Check out our latest episode on Sixthman TV – Lake Day 2009!
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the song, “I’m on a Boat” make sure you head over to YouTube and check out the video, which satirically spoofs pretty much every rap music video that has come out in the past decade.
Until next Friday…
-Steve
From old school country to old school punk… From Sinatra to Cobain… From the kind of New Orleans jazz that talks about celebrating in the street, to the kind of rap that doesn’t talk about killing little white boys like me. I love music! The Stones, Outkast, Muddy Waters, Dylan, Portishead, Black Sabbath, Minutemen, Hüsker Dü. My life would be lessened without music.
It’s not about the genre. It’s about a feeling. It’s about putting on an album, closing your eyes and going on a journey with the artist. Good music puts me in a special place. I would like to share with you some music that puts me in a special place. Hopefully some of these songs will take you there as well.
Pat Conroy summed it up well by saying that “Without music, life is a journey through a desert.”
I’m always looking for new music to take me on new journeys, so if you have any that takes you on a fantastic ride please share them in the comments.
-Mad
So maybe you’ve seen the pictures, read the Facebook and Twitter updates or heard me complain about my sore arms, all the result of another awesome Sixthman Lake Day. With food and some drinks, some boats, jet skis, tubes and wake boards of course it was fun! But beyond the initial awesomeness, lake day also has become a yearly tradition where the company gets to truly get to know each other. Yes we do spend most of our lives together whether on an event, in the office or at a company retreat, but there is always the overlying idea of work going through our heads. There’s no “work” on Lake Day unless you’re talking about climbing your way up the ladder to make a trip down the boats slide or gripping on to a tube for dear life as Andy whips you around the lake on a jet ski. And this is good!
I’m sure it’s been mentioned in a blog before; we’re pretty good at just hanging out with each other. But, rather than talking about cabin sales or new cruise ideas we can hang out and talk about life, outside of the office on Lake Day. Yes, we all do have lives outside these Sixthman doors and cruise ships. And learning one another outside of our company roles has personally helped me a lot! Knowing how someone functions without a computer in front of him or her can teach you a lot about them! For example, I know now that Madison really enjoys taking pictures, so maybe he can help me edit the artist ones, when iPhoto is driving me crazy. Or I can now count on Mike to take some artists wake boarding at a port, because he blew us all out of the water with his skills. Andy held his own to, he can go as Mike’s co captain.
What I’ve learned over these past few Lake Days is that getting to know my co workers on a lake, on a Monday could be the most hidden team building experience Andy’s pulled off this far.
Okay, so I will admit I’m a technophobe. Please don’t ask me to gussy up an Excel sheet. Ask me to do a Power Point presentation and I just might faint. I don’t have any music on my iTunes and I certainly do not have a fancy phone. I don’t own a TV and I always write my blog in my notebook first then type it into Word.
Of course I’m always examining the process of it all (and by all – I mean life) so lately, I’ve been thinking…is it the technology, or the learning curve that holds me back? Do I dread new gadgets and programs because I don’t know how to use them? Do I get intimidated because I get lost so easily, unable to conquer the techno language? The truth of the matter is if I can get interested I am able to get over the hump. It just doesn’t happen that often as I can’t seem to bring myself far enough down the road to get on the ramp of the technology highway.
But why wouldn’t I want to learn the new project management software we are researching here at Sixthman? Why wouldn’t I want all my music at the touch of my fingertips? That is the real question! Anybody have some suggestions?
–Carla
Hopefully most of you have noticed, but every Friday for the past seven weeks we’ve been putting out a new video on Sixthman.TV, most of which are comical (and exaggerated) looks into our life in the Sixthman Office. It all started probably about two months ago when the Marketing Department was challenged with coming up with a way to showcase our company’s personality in a unique way. While we were thinking of what to talk about in our first video, that damn train drove behind our office for the millionth time and bam, “The Train” was born.
Now, when these videos get posted on our Sixthman Facebook page, the majority of the comments are either “you guys are too funny” or “do you guys ever do any work?” Now, I’d like to address both comments individually. Thanks for the “too funny” comments; we’re extremely flattered. We put a lot of work into these things and have WAY too much fun making them. It’s always a challenge to be funny, but with our office it’s not tough. Spend five minutes with Joy or Barb and try not to laugh – it’s impossible.
For those of you who jokingly ask if we ever do any work, absolutely we do. You’d be surprised how quickly we can crank out these things. I’d say we only do 15 minutes of actual filming each week, maybe 30 minutes of planning, and then a few hours editing (most of the time long after the work day is done). To make a Sixthman TV video, I generally run around the office like a mad man recruiting people for various scenes that last only a few seconds. I often run down to the call center and ask who has a few minutes (which usually is none of them thanks to all the incredible cabin sales we’ve had lately), and then run into Ops and find out who has time to take a deep breath and stop planning the next cruise (which doesn’t happen often), and then grab a Marketing person who isn’t designing or writing for the next event. Once we have our actors, there’s a quick 10-second briefing on the scene, a deep breath, and then “ACTION!”
