Cultural Self Assessment

Communicative

conversation turn taking

5 - While I have vastly improved my listening skills over time, I often steer the conversation my way for the bulk of time. I wish to improve my turn taking abilities and allow for equal time during discourse

When doing music for a living full time, I realized that listening was more important than playing…. by listening you can find the groove and perform as a unit. Carrying that into different industries is no different.

disconfirm own beliefs

6 - My belief system is strong, so when challenged I often look to see if the “new way” of doing things is any better. I try to stay open but also stay analytical.

Disconfirming your own beliefs and giving new things a shot has opened my mind to new ways of doing things. Even if I don’t agree at first, going thru different experiences only makes you stronger as you learn what the other side has to offer.

self-aware & articulate

7 - I do recognize the impact that I can have on others, but sometimes need to be more articulate in how it lands.

As someone who is well traveled, I have seen many different perspectives in life. I am aware of the impact I can make, so much so that I personally have become vegan since 2015. As far as articulating ideas, I feel that I always start of good but finish weak, especially my closing statements. I need to work on that.

Personal

share a drink

10 - Going out of your way to share experiences over a drink builds deep bonds…. Doesn’t even have to be alcoholic!

I have noticed that in business, people want to work with people they have a relationship with. By sharing an experience, you develop a bond. That bond is what allows for trust, and that trust (if maintained) can be very fruitful and rewarding for both sides

spend 10 hours daily together

2 - Social time gets in the way of work! But seriously, I need to spend more time with others outside of work

This is a tough assessment to make because most of my jobs have been jobs that I love (music and film) so to me work IS that bonding social time with my peers. The only time this is not true is the “in-between” jobs that I had to do that were not my passions (retail facing positions early in life, etc). I’m a firm believer in the mantra “do what you love and you will never work a day in your life”

nurture & mentor

10 - This is one area where I excel greatly…. I always will go out of my way to help mentor those that want to learn.

I’ve learned so much from my mentors and know the value of them. This in turn has led me to mentor many other people in my life, oftentimes going above and beyond what anyone had asked…. This involved me mentoring a few musical acts about the business and getting them record deals, to even teaching young filmmakers the tips and tricks I learned the hard way to excel in their craft faster.

Collaborative

make everyone shine

10 - If you shine bright, we all shine bright

Perhaps this comes from me being in a band as a drummer, but the reality is that my job has always been to make others shine, be it the singers in my bands to the subjects I film…. if they look good, we all look good. We can all win as a team.

people over process

9 - When you surround yourself with the right people, the process takes care of itself.

In my life there have been people that uplift and people that bring you down…. 10/10 times if you surround yourself with the people that uplift, you will get further than if you surround yourself with those that bring you down

dare to disagree

10 - I have never been afraid of open debate.

Being able to say what is on your mind might sound like a scary thing at first, but usually if it is done constructively, the other party appreciates the honesty. Nobody wants to surround themselves with “yes men”…. people want real, and those who can articulate the alternative point of view and support their side with data are oftentimes the realest. Those are the people I wish to keep close in my circle because I can trust them the most.

Devoted

long-time craftsmanship

9 - 10,000 hours is a real thing! The best work comes when you’ve put in the time.

I have a gold record for selling 500k records. This was for a song that I self recorded. The way that I was able to do that was I spent long hours perfecting the craft. Later in life I would be part of an Emmy winning Nike commercial. Again, this was because I put in those 10,000 hours and really refined my craft.

obsess over details

6 - This should be a 10 because I do obsess, but the reality is that obsessing too much can be a bad thing if it takes too long and you miss a window of time

I could have easily released twice as many songs during my music career if I had not obsessed over the details…. Honestly, the details matter to a certain point, but going from 0% complete to 95% is fairly simple, its that 95% to 100% that becomes exponentially harder to get…. and oftentimes, squeezing out 99% to 100% (the last percentage) is not even worth the time in the end because the detail you obsessed over literally nobody on earth would ever notice. I think at the end of the day this trait depends on what industry you are in…. if you are selling luxury items, etc where time to market is of no consequence, then you can obsess 10/10 over the details… but if you are trying to move volume, this obsession can actually hurt you in the end. Time is a HUGE factor that plays into this equation and therefore, this is an almost impossible self assessment to do without proper context.

hungry & foolish

9 - I would say 10/10 but I do believe the saying that “There is always somebody who wants it more”… that carrot on the stick keeps you motivated to keep going

This assessment pretty much sums up me in a nutshell…. I am super hungry, always wanting more, so much so that I am foolish, willing to fail again and again, risking everything on the line to get what I want. I would add the word GRIT to this assessment as well, as you need grit to stay hungry even when everything can be falling apart around you in the worst of times.

