The Psychology of Money is one of those timeless books that have too many gems to fully digest in one read.

I thought it was dope how the concepts not only apply to financial investing and life but also to music and creators.

This newsletter covers:

• 4 ways The Psychology of Money book applies to music

Let’s dive in ⬇️ 

Here are 4 ideas that really stuck out to me & how they apply to music:

_{1) Everything in life compounds with time}

Warren Buffett earned about 99% of his wealth after his 50th birthday.

Small/medium daily habits over long periods of time result in big gains.

Artists: Consistently releasing music over the long haul results in building a catalog that:

• compounds streaming revenue over time

• increases the likelihood that one of those songs connects

2) Most big success comes from tail events

A tail event is an event in a distribution curve that is rare but has an immense impact.

Basically, repeating a specific action increases the likelihood that one of those actions will be largely successful at some point.

The book explains that out of all the investments investors make, only a handful will be successful…but that success can compensate for the other failures.

Artists: Your first song ever may not reach its peak audience. The second might not either. Or the fifth. Or the 10th.

But as long as you're releasing music, you’re in the game & giving yourself a shot to connect and make up for all the ones that don't.

“Your success as an investor will be determined by how you respond to punctuated moments of terror, not years spent on cruise control.”

3) The man in the car paradox

The author, Morgan Housel, worked as a valet attendant growing up & admired all the luxurious cars that people drove.

The paradox of the man in the car is that you believe that if you were the man in the car people would notice and admire you, but you believe this while ignoring the man in the car.

Artists: Stop worrying about the car - aka what can appear to be the fast life of a successful artist, especially with what you see on social media.

Focus on making the best art you can, living your truth, and enjoying the journey.

4) Anything that can break likely will eventually

Literally lol. The world is surprising and chaotic, and Murphy’s Law reigns supreme. It’s always important to have backup plans & be prepared for the unthinkable.

Artists: The journey is unpredictable, terrifying, and full of highs and lows but also beautiful and incredibly rewarding. If you ask yourself “If this were to fail, what would be the reason why?” you can help insulate & protect yourself from unforeseen variables.

For example, if a music video shoot were to fail, why would it? Is it because of a lack of preparation on creative, inclement weather, being over budget, etc. If those are all real possibilities, how do you come up with a backup plan to account for all of those variables?

Analyzing why something might not work forces you to take a closer look at all of the variables and ideate potential solutions.

Thanks for reading, until next time.