It's a shame when you get lost in a project, or go out on a tour, or get stuck in a demanding relationship, and find out that all of your old contacts have dried up.

You go to call a booking agent you used to see weekly, and she says, “I'm sorry - I don't really remember you. You're going to have to remind me...”

A successful publicist advises that you secretly give everyone in your phonebook an A, B, C, D, or F. That's your A-list (call every 3 weeks), B-list, (every 5 weeks), C-list (every few months), D-list (twice a year), and Friends.

There are a few people in my life that would have disappeared long ago if they hadn't been so persistent in calling me every month, or insisting on a face-to-face a couple times a year.

Go through your database, and call those people just to say, “Hi.” Or - even better - know their interests and life (from memory or perhaps from your notes) - and call them with some news that's of interest to them, even if it's of no other interest to you.

In other words, don't *only* call to say “How are you?” when it's always going to end with “So - can you come to my gig tomorrow night?” Call unselfishly. Call with some news that will make them happy. Keep in touch to make both of your lives better.