1. I have a hard time with the salutation “Dear,” but I can certainly put that aside to sing “Happy Birthday” at office functions.

2. My stance on the Oxford comma is undecided, so please don’t disregard my application if you are against it. I can be persuaded.

3. Clearly, I’m proficient with MS Office, but I feel that mentioning this in light of my 7 years of experience would be redundant. If I weren’t, that should only make resume more impressive. I don’t think I could have made it to 10th grade without reading, so Jordan Catalano gets props for that.

4. Most jobs require applicants to be generic awesome adjectives, like responsible, proactive, hard-working, organized or honest (more on this one below). I usually prefer to list more unique awesome adjectives that may specifically relate to the job, like analytical, dynamic, self-reliant, driven, diligent or resourceful. So for the record, I am all awesome adjectives.

5. I am honest, but if I weren’t honest, I’d still say “I am honest.” So I left it out altogether. I would be suspicious of any applicant who made a point of boasting about their honesty. Let’s just say, if I weren’t honest, I wouldn’t need or want an honest job.

BONUS: None of my cover letters are generic. I review any available information about the position and company, and this instructs the content and tone of my cover letters. I’m sure employers don’t like generic letters, because I don’t like generic rejections stating I’m “not the right fit” or I “don’t meet the qualifications” of the position, when (as I explained in my cover letter) I do. You don’t need to respond at all, but don’t make me think you mulled over my qualifications, came to this specific conclusion, and wanted me to have the constructive feedback that I’m not the right fit.

What I’m saying is… if it’s about the Oxford comma, just say so!

SXSW is often described as “Music Industry Spring Break.”  Maybe that’s accurate for those who can afford to make it that way. For the rest of us (or just me?), it feels more like “Music Industry Boot Camp” or “Music Industry Combat Zone.”

You start your day with a rigid battle plan that inevitably falls apart as soon as your iPhone dies, at which you point you stumble defeated over to the refugee camp that is the Convention Center to plug in and sprawl out with the other wounded soldiers.

You don’t choose what or when you eat or drink; you consume whatever free slop you’re entitled to at each party.

Your accommodations are likely too far away to make trips back during the day, so it’s 11am to 2am in the trenches, lugging a sack filled with everything you may need and a growing collection of useless swag you will NEVER need.

Wherever your urban barracks are located, they’re likely overcrowded, but crashing on a floor or draped over a loveseat is actually adequate recuperation from the 5 to 10 miles you walked. Anything too comfortable would be a shock to the system. After all, you just left a 6th St. scene that can only be described as post-apocalyptic lawless (well, controlled) anarchy:

None of this should amount to ideal conditions for business encounters or networking, and in most industries, it would be a disaster. But music folk relish the opportunity to trek out from big cities to a slightly smaller city, smartphone and business cards in pocket, and experience music the way they used to— with the cheapest beer, in the wrong bar, on 4 hours sleep. day after day. Roughing it.

13 million social media comments. 1 million more than the Super Bowl. Best viewership since 1984 and second largest audience EVER.

Very impressive social campaign by the GRAMMY Awards this year and a great example of how social media can translate to results offline. It should be interesting to see if the Academy Awards follow suit, and if not, how much of all this year to year growth is actually organic.

One of the things that makes me feel really sad, right up there with seeing tourists trying to enjoy themselves on Hollywood Blvd., is reading the tweets people write to celebrities. Especially celebrities who clearly don’t maintain their own Twitter accounts.

I may start posting some highlights here… because if I have to be sad, you do too.