Mark Samples

Writer, musician, and professional musicologist (CWU). I study the influence of marketing on the history of music. co-founder Glisten IQ

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

I wrote and produced music for RealTruck's ad campaign last summer. We did a version with just percussion. Every sound you hear in this ad was made by banging, scraping, or otherwise using a truck as a percussion instrument. Love how this turned out.

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

@ShaanVP Send it

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

@NebulaAI I’m building a fundraising platform for high school bands. Because every kid deserves to have a musical education.

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

https://t.co/rt9j5Jjdw5

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

@jspujji Sales

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

@ShaanVP Did he ever say why this story led to him giving everyone nicknames? I had to stop the pod early and have wondered all day

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

Pay now or pay later.

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

@ShaanVP I listened to the first 30 minutes and told my 16yo son: you have to listen to this now

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

@Replit @amasad 🚢🚢🚢

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

**add all to reading list**

[Feeling Distant @annkpowers]

Happy to support @robsheff here

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

I post timeless advice and stories for creatives every week. Sign up to get them in your inbox (it's free). https://t.co/NY5jphbisc

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

Growth is earned when you invest in loss.

It was humbling. Sometimes humiliating.

In The Art of Learning, Joshua Waitzkin tells the story of his early days training in Push Hands, a Tai Chi practice.

He had a classmate named Evan, and every time they stepped onto the mat, Evan smashed him around. Not once or twice—every session, for months.

But Waitzkin kept coming back. Because he knew that the fastest way to grow wasn’t to avoid these beatings, it was to seek them out.

He calls it “investment in loss”—the practice of deliberately putting yourself in situations where you are overmatched.

Not to prove anything. Not to protect your ego. But to find out, as quickly as possible, where your weaknesses are.

Each time Evan put him on the ground, Waitzkin treated it like a diagnostic tool. Where did his stance collapse? Where was his timing off? Where did he lose balance?

Over time, he stopped fearing being hit. He relaxed under pressure. The chaos slowed down. Evan’s movements became easier to read, his attacks easier to anticipate.

And then, one day, Waitzkin threw Evan to the ground. Months of losses had quietly built the foundation for that single moment.

Most people avoid these kinds of situations. They stay in their comfort zones, working only with peers they can keep up with, rehearsing for audiences who will clap no matter what.

But comfort is a trap. It feels safe, but it slows growth to a crawl. The real acceleration happens at the edge of your ability, where mistakes are frequent and survival depends on adaptation.

This is true whether you are sparring in martial arts, learning an instrument, building a business, or writing your next book.

If you can resist the urge to protect your ego, if you can see each defeat as tuition paid toward your future skill, you’ll improve faster than you thought possible. The losses are not setbacks. They are investments.

So this week, find your “Evan.” Step into a room where you’re not the best. Let yourself get thrown around. Learn what the losses have to teach you.

When the game slows down later, you’ll know exactly why.

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

@_sonith For sure

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

How can loss be the fastest way to grow?

New issue drops tomorrow in The Creative Process: Joshua Waitzkin’s “investment in loss," and why embracing defeat can be your greatest advantage.

Subscribe here to get it (free): https://t.co/12u6n8R986

[Kill Rock Stars @killrockstars]

Happy Birthday, Elliott.
Which album are you spinning today?

#ElliottSmith forever.

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

@killrockstars xo on repeat

[Kjos Music Co. @KjosMusic]

Idaho Piano Teachers, Don't Miss Keith Snell's FREE Piano workshop August 7th!
Sponsored by Chesbro Music Company - Idaho Falls, Idaho. Click Link for Details: https://t.co/aQgzDXkXkK]
#KeithSnell #PianoTeachers #PianoTeacher #Piano #KjosMusic #ChesbroMusicCompany

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

I'm obsessed with note cards and use them every day to remember what I read, and draft my writing. In this article, I explain the basics of my research note card system.
https://t.co/CDvNmOXHUz

[Mark Samples @mcsamples]

@bscholl This is why I built Surface Luck.

https://t.co/AOPKFSYvCx