Today we are doing a tribute episode to one of my very favorite movies to come out of the nineties: a true cult classic, Empire Records. If you have been following the show for any period of time, you know, I am a huge fan of this film and that it is one of the most quotable movies ever. And I have even referenced this film on a couple of occasions when trying to make points in my other episodes.
Because you know, life imitates art and art imitates life and all of those things, but there are seriously some super fun, little gems of wisdom that one can find in the movie EMPIRE RECORDS. And because April 8th is Rex Manning day, I thought this would be the perfect time to touch on this.
Episode Transcript below - enjoy!!
Here we go with today's episode: "Everything I learned about my side hustle, I learned from EMPIRE RECORDS."
Lesson #1 is "I do not regret the things I have done, but those I did not do." This is what Lucas shouts out to his coworkers the morning after he gambles away $9,104 of revenue from the registers in the record store. The night before, Lucas was given the task of closing the store for the first time.
And it was then that he discovered Empire Records was going to become a Music Town. So he decided to go to Atlantic City with the $9,100 and try to save his job, save the store, save his boss, Joe. It didn't work. The point of this quote, "I do not regret the things I've done, but those I did not do," is not that you should go gamble away, the money you make from your side hustle. No, I do not advocate that at all. But there are some times when you're going to take some calculated risks that may or may pay off. There are also times when you're going to want to try things, experiment, and look at different ways of running your business, look at different ways of posting on Instagram or launching your podcast or this-that-the other. Thus: go try shit. Just don't gamble away money, okay?
Lesson #2 is, "My dad always says that there are 24 usable hours every day." And you should know at this point, That I'm a huge advocate (inventor of, indeed) the "Elevate Your 8" philosophy.
It's my philosophy that within those 24 usable hours of every day, we need to be honoring our work-life balance and working only eight hours a day, honoring our wellness, and sleeping eight hours each night, which leaves us with another eight hours to get all of the extra things done that we need to do.
And my friends, it's totally doable. The main lesson to derive from this quote is that neither of us has any more time than the other person. It's the people like Corey, who baked cupcakes for Rex Manning day, who are making the best use of their hours by prioritizing the important things and then taking inspired action towards those.
Lesson #3: "We mustn't well, no, not today. We can't! Not on Rex Manning Day." This quote is just meant to outline the fact that there are days when doting and dwelling and being a big old negative Nancy or a big old downer. just kicking the can down the street because you think everything sucks.
You…WE can't approach our business or our life with that mentality. We need to be able to shrug off the crappy things that happen to us. We need to be able to look at the next thing that we do as a lesson, and we need to be able to brush ourselves off and move forward and do the next thing. And that's exactly what the crew at empire records did. They set that record store up beautifully to welcome in Rex Manning, sign autographs, and play the new album, which by the end of the movie we find out is really pretty crappy album. And Rex Manning is a hot mess, but that doesn't change the fact that in life, there are going to be things in our path that we don't want to do. And sometimes you just have to press forward and do them. So there's a ton of lessons in that quote right there.
Lesson #4: “I don't feel that I need to explain my art to you, Warren.” In this scene of the film, this is post-Lucas, bringing home all the quarters and tokens that he had left over from his night in Atlantic city. AJ, the resident artist, glues a whole bunch of the quarters onto the carpet. Now here comes Warren, the shoplifter who is awaiting the police to come and take a statement, trying to pull the glued quarters off of the carpet. Why did AJ glue the quarters to the carpet. It's simple, it's art. It was his art and it was something that was coming from his heart and his soul. And he didn't need to explain that to anybody, which is why you, my friend, do not necessarily ever need to justify your need or desire to have a side hustle or the type of side hustle that you're planning to launch. That is your vision. That is your dream. It is your business. There are going to be tons of people on this planet who get and who want what you have. They want your wisdom, they want your expertise. They want your product. They want your online course. So you have to ignore the other voices in your head saying you will never be able to sell that.
“Nobody wants that service.”
“Are you crazy?”
“That is the dumbest idea ever.”
If it's coming from your heart and you're passionate about it, you are going to find a way to make it amazing. And that's why you do not need to explain your art to Warren ever.
Lesson #5: “Do you think the story is already written or do you think a bold and courageous act can change the course of history?”
This is a quote from Gina and what I absolutely positively love about this is that there are going to be things that happen along the way in our side hustles and our businesses, things that make us go, “Ugh, I can't do this anymore.” Or this isn't going the way that I wanted it to, or Ugh. I just. Don't enjoy my work. And this is the point where we need to pivot. Do something brave, do something different, do something outrageous and courageous that CAN change the course of history, and the way this panned itself out and empire records is that mark made an impromptu announcement on television, that there would be a get together at the store.
And what happened was that a fundraiser emerged! A fundraising event emerged from a golden idea, going before the TV cameras, after Warren, you know, pulled a gun on the employees. So a party happened, there was a band, there was music, there was a keg, there was the selling of the Vesper. There was the selling of extra merchandise and donations and all things and they saved the store.
And that was an amazing and beautiful thing. So. Just because you're not feeling it this month, just because your last two clients pulled out, just because your podcast downloads have seen to plateau, it doesn't mean that you can't do something amazing to shake up your business, make a change and continue doing amazing things with your side hustle.