Mind Your Own (Sync) Business
3 Habits You Need For Success In Music Licensing
The fastest way to crash and burn in music licensing is to worry about what everyone else is making. Or giving away your creative time, energy, and emotions to distractions that have no bearing on your success in music licensing.
If you’re not pouring everything you’ve got into the music that YOU make daily, then the results will show (and continue to disappoint you). You only have so many f*cks to give – And, starting today, you need to protect those precious f*cks. How? By minding your own f*cking business.
These days, it’s not enough to stop comparing your work to everyone else’s. It’s not enough to accept grace and reject jealousy when you see their work and wonder why the hell you suck so bad. These things DO NOT work longterm if you don’t first overhaul your mental foundation and focus.
Your mental focus is everything when it comes to the way you create valuable music with a purpose. ✅
The old saying goes: “The way you do one thing is the way you do everything.” This is 100% true. Creating your best work while always looking over your shoulder to see who is catching up is an oxymoron.
Did Michael Jordan look at all his opponents as he flew through the air? Nope. He locked his sights on the basket to dunk the way he did. Google Image it to see his determination and focus for yourself. 🏀
The M.Y.O.B. Test
Robert Kiyosaki says to Mind Your Own Business when it comes to building an asset column that produces an income while you sleep. That is, focusing on improving and expanding the economic engine of your lifestyle. In sync licensing, your asset column is your music catalog. Focusing only on building and growing your own catalog carves your path to the income you desire.
Let’s run a little M.Y.O.B. test:
How many things do you have an opinion about throughout the day?
How many things bother the hell out of you throughout the day?
How many times do you wish the world were different so that you could get things done easier or faster?
How many times do you get jealous over “their” music or ad placements?
If you can come up with an answer other than zero for any of the above questions, then you’re not minding your own business in the way you could be. Keep reading because you have a problem that needs solving if you’re to make a damn salary from licensing. 👇
People who make it in sync licensing are not musical geniuses
In fact, some haven’t even graduated college with a music degree. They are just really, really freaking good at getting clear about what they want. Then they figure out how they’re gonna get there, and then they get it. Their moves are none more “special” than your moves. There is you… And then there is everyone else. There are your thoughts… And then there are everyone else’s thoughts.
Luckily, music licensing is a business that caters to YOU more than it does anyone else. Music licensing caters to YOUR music more than it does anyone else’s. Am I making sense? You have the biggest advantage in sync when you double-down on YOUR music, YOUR goals, and YOUR income (in that order).
The dominos fall like this:
Your music comes first, always. Capturing ideas, gathering inspiration, collaborating with new people – It’s all part of a grand plan to increase the licensing power of your tracks. Without it, you pull in $0 / month.
Your goals drive your catalog growth. Having clear targets that you aim to hit is the secret to improving in all ways every single day. More tracks = More chances to license. More collabs = More irons in the fire.
Your income is your only competition. No one will set the bar faster, easier, and more indelibly than your income as it stands today. Your income increases when you increase. 🙌
You can look at these three aspects of Minding Your Own (Sync) Business as the high-level view. They are the foundation for your success in sync and meant to be no-brainer pillars to your success in sync. But what about the low-level, detailed grinding you need to do every day to keep the dream alive?
If you’re going to take a road trip, you’re going to need two things: A car to get there and gas to power the car. If your music, goals, and income are drivers to success, then you need a way to power them. Read on. 👇
3 ways I practice minding my own (sync) business
✅ TRACKING
I’m not always my #1 cheerleader, especially on the days I don’t want to create. Some days are easier when it comes to putting pen to paper. Procrastination stems from fear – Fear of hard work, fear of opening up a can of worms, fear of problem solving. One way I overcome this fear is by tracking my progress.
I set a simple metric for myself that I know I can hit everyday, throw it inside Notion, and check the box when I complete it. This tracker becomes my cheerleader and I’ve learned to love it. The habits I’m working to adopt become a part of my every day creative routine because of it.
💭 THINKING
I have emotional responses to things that get in the way and prevent me from getting what I want. Most people call these responses ‘triggers’. Some days I hate what I’m creating, and I get pissed about it instinctively – Triggered. But I can’t create anything good out of that anger.
So I do everything I can to stop what I’m doing before it gets more unproductive. I sit down, refocus, and think about what the problem is. Sure, it sounds easy. But you’d be surprised at how many opportunities you have in a day to think your way out of a problem… And yet you still pass them up.
🤲 GIVING
Like I said before, it’s not enough to stop comparing other peoples’ work to your own. As a creative individual, you must embrace the fact that there are others like you out there. More likely than not, they’re working as hard as you are. The fastest way to open the floodgates for inspiration and ideas comes in the way of cheering others on.
So I practice showing love, commenting some positivity on Instagram, and rooting others on in their own pursuits. This trains my brain to reject creative jealousy and embrace their efforts to make it. The sooner I can openly accept others and what they’re creating, the sooner I can do the same for my own journey.
Take it to the streets.
Minding your own business when it comes to anything is a great strategy to get from point A to B – Start to finish. When it comes to writing for sync, we tend to fall victim to so many distractions that move us farther off the path.
What can you get ultra focused on today? How many projects are filling up your plate? Which loose ends can you work to tie up this week? These are all great questions to ask as you get clear on what you want to do and stay focused until you achieve it.
Tracking helps give you daily and weekly check-ins on your progress. Thinking helps you solve YOUR own problems – Not everyone else’s. Giving helps you release any resentment of others for their work and to praise them instead – What goes around comes around.
Your catalog is your most valuable asset – Keep distractions low and watch it grow. 🔥
All my best,
Graham Barton
Composer · Mentor · Imperfectionist
@syncbeast.co
