#146: How to Become the Best in the World
New clothes, new music, same old newsletter?
It’s Monday! It’s Monday.
A little motivation to start the week: How to Become the Best in the World.
CULTURE THING:
I am obsessed with Rowing Blazers’ F/W 2020 collection. You should be, too.
Throughout the collection, a number of items previously seen on Princess Diana have been recreated in collaboration with the original designers. This includes her “I’m A Luxury” sweatshirt, which has been reproduced with Gyles Brandreth, co-creator of the original alongside George Hostler. Another stand-out is the “sheep sweater,” designed by
Joanna Osborne and Sally Muir through their Warm & Wonderful Knitwear label and worn by Diana to Prince Charles’ polo matches. While this piece has been copied before, Rowing Blazers’ FW20 is the first time the original sweater has been produced since 1994.
MARKETING THING:
ICYMI: Share of culture is the “new” marketing metric that I believe both B2B and B2C brands should aim to win going forward.
What is share of culture? Go read last week’s newsletter.
Why does the share of culture metric matter to my brand? Share of culture matters because this metric can tell you your brand or product holds weight in your market, regardless of how big the market is.
How can your brand own share of culture in your market?Ignoring obvious factors like product market fit, a lot of the things that help brands dominate culture are unable to be controlled by the brands themselves.
That’s kind of a weird thing to think, isn’t it? When you really look at it, it’s true. A lot of things we make that we engineer to succeed fall flat. In order to be successful, marketers trying to win share of culture need to embrace what they can’t control.
Things your brand can’t control:
Interests: Your brand doesn’t control what interests your audience.
Influencers: Your brand doesn’t control what (or who) is or isn’t influential to your audience.
Media Preferences: Your brand doesn’t control what media your audience interacts with and how they interact with it.
Brand Perception: Your brand doesn’t control how your brand makes people feel.
Brand Preference: Your brand doesn’t control how your audience perceives your brand (or your brands competitors). This one is hardest for some to deal with.
Next week, we’ll discuss the things you CAN control to win a dominating share of culture. In the meantime, if there’s one thing to take away, it’s this:
The brands we choose are the tools we use to say who we are.
MUSIC THINGS:
An interview from last year with Frank Ocean:
A lot of people I talk to about careers in the music industry, their ideas of success have to do with nostalgia. They have to do with tropes of success, things they’ve been shown over the years that represent what a successful career is. I think that helps you become prey, because somebody can manipulate you with those things. Then you may get to a point in your experience where you become disillusioned with those things. So anybody having a clear idea — even if it’s as crass as “how much money do I want to make, specifically?” — I think that’s much clearer than some of these other things that represent success, whether that’s X amount of spins or streams or plaques. Even sold-out venues. If those things don’t help you reach your defined priorities, then what are those things there for?
That’s how I try to make decisions in my life and career, and, if asked, I share that philosophy with anybody who asks. For me, it’s about Why am I doing this? What exactly do I want from this? And how do I get those specific things I want out of this? And what does success look like on those terms? And what does failure look like on those terms? That’s how I think about it now.
PLAYLISTS:
UPDATED:
SAFE FOR BABIES - Clean versions of cool songs for my subscribers with little ones.
PUT THIS ON WHILE COOKING. Name says it all!
Shorts & Hoodie Season - A playlist celebrating the most wonderful time of the year.
Art School Alumni Reunion Playlist - If you went to art school between 2004-2014, you’ll love this one.
Cool Men’s Boutique - If I owned a Cool Men's Boutique, this would be the stores playlist.
Cool but Overpriced Sushi Fusion Restaurant- If I owned a Cool but Overpriced Sushi Fusion Restaurant. this would be the restaurant’s playlist.
Cool but Overpriced Workout Studio: If I owned a Cool but Overpriced Workout Studio, this would be the studio’s playlist. Get the gimmick yet?
NEW:
#NEWFIFAOUT- Cool new-ish music to listen to while you play the new FIFA.
ANNOUNCEMENT:
VERY HAPPY to announce that I’m one of the mentors for Substack Bridge, an eight-week, guided mentorship program that matches Substack writers with mentors for a series of private virtual sessions focused on topics such as creative process, community building, and monetizing your work. Look at this roster of mentors. It’s like the newsletter Avengers:
If you have a Substack, you should apply. Yes, YOU.
Applications are open until midnight on Monday, October 19. The whole thing is free and you have nothing to lose! Click the button below to apply. Do it!
HOW TO HELP BLACK LIVES IN 30 MINS OR LESS:
What if I told you that for only 30 minutes a week, you can help Black lives, no matter where you live or how much money you make? Here’s how:
Carve out 30 minutes in your calendar this week.
Do one thing in that 30 min window. You can click a link or make a call or donate or sign a petition.
This weekend, share the above link with your three closest friends. If you have a group chat, drop it into your group chat!
Repeat the following week.
As a bonus, now you won’t have to lie to your kids or grandkids about being on the right side of history! You can be all like, “Children/Grandchildren, our family doesn’t tolerate that racist shit. If anyone says otherwise, send them to me.” and you’ll sound all tough and cool, and your kids or grandkids will respect and love you and not want to be racists…guess what? That means less racist people in the future!!
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Office Hours with Ernest Wilkins is written and curated by Ernest Wilkins. Follow me on Twitter/Clubhouse/IG @ErnestWilkins. Want to work with me? Send me an e-mail.