It was April 2009, and my small consulting firm was drinking frosty beverages and celebrating a major milestone together at a sold-out Springsteen show in Boston. It was my first show, and I must say that at almost 60 years old, love him or hate him, Bruce Springsteen brings an intensity to the stage that is unrivaled in the music business. While ripping out the opening chords to “Badlands”, you can’t help but laugh – it’s all a bit cheezy and you would like to think you are cooler than the sea of Bruce fanatics on the floor, but hey, you have your ticket too. You’re there, and it’s a truly amazing show. I said it. It’s awesome. You have to do it at least once.
Outside of obvious musical talent, Springsteen and the E Street Band have some serious business chops – you just can’t compile a resume like that on sheer talent alone. They have composed an exceptional team (with low turnover for the industry, mind you), ensured consistent, sustainable customer satisfaction, consistently deliver a high-energy performance (they are known for putting on some of the longest shows in the biz), and have unbelievable brand consistency.
What else can we learn about life and business? Read on for some keen advice in business, direct from The Boss. No, not your Boss… THE Boss.
1. “I hid in the clouded wrath of the crowd, but when they said “Sit down”, I stood up…” (Growin’ Up, 1973)
Here’s an “oldie but goodie” from Springsteen about adolescence as a rebellious teenager, written in the first-person and played live over 270 times. Good career advice too, as Samantha Ogborn recently pointed out on her blog, Oscar Wilde said it best, “Be yourself, everyone else is already taken.” It’s a good thing to have mentors and professionals who you rely on for career advice. It’s also a good thing to have a professional community to bounce ideas off of. It’s not a good idea to get stuck in a group think rut, always striving to be in someone else’s shoes or doing their job. Figure out what you like, and go get it. It’s likely going to take some swimming against the current.
2. “I ain’t here on business, baby, I’m only here for fun” (Rosalita (Come Out Tonight), 1973)
Rosalita. Amazing. Bruce closed out the show with this tune. Anyway, Matt Cheuvront just wrote a phenomenal post over at lifewithoutpants.com about the Generation “Now”. The whole post was great, but my favorite line was: Your world doesn’t, or shouldn’t revolve around your career. Too many people get so wrapped up in where they are going with their career, that they forget to actually live their life. My advice – work to live, don’t live to work – the best memories will never be made within the confines of your cubicle (oh, you have an office? congrats, you probably definitely work too much! disclaimer: great times CAN be had with your coworkers, just probably not AT work). And don’t forget, as Laurie says over at punkrockhr.com, “I would also like to remind everyone that there’s a place for creamy ice cream, cold beer, and salty potato chips when love & work are the cornerstones of humanity”
3. “Poor man wanna be rich, rich man wanna be king, and a king ain’t satisfied, till he rules everything…” (Badlands, 1978)
Isn’t that the truth? How many of you went through college begging for a certain position after graduation from college? Nearly all of you, ok. And how many of you were actually content when you locked up that job? Oh, none of you. That’s what I thought. This is one of the reasons I got into consulting in the first place – I figured that consulting could move me around enough to keep things fresh and prevent me from continuing to plot my next three positions like a chess match three months into a new job. My recommendation – try to direct that energy to being great in the job that you are in, not in the endless search for the job you don’t have yet. If you spend your career in this cycle of always wanting more, you are destined to be an unhappy worker, and unhappy workers tend to turn into poor performers. And poor performers, well, they suck. Bruce doesn’t suck, and neither should you.
What other performers lines that you know are applicable to your career? Have you seen Bruce? Let me hear your thoughts in the comments section!
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