Aligned

share the mission

7 - I oftentimes might think I know the full mission, but without full context and perspective sometimes i miss the mark

It’s easy to say you share the mission, but in practice this really takes a heavy load of clear communication…. While I can be very clear in my mission, others often are not, and in order to share in the mission, I must draw out what they feel the mission is to properly align everyone.

optimistic about flying off a cliff

10 - Not just optimistic, I’ll be the first to jump.

I jump blind into the abyss often…. I went all in on music, achieved so much, then did the same with film, and have done a lot as well. Venturing into blockchain was the next natural step as I have always been very much into being involved in things that will completely change the world.

your 50-year dream

10 - I can see so clear 50 years ahead. There are no clouds in my sky.

My lifelong dream is to headline Madison Square Garden as a musician. I also want to direct Hollywood Blockbuster franchise films. Crypto was a beautiful speed bump, and I would love to end my journey completely transforming the music industry into Web3

Authentic

consistent with own actions

10 - What you see if what you get

I live my life like Larry David: Unapologetically me.

make tough decisions

8 - While I can make tough decisions, I prefer to get consensus from a team before following through.

Two of the hardest decisions I’ve ever had to make: Firing our music manager to become free agents (we were close, but it was better for the business) and leaving my friends and family behind to move to Los Angeles.

admit mistakes

5 - I am proven wrong all the time…. but that’s how I learn and grow to be better the next time around

It’s never a good feeling to know you messed up. The best way to feel better when this happens is to admit where I went wrong, acknowledge I can do better, and move on.

Technical

top 1% superstar

10 - No matter what industry I have been in I have been at the top of my class.

A few achievements: - In music, I have a gold record and recorded/toured with AAA artists - In film I have been involved in the making of an Emmy winning commercial.

effective tooling

I have no idea what this means

I have no idea what this means

relevant to our needs

7 - I would like to think that I output stuff that is relevant to what is needed, but could use work in the timing of things

Being relevant to needs is related to time…. if you are too early or too late, it’s irrelevant.

Potential

10x growth

10 - Investing in myself. Every 10x step in my journey was taken by investing time, energy, education, and money into myself.

I like to own every step of the process which in turn finds me the 10x growth I seek. I think of it like a director of a movie: He better know something about every job that is being done to be the most effective at telling everyone what to do…. By me knowing deeply about every facet of my industry, I become an unstoppable force where anything becomes possible.

voracious learner

10 - If i am into the subject, I will learn EVERYTHING there is about it

My learning is an exponential curve related to passion. The more passionate I am about something, the more I will make it a point to learn everything about it. The less passionate, the less I will care to learn.

contrarian thinker

8 - I try to always think of the bear case…. at times unpopular, but always backed by data

Being a contrarian can oftentimes make you feel like you are on an island by yourself, an outsider… but sometimes that same thinking is what allows you to “see the picture more clearly” and get a more complete view.

Impact

accomplish important work

This is tough, because the working in the arts is interpretive. I cannot rank this due to that.

The work that I have done has touched the emotional fabric of many people far beyond my own reach…. I’ve had people laugh, cry, celebrate, and for some hope…. I’ve had people say that my work has helped them from committing suicide…. While these are all a wide range of human conditions and emotions, the ability to gauge what is important and what is not is entirely subjective.

activity < productivity

7 - There are always better ways to become more efficient at the work that I do.

I don’t believe anyone that says they are 100% productive. There is always more productivity to squeeze out of somebody, more efficiency…

thrive in chaos

10 - Chaos is my middle name

When the house is burning down I will run right into it. I excel at making quick decisions…. doesn’t mean they are the right ones, but in chaos, the only way to thrive is to have a direction, good or bad. By moving forward you eliminate the bad decisions one by one thru trial and error, and you are left many steps ahead of everyone else who couldn’t make a decision because it was to chaotic to make one.