by David Andrew Wiebe | Nov 2, 2023 | Personal Development
I marvel at the changes this experiment has already brought about in my life. It hasn’t all been easy, but I think much of it has been healthy.
Today, I’ve organized my thoughts under a few headings, so sit back, relax, have a water kefir, and read on.
The Error of My Ways
In the last two days, I’ve made massive progress with editing one of my forthcoming books (a travelog).
There are a couple of things that became glaringly obvious as I’ve been looking back on my journeys and misadventures from 2022:
- I was not eating healthy. Somehow, I was deluded into thinking I was because I was enjoying what I was eating. But I was eating out a lot. Circumstances dictated it. I was frequently traveling and moving about, I wasn’t always staying at places where I could freely cook meals, and sometimes I was simply too preoccupied to make meals.
- I complained of tiredness and exhaustion numerous times. The impact of bad habits was showing, and I was not noticing!
I have been getting into much better habits this year, opting to get back into working out as early as February. But my eating habits didn’t really change until about September when I finally decided to bring my Instant Pot and Ninja blender with me everywhere I go.
I’ve also got a tote box I refer to as my “Airbnb survival kit,” and it includes teas, powders (protein, collagen, barley grass juice, etc.), teas, some dry foods, supplements, and a few kitchen utensils.
In that sense, I haven’t had a healthy eating streak for more than two months! No wonder I’m in the condition I’m in (though, as I’ve noted before, I’m not deathly ill or anything).
Sometimes, we need to make more thorough examinations of ourselves to get to the root of the issue.
Time Gains
The time that I’ve gained back from reducing fluffy input is either going into my own projects or supporting the people around me. I find myself saying “yes” far more often than I usually do, but since this experiment is about loving myself, others, and the Universe more, it seems in alignment with stated goals, even if stopping to support others interrupts the flow of my day.
Loving others is loving myself, given that we are all ultimately connected.
Temptation
I am already feeling a sense of withdrawal from my “no porn” policy. Not because I was such a frequent user. Rather I’m becoming more aware of how much media is out there designed to draw my eyes – an album cover, a music video, or even a YouTube thumbnail. If you’ll recall, my definition of porn for the intents and purposes of this experiment is “anything that turns you on.”
It sounds crazy, but until you start abstaining, you don’t notice how much you are being bombarded by titillation and how it feels to disconnect from the constant escape of sexual fantasy.
I figured this would be par for the course, however, and I know that the sense of withdrawal I feel could continue for a while.
by David Andrew Wiebe | Jul 20, 2022 | News
I’m finally breaking a prolonged silence to share about the new homepage layout.
Have you seen it yet?
I know you might have some questions about my absence, and I promise those will all be answered by the end of this post, but first I need to get something off my chest…
It’s Official – Google Hates Me
I have always known that there are forces working against me. But at this point it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it’s affecting my professional life.
Originally, Google gave me no love for the extensive, value adding content on Music Entrepreneur HQ.
Fair enough. This stuff takes time.
But when they finally ranked me for something, it was for a book review for Dr. Joseph Murphy’s The Power of Your Subconscious Mind, sending me loads of traffic for something completely unrelated to my niche – gee, thanks! How am I supposed to serve the law of attraction crowd and a musician tribe at the same time? It’s hard enough building credibility with one crowd let alone two!
(I’m not ungrateful – we eventually found a way to leverage that traffic too, but it was just one post mixed in among hundreds of relevant posts about building a music career.)
Obviously, you can’t take isolated incidents as final. But it doesn’t end there… Not even close.
This is How Google – Infuriatingly – Wants You to See Me
Google “David Andrew Wiebe,” and this is what comes up:
Wonderful. Fabulous. Google thinks I’m a musician.
Is that a problem? Well, no. Except that I have not actively been promoting myself as a musician for over a decade. If I had been doing that, I’m sure I’d have more than seven monthly listeners on Spotify.
I still make music, sure, and I’ve got some big plans for my next release. But that’s beside the point.
What exactly does it do to my reputation as a musician coach when people see I’ve got a whole seven monthly listeners on Spotify?
It discredits me. It makes me look foolish, that’s what.
I built my career on YouTube, SoundCloud, and ReverbNation. That’s how long I’ve been around. Spotify didn’t even exist when I was first getting started.
Google also seems to want to promote me as an actor. Well, I’m still waiting to hear back about those roles…
(Could it be because I don’t live in Hollywood and haven’t been actively auditioning for roles that I don’t have a solid career in acting?! Hmm…)
Anyway, Google “Tony Robbins” instead and see what his knowledge panel looks like:
Beautiful. Awe-inspiring. Shows the best side of his work (mostly).
So why the hell can’t I have a knowledge panel that looks like that?
Because Google won’t let me.
I went and claimed the damn panel, verified myself, and I still can’t edit. And I’m frickin’ David Andrew Wiebe for crying out loud! There’s only one of us!
I reached out to Google and haven’t heard diddly squat.
All I’m asking for is a little bit of control over what shows up when people search for me. Show my music releases, fine, but could you also show my books and relevant social media profiles please?
To denounce all the work, I’ve done outside of making music is to COMPLETELY ignore six books, hundreds of posts on this blog, Medium, Tealfeed, hundreds of podcast episodes on Apple Podcasts (and elsewhere), hundreds of videos on YouTube, multiple courses, and frankly the insane amount of work I’ve put into becoming a content creator, author, designer, and musician coach. I frickin’ dedicated my life to this work!
Google, could you please do something about this?
If Tony can look his best in your search results, can’t I too? Can’t you show my best side instead of focusing on platforms where people barely even check out my stuff?
I’ve got a substantial following on Twitter, Medium, and Tealfeed at the very least. Could we focus on those platforms instead?
Show my music, sure, but it should probably go below my books at this point.
So, yeah, a homepage redesign showcasing what I want people to know about me was clearly in order.
<!– Rant over. –>
Now let me answer a few quick questions before calling it a day. How’s that for giving a damn, Google?
Are You Okay?
Yes, thanks for asking.
I have been living nomadically out of Airbnbs for the last couple of months.
After taking a long-awaited two-week vacation in Chilliwack, I have been bouncing around from Langley to Port Coquitlam and soon to Surrey in a “working vacation” type scenario.
Understandably, there has been an “adjustment period” in making it all work, but it’s starting to fall together.
I consider myself fortunate that I get to travel and work remotely and daily remind myself to focus on the blessings rather than the minor inconveniences and annoyances I’ve experienced along the way.
If you do happen across a sweet deal for a ground floor or basement suite between $800 to $1,500 per month in the Tri-Cities area, though, do let me know ($1,200 or less is preferred).
Where Can I Find You?
You ever heard the saying “birds of a feather flock together?”
Well, this is exactly what’s been happening as of late as I quickly become addicted to BIGO LIVE.
After passing my audition to become a host, I have been streaming almost daily.
If you’d like to catch up with me, download the app and use the invitation code 2721876854 to earn some surprise bonuses.
I’ve also been putting out some free audio trainings on Telegram. You can follow me over there too.
Are You Still Going to be Podcasting?
Yes. It might be in a completely different capacity, but rest assured The New Music Industry Podcast will be revived. There’s more to cover.
What About YouTube?
This is the main thing I’m looking to work back into my schedule. I’ve already filmed a dozen or so videos, but they need to be edited.
Is Your Next Book Almost Done Yet?
Yes. I announced the completion of my latest manuscript on Twitter just yesterday.
If you don’t follow me on Twitter yet, do so. I share a lot of stuff there.
I’ll likely be setting up pre-orders for the book real soon.
