Sometimes you don’t see it even when it’s right in front of you.
1) This is a fascinating little video I stumbled upon.
In it, Jack White, a man I’d kill to meet and the former guitarist of the White Stripes, says something that really struck me as he’s talking about the cultural impact of 7 Nation Army, a song that he wrote that became ubiquitous around the world in sports matches.
In fact, the song is so popular now, you almost certainly know the simple melody whether or not you knew the name of the song — most people don’t even know Jack wrote it.
Even more incredible to me: even he had no idea it was going to be such a hit.
Jack at one point says, “It just goes to show you, even when you got it right in front of your face, sometimes you still don’t know… you really have no idea what’s going to connect with other people.”
My takeaway: we have no idea the impact that we have on others. To think you can predict or measure or control the impact you have through what you do and what you make is completely misguided.
Even when others tell you how they feel, via a compliment or an insult or whatever it may be: you have no ability to know their real internal experience. People tell me they love (or hate) my videos all the time, but any interpretation I have of their words is purely my own. I will simply never know what they’re internally experiencing.
I believe it is important not to make things ever thinking you know what anyone is going to get out of it (including what you yourself will get out of it). Let the experience surprise you. It’s more pure that way. Who knows, you might accidentally write a 21st-century globally appreciated folk song.
2. This is unbelievable storytelling. I put this in the top 10 videos I watched in 2023.
Thanks for reading,
Nathaniel Drew
