TEM Extra: Bonus Episode with Eric Branner of Fons

The bonus portion of my conversation with Eric Branner of Fons featured a couple more questions and his answers were great!

• If you could go back 20 years and visit 2002 Eric, what would you tell him?

• How do you balance putting out fires vs. moving big things forward?

This portion of the interview touched on Stephen Covey's four quadrants, kanban boards (which I had never heard of!) and the power of using the internet to learn.

And his answer to the first question was only three words and the best answer I've ever heard to that common question. Really good stuff!

Enjoy!

---

TEM Extra: The Case for One Person Calling the Shots

This latest TEM Extra is all about who is calling the shots in a group or business:

• A 60-second clip from TBJ182 featuring Jeff Curnow of The Philadelphia Orchestra about how the legendary Empire Brass used to be run by two people rather than a democracy and how that was beneficial artistically

• The absolute dumbest question I’ve heard anyone get asked in an interview in my life

• What Jerry Seinfeld credits for the success of Seinfeld

---

Unlock this TEM Extra

Join the other entrepreneurial musicians who are already helping to keep the lights on around here and unlock a boatload of bonus content like this TEM Extra and monthly TEM Reports. Thanks for even considering it! 🙏

Support the Show

TEM Extra: Episode 15

Episode 15 of TEM Extra is a bonus episode with Ari Herstand and is available exclusively to supporters of The Entrepreneurial Musician. Become one today!

On Today’s TEM Extra:

• Angela Beeching’s perfect pitch email

• Tweet from @XaviercMiller 

• Giving yourself permission to take time off

TEM Extra: Episode 14

Episode 15 of TEM Extra is a bonus episode with Ari Herstand and is available exclusively to supporters of The Entrepreneurial Musician. Become one today!

On Today’s TEM Extra:

• Angela Beeching’s perfect pitch email

• Tweet from @XaviercMiller 

• Giving yourself permission to take time off

TEM Extra: Episode 13 (Bonus Episode with Ari Herstand)

Episode 13 of TEM Extra is a bonus episode with Ari Herstand and is available exclusively to supporters of The Entrepreneurial Musician. Become one today!

On Today’s TEM Extra:

• Ari on what gave him the courage to finally ditch his job at Starbucks to make a go as a full-time musician

• The advice Ari would give to himself if he could travel back to 2009 (his answer might surprise you!)

Love this fire quote from Ari from this bonus episode:

“People don’t have time for mediocrity any more. You have to set yourself above the fray and above the noise.”

—Ari Herstand

Don’t miss Ari in TEM197!

TEM197: The democratization of the new music business and polite persistence - A conversation with Ari Herstand

Listen Now

TEM Extra: Episode 8

Episode 8 of TEM Extra is available exclusively to supporters of The Entrepreneurial Musician. Become one today!

On Today's TEM Extra:

• Networking advice

• The Seth Godin 90-Day Challenge

• Defining success for yourself and not just limiting that definition to direct financial gain

TEM Extra: Episode 7

Episode 7 of TEM Extra is available exclusively to supporters of The Entrepreneurial Musician. Become one today!

On Today’s TEM Extra:

• Why most people will be against you whenever you try to change the culture somewhere

• One hell of a quote from Les Brown about aiming high and dreaming big

• The importance of consistently shipping your art when it comes to converting people into true fans (and serving the true fans you already have!)

TEM Extra: Episode 6

Episode 6 of TEM Extra is available exclusively to supporters of The Entrepreneurial Musician. Become one today!

On Today's TEM Extra:

• A tweet by Dan Hockenmaier that exaggerates a point about how passion isn't everything but still hits on something incredibly important

• Making art that fills a need

• Some wisdom from Yoko Ono via fellow musician Alan Theisen about living on someone else's schedule

• Going against the grain of the many different cultures we are all engrained within (and why that's so hard sometimes)

• The career course corrections I am constantly experiencing by interviewing such brilliant people for TEM

TEM Extra: Episode 5

Episode 5 of TEM Extra is available exclusively to supporters of The Entrepreneurial Musician. Become one today!

On Today's TEM Extra:

• The list of traits that Gary Vaynerchuk values more than skills

• The most important things to look for in a business partner

• A reminder from Eunbi Kim on the importance of contracts and planning for worst case scenarios

• Putting my money where my mouth is (in regards to if no one ever thinks you charge too much money then you aren't charging enough - someone did and they let me know it!)

TEM Extra: Episode 4

Episode 4 of TEM Extra is available exclusively to supporters of The Entrepreneurial Musician. Become one today!

On Today’s TEM Extra:

• A wonderful tweet by @operancoffee about not letting the internet drown out your inner voice

• The powerful human instincts that make us want to conform and why we must resists the pull to conform at all costs

• Steven Pressfield's warning about doing too much research

• The two step process to getting noticed on the internet (Spoiler: It's simple, but not easy!)

• Plus I talk about Beyoncé, Mike Gordon, Umphrey's McGee, and more!

TEM Extra: Episode 3

Episode 3 of TEM Extra is available exclusively to supporters of The Entrepreneurial Musician. Become one today!

On Today’s TEM Extra:

• The passing of Rick Ocasek, one of the most genuinely unique characters to come through the music business (as a performer, songwriter and producer) in a long time

• A Miles Davis quote that is one of my favorite ever uttered by any musician

• The key to being a creative person

• The benefits and the responsibility that come from being an artist that is sharing something with the world