How To Get Motivated

Working on music isn't always a fun endeavor. Sometimes it takes a lot of setup time, technical work, and frustration to get the ball rolling. Whether you plan on recording, mixing, or doing some songwriting, all of us hit times where we just don't feel motivated.

So how do we get motivated to start working on our music? 

I've found two ways that almost always work for motivating and energizing me to start working on my music. These two methods are simple, easy, and effective.

Listen to music you love. 

One really simple way to get energized about working on your music is to simply listen to great music! You know that feeling when you are listening to one of your favorite albums and you think, "Wow, this is such a great song. I want to write and record a song like this!" Nine times out of ten, hearing one of your favorite songs will motivate you to work on your own. This is particularly helpful if you are songwriter, but I think it can be equally helpful as an audio engineer. Good music also has a great way of lifting your spirits and giving you motivation and energy in and of itself. 

Just start.

This is probably the most important one. One of the most effective ways to get motivated is to simply start on the task. I know this probably seems counter intuitive. How do you start when you don't feel motivated? The key here is not to look at your project as some big task that you have to complete. Instead, break it down into little parts and just commit yourself to one small part. No one looks at a hundred foot wall and assumes they are going to climb it in one leap. You have to take small steps. Commit to one little step. 

For instance, let's say you are wanting to record a new album or EP. Instead of thinking, "I've got to get this whole project recorded and done," focus on setting up the microphones for the recording session. That's it. Don't worry about anything else. Just simply start. What will surprise you is how once you get going you will actually find yourself doing far more than you originally were going to. In fact, most of the time you'll end up doing hours or even a full days worth of work just by committing to a small step! I can't tell you how many times I sat down to just do one small thing and ended up knocking out almost everything. The important thing is to focus on one little step at a time, and commit to that.