I was 11 when I picked up my first drumsticks.

I didn’t even own a drum kit back then.

It was a chair with a hi-hat attached to a rope and my dad’s 70’s snare drum.

After that came the first kit.

A plastic kid’s drum set I could barely fit on (I was already 6 feet).

Long story short, that was the start of a lifelong passion for playing in front of an audience.

For conveying a story and the emotions I felt inside, but could hardly express with words as a huge introvert.

It brought me to touring Italy, then Europe and even Russia (twice) with my band.

I learned a lot about performing and about branding, even if back then I had no idea what that was.

I’ve never been the most technical drummer, or the most original.

But I had a few qualities a lot of drummers didn’t have.

And that, judging by the feedback I got over the years, made me stand out:

• I always gave everything I had, in every show, to the last second
• I bled for it (watch out for the edge of that snare when you’re playing hard)
• I felt what I was playing, in my bones (and it showed)
• I paid a lot of attention to the show and the presentation, in addition to the actual drumming (from my style, to tons of movement, sometimes unnecessary but cool to watch etc.)

In the end the biggest lesson sweating and head banging on my drums taught me was…

You can do great work, be an expert at your craft, but if you don’t show excitement for what you’re doing, you won’t stand out

I have to admit I learned from the best. Travis Barker, the drummer for Blink 182.

Here’s how he condenses all of this in his book “Can I say”:

“My number-one thing with other drummers is I want them to enjoy themselves. Dude, you’re a drummer—you’re the coolest one in the fucking band. Act like you love being there and give me a reason to watch you.”

That last part – “give me a reason to watch you”.

Are you giving your prospects a reason to watch you?

To listen to what you’re saying?

If own a business, are you showing excitement in your copy and in how you promote your product?

If you’re a copywriter, are you letting your clients know how stoked you are about working with them?

Think about it today.

Got an answer? I’d love to hear how you do it.

Just hit reply.

Just to show you how excited I am to review and tear websites apart (I know, nerd), here’s this week’s Youtube copy and UX teardown.

Learn how you can make a super simple ecommerce even more straightforward and compelling.