We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Darren Paltrowitz a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Darren , appreciate you joining us today. We’ve love to hear an interesting investment story – what was one of the best or worst investments you’ve made? (Note, these responses are only intended as entertainment and shouldn’t be construed as investment advice)
Some people will tell you that you need to save as much as you can because you never know what the future will hold. Other people will insist that you need to invest in yourself, and I lean closer to that philosophy. Generally speaking, you are going to be the person who makes your success happen.
A great starting point worth looking into is buying a few domains, setting up a website and claiming a few social media accounts related to what you want to do. If you don’t have strong design skills, hire a friend or local with graphic design experience to make a logo for you. If you are not a proper musician, hire a composer to create a theme song for you. Have tools like this at your disposal which you will be able to use for years to come.
It’s all a work in progress. You will probably cringe when looking back at your work from a few years ago. But the key is to get started, do what you said what you were going to do, and keep pushing the ball forward.
Darren , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
When I was a teenager, I started interning for a manager in the music industry and also writing for some local publications. Since that was 20+ years ago, so much has changed since then. For example, there was no such thing as social media in the late 1990s, and the Internet was generally not a major part of marketing entertainment-related projects back then.
These days, I have the Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz, which airs weekly on 70+ TV stations, plus podcast outlets; most of that content also runs in article form. I still help out music-related artists and have a book slated for release via Backbeat Books in 2024 called DLR Book: How David Lee Roth Changed The World. But the bottom line is that I create content more days of the week than not, and push it out to the world through a mix of modern and “old-school” outlets.
Away from my content creation, I work as a Private Investigator. I got into the field through a neighbor recognizing my skillset and noting how it would apply to investigations-related work. On the surface, P.I. assignments seem like they would have little to do with writing or conducting interviews, but that work is also rooted in deadline-oriented research while staying organized and meeting client needs. Occasionally my investigation work has entertainment-related components to it as well.
Altogether, I like working and keeping active. A lot of people strive to scale back and be able to outsource their work, but I personally enjoy staying busy and being able to go between a variety of tasks.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
Not being boring or predictable. You know how when you have to make small talk with a person you’ve just met and the only “great story” they have prepared — which they’ve told hundreds of times before — is something that happened 20+ years ago? I never want that to be me. I strive to keep being involved in and/or around interesting projects, and fortunately that continues to be the case for me.
How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?
Realize that we are not in competition with one another, and instead support one another’s projects. Collaborate and network among others in your field. Tell others about the projects and releases that you love, as opposed to the ones you don’t enjoy. Remember why it is that you chose to be a creative and never stop being a fan.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.paltrocast.com
- Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/paltrowitz
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/darrenpaltrowitz
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/darren-paltrowitz-44a6a11
- Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/paltrowitz
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@paltrowitz/featured
- Portfolio: https://authory.com/Paltrowitz
- Other: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt14955106/episodes?season=10
Image Credits
Photos courtesy of the Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz