When it comes to social media, I’m an early adopter but late bloomer.

I joined Facebook in 2004. 

And for about 10+ years, I didn’t post much because I worked at companies that didn’t love employees posting online.

It was kind of frowned upon.

I posted when I launched a book or album.

But then I kind of disappeared.

I only “got serious” about social media this year.

I try to post every day to LinkedIn.

So why did it take me 20 years?

1. I’m uncomfortable talking endlessly about myself.

2. I don’t want to be a source of anxiety for others.

When I post positive things about my career, it may end up making others feel worse.

We’re running our own race. But social media makes the race seem more relative – and we compare ourselves to each other.

The Attention Economy

If you’re an artist or creator, you’re in the attention economy.

Like it or not.

You have to get people to pay attention to you – if you’re trying to grow or monetize.

(And high fives to those enlightened souls who could care less.)

So, how do you get people to pay attention to you?

I presume you already know how to do this when crafting your art:

Writers have to keep readers reading.

Musicians have to keep musicians listening.

Filmmakers have to keep audiences watching.

Here’s something you already know:

99% of people are self-interested (especially when they go on social media).

That’s not a bad thing. It’s just how it is.

So, create & share things that are valuable to people.

Your new album is great…

But does it create value for folks?

I’m sure it does but you still have to connect the dots for your audience.

Welcome to the self-help genre

For years I bristled at writing self-help.

I rolled my eyes.

I wrote books on academic topics and they sold a bit.

But not a ton.

In 2017, I wrote this article for the Harvard Business Review, which named one of the top 30 most influential pieces in its 100 year history.

It’s about my life.

But it reads like a self-help article.

Many people reached out to me asking me “How do you actually build a portfolio career?”

I should have taken that as a clue — to write like this for social media.

But it took me a few more years to put it together…

Earlier this year, I met with a few folks who were killing it on social media.

They convinced me to try posting every day.

Make the posts about the consumer.

Give them value.

Help them improve their lives.

So that’s what I try to do.

I had to get over my misgivings of being a self-help writer.

I had to get over the cringe.

Getting over the cringe wasn’t that hard because I started to hear from people.

What I was sharing was really helping them.

Artists liked learning about these concepts:

How to generate standout ideas
How to leverage data to grow a fanbase
How to add seasonality to your music

I try to share more universal concepts too:

Send links not attachments
When to do nothing

The reward changes over time

The value you create & good will that you engender become the reward.

Not the number of followers/likes/streams you create.

(Although, these things will likely increase)

I’m not that interested in how many followers I have online.

I’m more interested in whether I’m creating value.

Actually helping folks.

So this isn’t some pell-mell approach to grow your online metrics.

It’s a way to actually provide value. Truly.

Someone wise once said that your bank account is a reflection of how many problems you’ve solved for other people.

Maybe your social media following can be seen in the same way:

How many people you’ve helped…

 

You don’t have to become a self-help guru

It helps if you can make your content more relevant to folks.

Before you post something, ask yourself this question:

“How does this add value to my audience?”

(or will this cause them anxiety…)

You’re either educating or entertaining.

If it’s a post about how great you are, well…  🙂

Folks want authenticity and hearing of your vulnerabilities.

I know you know this already.

More examples

1. Instead of this: “Here are my pictures from my Paris trip.”

Try this: “My 3 restaurant recommendations of where to eat in Paris.”

2. “Listen to my new song.”

Try this: “My 3 drafts I went through to write this song” (and make it funny or entertaining)

Or this: “Here’s the reverb plugin that I used to get this sound.”

3. “My new album got a new review”

Try this: “This is the publicist I hired to get the review.”

4. “I’m the keynote speaker at a big conference.”

Try this: “How I prepare for my speech.”

5. “Come check out my show.”

Try this: “Here’s how I put together my repertoire.”