Soundtrack of My Life

Song: Remember the Name
Artist: Fort Minor
Album: The Rising Tied (2005)

Welcome to my new theme song.

While Mike Shinoda & Co. might be talking about breaking into the music business, the formula put forth in the chorus is applicable across all arts and passions, including my struggle to get from blogging to the big time.

The breakdown is eerily apt:

10% Luck
20% Skill
15% Concentrated Power of Will
5% Pleasure
50% Pain
-------------------------------------
100% Reason to Remember the Name

Leading off with luck makes sense, as the greatest talent in the world could never be found without that one lucky break, talent be damned.

You have to have skill, but it makes up a lot less of the equation than you think, because once you get to a certain level, everyone has skill.

That next 15% is what gets me out of bed in the morning, even though I'm still tired. It's what has me sitting at the computer all day, despite the fact that another long night on the bar is quickly approaching. It's why even when I feel like doing nothing more than laying on the couch and relaxing, I hammer through another article.

Yes, I love what I do, but it's still work. The sheer enjoyment goes away quickly, after the honeymoon phase of any new project passes. Then it's work and something I have to do, regardless of how much I like what I'm writing about.

You think the pain has too great a percentage?

Open countless emails telling you, "Thanks, but no thanks."

Have interviews fall through and paychecks for published work never materialize.

Pour hours on end into a project, only to see the money disappear and the opportunity follow suit shortly thereafter.

Get in a fight with your loved ones because you're spending too much time with what you love instead of who you love.

Or enjoy the fact that some of them barely ever check out your work.

The pain is legit, and so is this song.