From there on out, we pretty much let everything go and just let our personalities shine through. I remember when we were filming the Tour De Sixthman video (my personal favorite), I asked Barb if she was okay with running behind the racers with an American Flag (like a super fan). That was the extent of the direction she was given. What resulted was pure cinematic brilliance as Barb stole every scene she was in. Often times we even go into filming a scene and then change things at the last minute because somebody has a great idea on how to make it even better.
We’re going to keep these videos coming every Friday from here on out. We’ve had too of you tell us that you look forward to Friday mornings for these short films and we don’t want to let you down! In case you’ve missed any of the previous videos, here’s a link to them all:
I’d love to hear which one is your favorite!
-Steve
Anytime you put yourself out there, you are saying “I am ready to be judged”. When a band finishes an album, they are saying to the world, “Here is the best we can do at this point in our career”. They usually have a “Count your chickens party” where they talk about how every song on the album is a “Hit” and argue about which order the “Hits” should be released to radio and VH1.
When a new restaurant opens for business, the proprietor is claiming, “I am ready to show you my restaurant is better than the others!” The business plan shows promise and profit.
The sad truth is that there is not a “Hit” on every album or every menu.
Why does this happen?
“Art and Commerce” have an intersection where you will find optimal success but before you begin the quest to find that point, we must identify our own intersection where our “Passions and Strengths” come together.
Today my good friend, Rick Smith, is putting himself out there with the release of his new book “The Leap”. He is ready to be judged and Sixthman is flattered to be included as a case study in his sophomore release. In fact, he has already been judged by one of the most popular and credible bloggers out there; Tim Ferris (author of the 4 Hour Work Week)
I blogged about Rick’s “Primary Color Assessment” a while back and am I huge believer in finding the strengths that align with your passions. The passion will push you through the challenges and the strength will define your potential to stand out above the crowd.
Way to go Rick! Thanks for sharing this amazing insight with the world.
Andy
Steve and Ashley interview Doug Gray of Marshall Tucker Band on Simple Man Cruise 2009. After the interview and performance, Steve and Lauren discuss the (now sold out) Kid Rock Cruise, Sixthman Lake Day, Fantasy Football, and a reminder to Rock Boat guests about their favorite TRB memories.
Check out our latest episode on Sixthman TV – The Sixthman Fantasy Football League, where most of us take things a little TOO seriously…
Sixthman TV – Sixthman Fantasy Football League
Happy Friday, have a great weekend!
-Steve
Come on now, how many of you have iPhones or some sort of smart phone? I do! It’s starting to become the norm – at least from my observation. I use it to access the Internet, make calls, check email, play games, navigate, and countless other things. I can’t even count how many times I think, “there’s got to be an app for that.” So, I’m curious, how many of you would use a Sixthman app? And what would you like to see it do?
There is no doubt that the United States has become a land where dreams can be made possible and almost nothing is unobtainable. The different eras that we’ve journeyed through have helped us evolve into this great place we call America, and it all starts with great ideas.
Back in 1903, who would have thought that a couple of brothers would make the first powered airplane flight? How about our good ol’ buddy Henry Ford? In 1908, his vision of came together to form the first moving assembly line ever used for large-scale manufacturing. This changed everything – a whole different way of doing things. What would historians say about our current era?
In 5, 10, 20 years from now I think they’ll be saying we have been living through the “Communication Era.” This is a place in time where the whole world is at our fingertips. With the Internet virtually EVERYWHERE, we are able to stay connected all the time – and we have the tools to do so. Evolving from desktop computers to laptops, and from cell phones to smart phones; we are engulfed with new technology constantly. Embrace it – I’m sure there is much more to come.
Be creative, and lets see what you’ve got! 
-Mike
Launching new cruises is scary. Although we love to think we know what to expect when it comes to what kind of people (and how many) would actually book one of our events, truth is, there’s not any way to have a concrete idea. We research, look at trends, keep our finger on the pulse, you name it! But still, there is a major pit in our stomachs when its go time.
So, while everybody here was completely excited about our newest partnership, Kid Rock, on that first fateful day of pre-sale, I think we all took at least one moment and thought, “Holy crap!!”
Then it happened. We were reminded of what we thought we were sure of all along. Kid Rock is a badass, people love him, and this cruise is going to be a major hit. Kid Rock’s Chillin’ the Most Cruise SOLD OUT within a matter of days!
I’ve been keeping an eye on the social networking tools related to Kid Rock’s cruise, and its become apparent that Sixthman owes a big thank you to its cruise family…people from past cruises of all kinds have been chiming in to tell the skeptical fans what a great time it promises to be, and have surely swayed some decisions! So, THANK YOU, cruise family! We are more inspired than ever to continue delivering experiences that you can only get on a Sixthman cruise.
And PS – sign up for the waiting list for Kid Rock’s Chillin’ the Most Cruise!
