Yesterday was my birthday, and my friends and family hooked me up with a bunch of my favorite things (Chipotle gift card, Jeni’s Ice Cream, books, etc.).

One of my presents was The Foo Fighters’ Greatest Hits album from my future sister-in-law.  I listened to the first four songs on my way in to the office this morning, and then scanned through the first 20 seconds of the rest just to get a feel for the album.

It’s unreal.

Every single song is incredibly well-written, perfectly mastered and authentically “Foo” – which got me thinking, ”How can a single band produce that many amazing songs?” Simple:

  1. Consistency
  2. Their willingness to “ship”

Consistency

The Foo Fighters was formed by Dave Grohl (of Nirvana fame) back in 1995.  Now while it may not seem that long ago, 1995 was fifteen (15!) years ago.  Since then, The Foo Fighters have recorded and released six studio albums with a total of 81 different tracks.  That means that for the past fifteen years, they have (on average) written, arranged, edited, and recorded a new song every month – on top of touring, appearances, promotions, etc.

Obviously, some songs are better than others, which is why only 13 of the original 81 made the Greatest Hits album.  But here’s the key – each of the six albums is represented on the Greatest Hits CD. Even though The Foo Fighters have gotten better (in my opinion) over the years, they still had highlights along the way.

Willingness to Ship

Yesterday I listened to a great podcast interview of one of my favorite authors, Seth Godin.  In the interview, Seth says the key to success is to “Ship. Ship early, ship often, ship cheaply, and put things into the marketplace to find out what works.”

The fear that most bands/authors/investors/artists/(insert profession here) face is that their album or book or investment or painting won’t be a “hit” – an overnight success.

Most people set out to create a chart-topper the first time out.  But they fail to realize it takes bands decades to come up with enough hit songs to create a greatest hits album.  Becoming an expert in any field takes time, persistence, and a willingness to put your neck out there and learn from your mistakes.  But if you aren’t willing to “ship” your product and take a chance in the first place, you will never know what works.

Write Your Own Ending

Not everything you do today (or this year, or this decade) will be a “greatest hit.”  Not everything you touch will turn to gold.  But if you consistently put out high-quality content in your field, maybe (just maybe) you’ll look back 15 years from now and be pleased with the body of work you have contributed to the world.