You probably notice the site looks different right now.

Unfortunately, I had some issues when upgrading to WordPress 2.7 and it somehow broke my theme. I’ve since reverted back to WordPress 2.6.2, however my theme was still having issues so I’ve just placed a temporary theme here in the meantime.

Also, I’d like to mention that since my previous post regarding my situation with HostGator, things have been much better and they have been quite generous to resolve this dispute.

Even as I encountered this issue with my WordPress install tonight, Zach K, from HostGator’s Online Support Team was very helpful and helped me get everything back up and running swiftly.

I’m making a note to point this out because not only is good service vital but even during a dispute, where my very latest post was a heavy criticism towards HostGator, they still helped me without prejudice.

That’s an admirable quality which I only wish other business people, especially some of us in the music business *ahem*, would practice more often.

So thanks again to Doug & Zach from HostGator for all their help; it’s really appreciated.

I’m hoping to have the new layout finished in time for the new year so in the meantime, please don’t mind the temporary look and disorientation of MakingTheMogul.com. All the content is still here and it’s still presented in a clean & easy to read format. It’s mainly only the sidebar stuff and maybe a few other minor kinks that will look a little off for a short period of time.

I was so caught up with work recently, I completely overlooked a small, but meaningful milestone:

This past Friday, November 14th, was the 3 year anniversary since I’ve been a full-time employee of… myself!

Damn right!

I decided to start my own business 3 years ago and have been on my grind each and every single day and night since.

I wish there were time to celebrate, but as a result of all the time and effort I’ve put into it, I got work to do!

With that being said, I’m actually undergoing a few changes at the moment. As you can tell from the current header image, I’m currently re-designing my logo as well as the layout of the page. These changes will affect my blog as well as my business and I look forward to unveiling the new look to you shortly.

With that being said, even if I can’t take time off to celebrate properly, I can at least take the next 4 minutes to celebrate with all of you through the party that is this video.

I don’t drink alcohol though, so I’ll do my own personal remix and pop VOSS instead. Ha!

3 years! Wooo-hoooooooo!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jZmntdzFBY]

I just wanted to drop a quick post to let you guys know that I finally got my MacBook Pro back!

I got it back last week actually; 11 days after it decided to die. I wanted to post sooner, but since it was my hard drive that crashed, I’ve spent the past week just catching up on projects and re-creating files from scratch.

Not fun.

Needless to say, I definitely made it a point to pick up an external hard drive to keep a full system backup of everything in my laptop.

I wasn’t sure what brand or model to go with, so I posed the question on Twitter and everybody led me toward the trio of Western Digital, Maxtor and LaCie.

After some consideration at the store, I decided to go with a 750GB LaCie hard disk. The box says it was designed by industrial designer, Neil Poulton.

His design?

A shiny black box.

Anyhow, it serves me right to experience this situation. If you take your business seriously, invest in it appropriately and make sure you’re well covered in case of ANY emergency or disaster.

Whenever you implement any new tool or piece of equipment into your business, make sure to have a way of still functioning in case it malfunctions or gets stolen.

Luckily, I have my business email hosted through Google Apps, so all email that goes through my email or the email of anybody else on my team, is backed up online – free.

We can even share documents and edit them collectively, in real time, as opposed to emailing a document to each team member and having 5 different edits.

If you’re running a small business, or consider yourself a business (even if it’s just you), I highly suggest checking out Google Apps. It’s free and it’s a lifesaver.

Okay, this post might crossover into rant mode, but I have to get this off my chest.

A little while ago, I noticed someone had sent me a friend request on 2 different social networking sites; Facebook and LinkedIn. I know who the person is, but I’m not very familiar with her because we’ve only briefly dealt through someone else in the past. On the few instances that we have spoken, she seemed nice and professional, so I decided to accept her friend requests.

She contacted me with an update of what she’s doing now and we exchanged a few emails over a 2 week period.

As you already know, I have my own business; so I have a few people on the team, but I also keep a short list of freelancers who I’ll outsource work to for certain services. I’ve seen her work and thought her quality of work and price would be a good match for one of my clients.

I called her up and gave her a brief rundown about this potential client and what was needed, but never went into details about who the client is and where they’re from. We spoke a bit and agreed on a rate for her retainer services.

Later that night, I logged into my Facebook account and noticed that she added 3 people from my Friends List. 2 of those guys were the clients who I was discussing the contract for, but I never mentioned their names or any real details about them.

We don’t live in the same area and she works in a very specific niche, so it’s unlikely for us to have many contacts in common.

I thought it was kind of strange but thought maybe she’s just one of those people who treats Facebook like MySpace and adds as many people as she can without making real connections with them.

Then, the next day, I get a call from my client telling me that he just got a message from her saying she can offer him a cheaper price if he goes directly through her.

WHAT?!

How bold can you be?

But wait, it doesn’t stop there.

