Tai Anderson | The Stillness Strategy

Everybody wants the 20,000-person crowd. Almost nobody wants the three ladies in the back of the room licking envelopes. In this episode of Proximity with Ken Joslin, my good friend Tai Anderson, bassist for Third Day, four-time Grammy winner and author of Market Like a Rockstar, shares how a band that started in Georgia in 1992 went on to reach millions of people all over the world. Before the gold records and the Dove Awards, there was a gig in Jackson, Georgia, with a one-mic sound system and an audience of three church ladies doing their newsletter. In 1995, Tai walked on stage in Holland in front of 20,000 fans singing every word. The next morning, the festival newspaper ran one headline in English: “Third Day, please stay in America.” A friend took him on a walk and gave him advice that carried him for the next 30 years: you have to decide right now if you’re going to please the critics or the fans, because you’ll never please them both. That’s proximity. One relationship, one conversation, at exactly the right moment. We also get honest about the part most people skip. Influence costs something. Tai opens up about the sacrifices of life on the road, the loneliness of stepping out on your own, and the tension of asking, “Is this my idea, or is this God’s calling?” Then he breaks down the heart of his book: the problem with your marketing is that it stops at the sale. This conversation lives in the Stillness Frequency. Stillness isn’t wasted time. It’s where you hear God clearly enough to keep going when the phone isn’t ringing. In this episode you’ll learn: Why you’ll never please the critics and the fans at the same time How to stay joyful in the small seasons before the big ones The difference between your vision and God’s calling Why stillness and putting your phone down might be the new act of worship Why your level of influence equals your ability to tolerate pain The STAR method: Serve, Trust, Advance, Referral Why fandom is about identity, not preference What a mindset of abundance looks like when people leave your team If you feel stuck, this one’s for you. If you feel stuck, serve. Timestamps:  0:00 Welcome Tai Anderson  2:16 How Third Day got started in Georgia  5:18 20,000 fans and one brutal review  8:17 Critics, grit and staying joyful  11:49 The three-lady gig in Jackson, Georgia  15:15 Faithfulness, calling and checking your motives  17:51 The Stillness Frequency and hearing God  31:13 Influence, pain and real leadership  35:32 Proximity, relationships and serving first  43:25 Why marketing must create fans  46:38 The STAR method: Serve, Trust, Advance, Referral  51:02 Where to get Market Like a Rockstar  52:45 Mentors, integrity and abundance  58:17 Vocational worship on tour If this episode impacted you, subscribe, leave a comment with the band that shaped who you are, and share it with a friend who needs to hear this. Tag Tai Anderson and Ken Joslin so I can see it. Ken’s new book, 14 Frequencies of Proximity, is OUT NOW! Grab your copy at growstackdrive.com/14. #ProximityWithKenJoslin #14FrequenciesOfProximity #FaithBasedEntrepreneur #MarketLikeARockstar