​One of the most exciting, daunting, and satisfying events a musician can experience is the jam session. Especially when it’s a private session with no audience, just you and some fellow musicians. No pressure of playing to the crowd, simply throw out some songs and get to it. It’s the ultimate learning experience for musicians of any level. I enjoy playing a structured set in front of a crowd but a bigger thrill for me is the unknown. I had the pleasure of jamming with friends in my late teens and into my adulthood and I still get a thrill from playing something new with different musicians, pulling and pushing songs in different directions. I like it so much that I built a large shed in my backyard to host these events. It’s not easy to host such events but it gets better every time. I’ve put together a list that I use as a guide to help make each jam successful.

​I've met many people who started their own business, whether part-time or full, and when they find out that I'm in marketing, they'll often ask me for some advice to help market their products or service. Of course, the first thing I always ask them is, do you have a website? More times than not, they reply, "no, but I have a Facebook page." Hmmm, that's great that you have a Facebook page, but that's not exactly going to cut it when you're marketing yourself. It's always good to be where the people are, and there are many people on Facebook. However, social media is only a tiny part of your overall marketing strategy.