The same evening, I noticed she joined about 5 groups that I belong to and ended up adding the admins of those groups as well (also people on my Friends List). These were all relatively small, local production companies and labels that don’t really operate within her niche; so again, it’s highly unlikely that she knows them.

The next day, I got some phone calls and emails from a few people telling me that she contacted them also and offered them the same thing. They noticed I was the only “mutual friend” so they wanted to give me a heads up on this back door shyster.

I can’t lie – I was vexed! I was about to pick up the phone and put her on blast. Did she think I wouldn’t find out? Did she think I’d just ignore it?

My blood was boiling at first, but then I realized – these people all called and told me about it. They got this random person who just added them on a social networking site and started pitching them straight from the gate. They don’t know her nor have they ever heard of her. All they know is that the only person they can link her to is me and that they hired my company to handle the services she’s pitching them.

They all sensed a rat and even deleted her from their Friends List as well.

But the fact that I’m the only person they can link her to plays into their perception of me and my judgment. We really have to be careful about who we keep around us. It’s hard sometimes because most of us work in industries that are built on greed and backstabbing. Especially the music business!

How do we know who to trust and when we find those people, how do we know how far our trust should stretch?

Obviously, she can’t be trusted and I’m curious as to how many bridges she’s burned so far, but even though she went directly to some of the artists, managers and indie labels I work with; I’m not really worried. She oversaw my secret weapon – Personal Relationships!

I don’t just walk up to people, hand them my business card and walk away. It doesn’t make any sense to me. I see it all the time at industry events; people walk around and give out their cards like they’re passing out club flyers – they don’t even speak to anyone. A lot of artists and beatmakers are guilty of doing the same thing with their CDs: just put it someone’s hands and walk away. I call that “spam networking”. There’s no point to it; nobody’s going to remember you when you spam network.

For me, I don’t just meet people; I develop relationships. When I look through my address book, I don’t see “contacts”; I see PEOPLE. I see experiences and memories. That’s not something that just takes 5 minutes to build. This is something that takes while to build and that you maintain on a constant basis.

Whether it’s wishing someone happy birthday, taking them out when they’re in town or even just grabbing a drink together because you haven’t seen each other in a while; these things are important. But don’t just do it because you feel obligated or for networking reasons only. People can tell when you’re being fake. Do it because you genuinely want to. Lucky for me, I’ve come across many people who I easily get along with and whose company I enjoy.

So, back to the situation at hand; to her and to anyone like her – you can steal all the contact info you want and try to pitch them, but I can pick up the phone and share a laugh or even ask for a favour if ever needed.

No matter what you do, what industry you’re in or where you are in your career, never underestimate the power of a personal relationship.

1. Find Your Passion

2. Do Your Homework. Know Your History. Understand Your Field.

3. Keep Your Word

4. Find Yourself A Mentor

5. Make Sure You Deliver

Sounds simple enough? Check out the video.

Expert:
Sol Guy

Occupation:
Artist/Television Producer

Sol Guy has been an influential contributor to the rise of Urban Music over the last 11 years. His combined experience of running an independent label, artist management, producing, consulting, and full-time employment at major record labels has provided him with a well-rounded view of the music industry.

Guy has worked closely with some of the highest profile black music artists of our time including Lauryn Hill, P Diddy, India Arie, The Roots, Outkast, Dead Prez, B.I.G. and The Wu-Tang Clan.

His life took a fateful turn in 2001 when he was invited to Sierra Leone, West Africa by Warchild Canada as a featured guest in the award-winning documentary Musicians In The War Zone. Guy witnessed the tragedy of war first-hand and saw potential for artists to raise awareness on global social issues. This was a life-changing experience that propelled him out of the music industry and onto a mission to bridge the gap between social activism and entertainment.

Guy is now focusing all of his experience and expertise on new areas of mass media. His mission is to use music, film, television and hip hop culture as a vehicle for change, promoting self-love and empowerment for global youth. He has recently formed a multimedia company called Direct Current Media that combines socially relevant and commercially viable content to achieve success in progressive social change and economic empowerment for those involved.

Guy has a long-standing history of community service and youth empowerment. He has brought his message to schools, jails and communities around the world. Over the past two years he has traveled extensively, connecting with youth leaders around the world to find ways to connect their work and be a conduit for change.

One of his projects is managing hip hop artist K’naan. A Somali refugee, K’Naan creates urgent “music with a message” and shares Guy’s vision of using his fame to help change the situation in his home country. Pulling from his poet-warrior culture, K’naan has flourished as an artist and is now known around the world.

Guy’s vision has been captured on film and television with the creation of 4REAL television series. 4REAL takes celebrity guests on adventures around the world to connect with young people who, under extreme circumstances, are affecting REAL change. These are the REAL heroes of our time. The show inspires audiences to see their own potential and their ability to affect real change in their own communities.

[Source: Mobile Jam Fest]