My Revelatory Cab Ride Return from Experts Academy

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My Revelatory Cab Ride Return from Experts Academy

My wife is one of those people whose opinion about products and services matters to me, so, of course, I switched to using them over all of the other companies I had used previously. In this age of information overload, I advise clients and friends to delegate not just work, but a fair amount of taste: find like-minded curators of information to make the process of choosing vendors and services smoother. Word-of-mouth is everything in the new economy.

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We Talked Serious Startups with John Maddox

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We Talked Serious Startups with John Maddox

He's interviewed the founder of Fast Company magazine and podcasting legend John Lee Dumas. I'm proud to say that John Maddox, Nashville entrepreneur and host of "Let's Talk Serious Startups" has interviewed me this week. We discuss the music industry, time management, favorite resources for business, favorite business-oriented books, and what I would advise my younger self.

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How He Sustained a DJ Startup for Decades

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How He Sustained a DJ Startup for Decades

He didn't plan to make this his career; his future seemed to be in radio. No, this was something fun to do, and earn some money on the side. But that's the funny thing about the best small businesses: when the joy outweighs the work, profit--financial and emotional--often follows. Or, as Confucius said, "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life."

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Productivity Discovery Behind the Wheel of My Civic Hybrid

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Productivity Discovery Behind the Wheel of My Civic Hybrid

My 2013 Honda Civic Hybrid has no pickup. It likes to hydroplane on roads hardly slicked by a drizzle. And it has very few bells and whistles. But it was dirt cheap. And it gets me where I need to go. And I rarely need to stop for gas to fill up its 11 gallon tank. And this past week, it beat a shiny blue BMW to the same destination.

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Vinyl's Cinematographer Reed Morano, A.S.C. is a Superhero

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Vinyl's Cinematographer Reed Morano, A.S.C. is a Superhero

It is a rare feat to be able to peek into the future, but I am pretty positive that we will see Reed Morano, ASC receive an Oscar in not too many years. Whether it is for directing or cinematography remains to be seen. But talent alone is not what makes Reed heroic; she approaches her art, craft, and life with humility, grace, and introspection, and her insights about being an accomplished woman in a male-dominated field are profound. 

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Count Basie, Harper Lee, and 'The Big Lebowski': Everyone's a Critic (with Gene Seymour, The Everyman Critic)

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Count Basie, Harper Lee, and 'The Big Lebowski': Everyone's a Critic (with Gene Seymour, The Everyman Critic)

Reports of the demise of criticism have been grossly exaggerated. Sure, the type of critic wickedly portrayed in Oscar winner Birdman may find very few customers, but, in this age of "on demand content creation," audiences crave the nuanced observations and heartfelt feelings from a longtime critic and reporter such as CNN's Gene Seymour.

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A Crash Course on Taking on Centuries-Old Brands... and Succeeding

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A Crash Course on Taking on Centuries-Old Brands... and Succeeding

When you are getting 90+ ratings and Gold Awards, when Forbes is saying your flagship artisan spirits product is "far superior" to that of your counterparts, waxing poetic and promising "trust me when I say you will love this rum," it would make sense that you would charge an arm and a leg for such a product, right? Wrong. Conventional wisdom doesn't help you compete against the billion dollar big boys.

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Thanks for the Memories

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Thanks for the Memories

It is with heavy heart that I announce the departure of Todd Schwartz from Prywes Schwartz, PLLC. Todd resigned last week as my business partner and will pursue endeavors outside of law. I, of course, wish him well. He has been a good friend and a fine attorney. I am very grateful for the past year and a half we have spent building this practice from nothing. 

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Good Enough May Be the New Perfect, but This Married Couple Seem to Do It All Effortlessly

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Good Enough May Be the New Perfect, but This Married Couple Seem to Do It All Effortlessly

Warner Brothers scooped up the rights to John's page-turner "American Pain" shortly after the manuscript sold to a publisher. Hollee singlehandedly oversees one of West Virginia's hottest salon/day spas. They are both published authors and university professors. And, with two sons, they are a tight-knit family.

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Freedom Hacking Her Way from Welfare to $1 Million

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Freedom Hacking Her Way from Welfare to $1 Million

Kimra Luna is an online rock star. Maybe not in the literal sense. But people get excited about her and for good reason: she has an amazing rags-to-riches story, and managed to quickly build a brand and community in a way that has attracted the likes of Forbes and Business Insider.

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If the Women on "The View" Are Arguing About Your Startup, You've Done Something Right

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If the Women on "The View" Are Arguing About Your Startup, You've Done Something Right

Craig and Eva were walking past the red carpet premiere of a movie at the Ziegfeld in Manhattan when an idea grabbed hold of them and slowly but surely became a reality. What if a family or a group of friends could make a movie together and then attend a red carpet premiere for that movie? 

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When One of the Best Young Composers in the World Discovered "Stairway to Heaven"

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When One of the Best Young Composers in the World Discovered "Stairway to Heaven"

Have you ever wondered what it's like to get in the mind of a great composer, how he or she strings together a combination of different instruments into a symphony that speaks to your soul? Jim Dooley, not even in his 40s yet, is already the winner of the Emmy Award for Composition for a Primetime Television Series. He has worked on great film scores such as "Gladiator," and has expanded his repertoire into video games, animated film, and even sports.

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Non-Profits: Your Return Address Labels are Not Gifts. They Are Squeegee Men!

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Non-Profits: Your Return Address Labels are Not Gifts. They Are Squeegee Men!

There was a time in New York's history when driving a car into the city meant wondering if a man armed with a water-filled squeegee would clean your windshield,uninvited, as you sat in traffic. The water was often dirty, but you would feel obligated to pay him anyhow, because... well, it was never really conscious why.

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7 Legal Trends for Artists and Entrepreneurs from 2015

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7 Legal Trends for Artists and Entrepreneurs from 2015

The end of a year is a time to reflect on the changes in our lives, and that holds true for the life of American law, which often struggles to keep up with technology. From the arrival of new forms of, and new uses for, social media (iTunes App Store favorites Periscope and Meerkat, with Facebook bringing the competition) to the envelope-pushing of artists and photographers, law related to art and entrepreneurship is in as much a state of flux as it has ever been.

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