Ask Yourself ‘What Are You Going to Suck at Today?’
The question that makes everything possible
Like every sensitive white guy in a college town back in the early-aughts, I went through a phase where I wore a hemp necklace, had a $199.99 Fender, and considered myself a musician. I regularly wailed out to “Your Body Is a Wonderland” at dive bars in those strange hours after last call but before the early-morning bong-rips and Tetris marathons. And, let me tell you: For a long time, I sucked.
Sure, some folks would walk up to me after the show and say, “Hey, I liked your set, bro,” and offer to buy me a dollar draft, but I didn’t accept the compliment with any degree of confidence. I knew I was merely “better than expected” for a guy who looked like he was about to troubleshoot your cable modem.
The thing was: I loved it. I loved how the D’Addario light gauges melted against my fingers and how the bass echoed back at me through the monitors and how folks would stop their conversations to watch a shy little shit sing his heart out on a stage that may or may not have been fully constructed. Being on stage brought me joy, and I didn’t even care if I was getting any better.
Why the hell am I telling you a story about an unremarkable passing phase in my life? Because, friends, it helped me to learn that the…
