We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jed Brewer. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jed below.
Jed, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Parents play a huge role in our development as youngsters and sometimes that impact follows us into adulthood and into our lives and careers. Looking back, what’s something you think you parents did right?
One of the life lessons my parents gave me, particularly as I entered my teen years, was this: “If someone needs an answer right now, then the answer is ‘no.'”
This awareness of the trap of false urgency has saved me a lot of trouble in my life. Obviously, there are people with bad intentions who will use a sense of a “ticking clock” as a pressure tactic. But, past that, life is full of moments that can feel as though they require an immediate solution, when they do not.
Learning how to intentionally and mindfully go slowly is a super-power. And particularly so in a world that often wants to move at a ludicrous pace.
What took me years to realize is that, in the spirit of “if someone needs an answer”, so often that ‘someone’ is *me*. And learning to lovingly, gently tell myself, “You can wait to solve this,” has allowed me time and again to discover solutions I hadn’t realized were available, and points of success that I would’ve otherwise missed.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
Jed Brewer is the founder and president of Good Loud Media, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that uses music, video, and social media to meet the needs of at-risk people and historically under-resourced communities including returning citizens, people experiencing homelessness, those in substance abuse recovery, people experiencing poverty, and adolescents at high-risk of gang involvement.
For the last 15 years, Jed has designed and implemented a wide variety of social media and mass media-based campaigns focused on topics ranging from public health to environmental policy to violence prevention. These campaigns have resulted in millions of views, plays, likes, comments, and shares. Partners in this work have included more than two dozen GRAMMY winners and contributors from six continents.
Prior to this, Jed developed a first-of-its-kind digital music network designed to improve the health of adolescents suffering from chronic illness. This work was developed in conjunction with the National Institutes of Health and was made all the stronger by contributions from musical artists like Snoop Dogg and Sean Paul.
Jed is a member of the Rolling Stone Culture Council, a think tank comprised of innovators and industry leaders in music, entertainment, and related fields.
Jed is originally from Miami, Florida, and holds a degree in electrical engineering from Northwestern University.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Treat others the way you want to be treated. Listen when other people talk. Take them seriously and show a genuine interest in their lives and careers. Show respect. Be fair, honest, and reliable in the way you conduct your business.
It’s a small world, and word gets around. People will be advertising for you one way or another, so make sure the advertisements are good!
Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?
Find people who are good at what they do, pay them fairly, and get out of their way. I work with a lot of creatives, and I genuinely want *their* creative voice to come through; not an homage to mine. Places where people are celebrated for their unique contributions, and then compensated accordingly, are rare. If you build a place like that, people will be glad to be a part of it.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://goodloudmedia.org
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jed-brewer-29bb325/
Image Credits
Matt King, Julio Culiat