When it actually works

People were delighted after the Apollo 11 mission was a success, but hopefully no one involved was surprised. (NASA photo)

The Little Middle School began as a Facebook post.

I put up a few sentences asking whether anyone would be interested in a tiny homeschool program for grades six through eight.

The timing was just right. People saw the post and spread the word. Within two weeks, we had eight or nine families ready to commit.

I couldn’t possibly have had a lighter touch in terms of sales. One guy asked me what qualified me to create this kind of program. “Nothing,” I said, cheekily. It took off anyway.

It’s funny that the concept of the school gained instant traction when so many of the things that I poured my heart and soul into went nowhere. If I had tried to intentionally create a thing that people would be into, I would have failed. Actually, I did try.

I often feel like a weirdo. I like relatively obscure songs. Bands that never made it. Book series that have no fan fiction written about them. It’s hard for me to empathize with people who are easily popular or who make things that are easily popular. How do they do it? And how do they make it seem so breezily effortless?

I wouldn’t say that my set of limiting beliefs is significantly more than the average person, but given my history and preferences, I don’t expect to hit on something that people are particularly into.

What’s interesting, though, is how that pattern that I’ve accepted has truth has the potential to change because of how easy it has become to connect with like-minded people from all over the world. Just as the invitation to my acquaintances to consider a novel approach to education was received eagerly by the appropriate people at the perfect time, this blog post somehow reached you.

In fact, as online communities have shown, the weirder we get, the louder the signal we are sending to the people like us that we are here for them, doing a thing that they can’t find anywhere else.

That said, it still feels magical when we try something that actually works. Every year, we launch our summer camps at Eclectic Music without any guarantee that we’ll have buyers. Miraculously (or so it seems), people buy them. This year, they bought more than ever. I should be used to it by now, but I feel amazed and grateful every year. I don’t take it for granted (particularly so after the disastrous 2020 season).

These days, I’m stepping back into social media after a long hiatus. I’m doing it as an experiment: Who is listening, and what do I have to say to them? Are the people I’m looking for also looking for me? Can we find each other?

And how weird can I get away with being?

I’ve never been particularly successful with social media, but I also never tried to reach people on their terms, seeking to offer something for them. And I never tried to find the other weirdos like me. Maybe I can’t put myself in the shoes of the people who are interested in blockbuster movies, top 40 music, and the Kardashians, but I can probably beam my signal to the others who don’t quite fit in, either. I think they (you?) really are out there.

So I’m going to forge ahead with my various experiments. I’m not expecting amazing results, but there’s always the possibility that I’ll get them if I keep iterating and adjusting my approach. After all, my ideas sometimes worked in the past. Maybe they will again.