Are You A One-Buttock Player?

Let me explain.

Classical conductor, speaker, and all-around dynamo Benjamin Zander tells the story of a young pianist whose performance of Chopin was correct to the point of being technically perfect, but remained too… “earthbound.”

Zander blurted out, “The trouble is you’re a two-buttock player!”

In the pianist’s fear of making mistakes, his body remained upright, with both cheeks on the seat. He was so focused on doing it correctly that he was forgetting to put any passion into the music.

Once he was freed up to be a “one buttock player” and put his whole body into swaying with the emotion of the music, the power of Chopin’s prelude washed over the audience. Several people gasped audibly.

During times of stress, fear, or the unknown (well, even more than the usual uncertainty that is built into being a solopreneur), it’s tempting to contract and focus on the steps, the strategies, and “getting it right.” As soon as the recent crisis hit, I saw a lot of solopreneurs scrambling for instructions: “Just give me some techniques that’ll keep my business full!!”

-And yes, strategy is important (i.e., even the most passionate musician needs to spend a lot of time learning scales and technique before they let their butt-cheeks sway).

However.

Even when fear is present, we need to remain aligned with our passion for the work, for the people we serve, and for the joy of doing the job well.

We need to be “one-buttock marketers.”

When we’re aligned with our passion, and even—gasp—enjoy the process of marketing amidst our own fear and uncertainty, we can do the strategies—but we can also take healthy risks, let our purpose and energy shine through, and inspire others in the process.

What could be better marketing than that?

What does “one-buttock marketing” look like for you?

What do you want people to know and understand is possible for them— or what they could be missing out on? If you care passionately about them knowing this, what is a meaningful, enjoyable way for you to get this message across?

Don’t overthink it. Just play (and sway).

No ifs, ands, or… butts.