doing that work. It wouldn’t be about me, it would be about what I was a part of. You can wear your “all blacks” any time you want. You can approach your work and life like a commercial musician. Music is not self-service, always play the gig you were hired to play. Serve the show.

You’re allowed to experience anything… if you can sit with yourself and say, “Okay, I’m experiencing that, that’s okay, thank you for the moment, now let’s move on.”

I think another word for design is empathetically creating. It’s building something with intention. Good design keeps the questions, Who is this for and What is this for and Why do they care front and center. Good design is about service.If you’re not a details person, like me, remember that the work you build - that you design - is a service for those you seek to serve; they matter. Don’t skimp on the details.

Pausing to reflect on yesterday, a few days ago, or today.Stopping to breathe and notice our breath.Stopping to realize that we are alive.To notice our hands. To wonder what causes our fingers to move across the keyboard. What’s the force that makes that happen?To hear the clock ticking. Second after second. Moment by moment.Time is the one gift that once given can never be repaid. Stop and enjoy your time a bit more.

When you’re deciding if you’ll move or not, wait. Charlie Munger would tell you to identify all of the external forces at play, and realize that your bias may be leading you astray. Waiting and seeing could be the best course of action.If you’re wondering, I’m fighting an impulse to move the blog to a new provider. Seems silly, and meta, to write a blog post about that. But, how many times do we do things out of impulse? Better to sit and wait.

“‘Once you get into the desert, there’s no going back,’ said the camel driver. ‘And, when you can’t go back, you have to worry only about the best way of moving forward. The rest is up to Allah, including the danger.’” - The Camel Driver, The Alchemist, by Paulo Coehlo. The storm, the desert, the whirlwind, the sea - it’s all the same. A vastness of blended opportunity, stress, threats, and demands. Once you’re in it, your only move is forward. Fortune, your fickle friend, takes care of the rest.

A helpful post for job seekers:You're hearing why, but the question is actually "what"Common interview question: "Why do you want to work here?"The question that's really being asked (most often): "What about us played a major factor in your decision to apply to work here?"The two questions are substantially different.“Why” questions are "judgment questions." They invite you, the interviewee to reflect on your judgments. They're hard questions to answer because who likes to question themselves. They're also hard because it's easy to overshare.“What” questions are easier to answer. "Why is the sky blue" vs "What happens in our eye to cause us to perceive the sky as blue".Here's a framework you can use for prep'ing for that question.Demonstrate you know a bit about the company. Try to understand how they make money, their customer, and read reviews and news.Review the job description and look for VERBS. Why verbs? Because verbs are actions. "What do you want to do with your life?" is basically, "What are the verbs you want your life to be about?" So read the job description for verbs. Are these the verbs you want to be doing at work?Research the hiring manager if you can. Are these people you want to work for? Read their content if they post here. Does it appeal to you?Here's a framework for answering the question.When I decided to apply for ____, it was important for me to consider these factors a, b, and c. After researching your company, it's clear I can achieve "a" through _____ (insert relevant detail about company), "b" through ______ (insert relevant detail), and "c" through _____(you know what to put here).What's the outcome you want?Give confidence to the person on the other end that you know what's important to you, that you believe their company will help you do those things, and that you will create value for them.First posted on LinkedIn 1/5/2023

Tomorrow I need to learn 10-15 songs and be able to play them as I play them all the time. I’m not stressed about it because I have a system for learning.Learning songs is like learning anything - first principles.What is this song about? What is it supposed to do to the listener?How does this song fit into the big picture of the show? How do I contribute to this song? I have to answer those questions before I even touch the instrument. Then, I listen again and ask:What is the form of the song? Verse, chorus, verse? What can I recognize just by listening? Familiar chords? Familiar musical lines? Familiar sounds? What sounds different? Where will I need to focus my attention? What will stretch my skills?Then , I listen again and write.Write out the form.Write out the chords.Write out important notes.Then I learn and play my part.The framework I use helps me learn anything new - music or not. What is this business? How does it make money? How does I help this business generate revenue? How do I help its customers?… you get the picture.Preparing for a gig, for me, is like preparing for work and life. Start with first principles.Understand how things work.Learn and play my part.