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Lodging
#1
I am not sure if this is the thread to post this question.  Please forgive me if I am posting in the wrong area.  I know in your book, you said that the host usually offers their house as lodging.   How do you approach that subject with the host?

Thanks
Steve
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#2
(01 Jan 2018, 11:54 AM)SteveSaundes Wrote: I am not sure if this is the thread to post this question.  Please forgive me if I am posting in the wrong area.  I know in your book, you said that the host usually offers their house as lodging.   How do you approach that subject with the host?

Thanks
Steve

In the past, I haven't actually raised the topic with most hosts. If they were friends, I'd ask if they had a room we could stay in. But as for hosts who are yet-to-become-friends, if we stayed with them it was because they'd initiated the conversation about lodging.

That said, I've been thinking about this and think I'll be making a change to our host guide this year. I think I'm going to mention in the guide that some of our hosts are able to host us in a guest room for the night of the concert and that can be a real help to us, so if they have a space they'd like to offer us, we'd be grateful for it. And then I'll have an item in our application for them to indicate if they have a lodging space to host us overnight. 

When people have offered for us to stay in the past, I've learned that it's important to ask specifically for what we need in a lodging situation before agreeing to stay there. For example, for me and Jamie, we've learned over the years that we need at least a double bed (or larger) that is an actual bed, not a couch or an air mattress, that's in a private room with good air temperature control. And access to a shower. Smile  One thing I've learned the hard way is that it's way better to ask for what you need up front than guessing if a lodging situation will be good for us. 

I hope that helps! 

(And ... I'm so sorry for my slow reply! Jamie and I moved to a new state in late December and spent the first month and a half here renovating to create a residential home studio. Our first band showed up a few days ago, so I'm getting caught up now!)
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#3
(13 Feb 2018, 06:23 PM)Shannon Curtis Wrote:
(01 Jan 2018, 11:54 AM)SteveSaundes Wrote: I am not sure if this is the thread to post this question.  Please forgive me if I am posting in the wrong area.  I know in your book, you said that the host usually offers their house as lodging.   How do you approach that subject with the host?

Thanks
Steve

In the past, I haven't actually raised the topic with most hosts. If they were friends, I'd ask if they had a room we could stay in. But as for hosts who are yet-to-become-friends, if we stayed with them it was because they'd initiated the conversation about lodging.

That said, I've been thinking about this and think I'll be making a change to our host guide this year. I think I'm going to mention in the guide that some of our hosts are able to host us in a guest room for the night of the concert and that can be a real help to us, so if they have a space they'd like to offer us, we'd be grateful for it. And then I'll have an item in our application for them to indicate if they have a lodging space to host us overnight. 

When people have offered for us to stay in the past, I've learned that it's important to ask specifically for what we need in a lodging situation before agreeing to stay there. For example, for me and Jamie, we've learned over the years that we need at least a double bed (or larger) that is an actual bed, not a couch or an air mattress, that's in a private room with good air temperature control. And access to a shower. Smile  One thing I've learned the hard way is that it's way better to ask for what you need up front than guessing if a lodging situation will be good for us. 

I hope that helps! 

(And ... I'm so sorry for my slow reply! Jamie and I moved to a new state in late December and spent the first month and a half here renovating to create a residential home studio. Our first band showed up a few days ago, so I'm getting caught up now!)

Any advice on how to do this kindly? I'd hate to offend a host and lose a gig because I insinuated that their house wasn't nice enough for me. 
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#4
(16 Feb 2018, 11:08 AM)SebastianG33 Wrote:
(13 Feb 2018, 06:23 PM)Shannon Curtis Wrote:
(01 Jan 2018, 11:54 AM)SteveSaundes Wrote: I am not sure if this is the thread to post this question.  Please forgive me if I am posting in the wrong area.  I know in your book, you said that the host usually offers their house as lodging.   How do you approach that subject with the host?

Thanks
Steve

When people have offered for us to stay in the past, I've learned that it's important to ask specifically for what we need in a lodging situation before agreeing to stay there. For example, for me and Jamie, we've learned over the years that we need at least a double bed (or larger) that is an actual bed, not a couch or an air mattress, that's in a private room with good air temperature control. And access to a shower. Smile  One thing I've learned the hard way is that it's way better to ask for what you need up front than guessing if a lodging situation will be good for us. 

I hope that helps! 

Any advice on how to do this kindly? I'd hate to offend a host and lose a gig because I insinuated that their house wasn't nice enough for me. 

Hi Sebastian! What we've found works for us in the past is approaching the conversation in a straightforward way, communicating our needs with honesty, friendliness, and humility. It's not a question of whether their house is good enough – and it's amazing whenever anyone asks you into their home! Rather, it's about whether their situation will meet your needs, whatever they may be.

How best to communicate your needs in a kind way is a question of personal style, and I'm sure you can do it. You sound like a considerate person, and that's most of the battle won.

You did touch on something here, which I think bears drawing out specifically. It's easy as independent artists to fall into a scarcity mentality, in which we feel like we're walking on eggshells all the time, terrified of doing or saying anything that might offend anyone who might give us money. This is bad and we should all be working actively against it. It leads directly to platitudinous communication, tepid songwriting, and soulless interactions – things that, as artists, we should be working actively to avoid perpetuating in the world. 

Particularly in this divided time in which we find ourselves, I feel it's ever more important to speak your mind. Stand for something! Artists are supposed to be leaders. You can say anything to anyone, as long as you say it kindly. And then you can let go of the results. How someone else reacts to what you have to say, as long as you have said it kindly, isn't your side of the street to patrol. Just keep your side of the street clean and you'll be fine. In life as well as in your music career. Smile 
--
jamie hill
shannon's husband & partner in crime
co-inventor of the house concert model & co-author of the book
which is why i reply so often on here
i produce, mix, & master records
you can hear my work at  deptofenergymgmt.com/work
Tacoma, WA, USA
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