Understanding Fear Based Procrastination - Stream Theory Ep. 6
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- Опубліковано 19 тра 2024
- Lately I've been observing my own procrastination and I think I've figured out why it's so easy to fall into this trap.
Why do we procrastinate? Obviously there can be many reasons, but I think a massive one is the fear and anxiety associated with confronting the inevitability of a disappoinitng end result.
When we have a creative idea, or a grand vision of a song, or painting, or book, or what have you, it's easy to become paralyzed at later stages of the process. Because when we work towards the end result, we also close doors along the way. We reduce the potential of the thing by working on it, and with a lot of emotion invested in an end result of a particular nature, it's so easy to just put it off.
We procrastinate out of fear, and I believe a very important skill for any artist or creative is to regognize this tendency in ourselves, and work on confronting that fear. To strengthen that emotional muscle, because in order to get anything done, we're gonna need it.
#procrastination #streamtheory #dealingwithfearandanxiety
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Chapters:
0:00-1:43 Who am I and what is Stream Theory?
1:44-7:12 Why great ideas are harder to finish
7:13-8:14 No more procrastination
You learn and grow with every release. You might release a song and 'nothing happens' right after, but with each release you are building a catalog of music for future listeners to venture down.
You're absolutely right. I try to think of it as, not only do you grow and learn musically the more you finish and put out, but also emotionally.
I'm a pretty anxiety driven person, so I need many rounds of something feeling awful before I can begin to relax and step away from the anxious cycle and just let it pass through me.
I completely understand your POV. I think currently I take this as a journey and accept that my music will evolve with me and (hopefully) as my taste and skills evolve. The truth is that deadlines are the most important thing to have things done. Having accountability partners where you announce a deadline forces you to finish things. For example, announcing a date here. Otherwise, you'll always find ways to improve small details in the songs.
I understand when you say that you want the first to be impactful but the truth is that if you don't set up a deadline you won't ever finish it. And you'll feel frustrated because by the time you eventually are close to finishing it, you might have evolved as person, as musician, and it maybe not resonate as much with you. Treat it as a musician log, where each song marks a spot in your path.
Unfortunately, even if your song was the greatest ever it will always be hard to make it be heard by the people who would enjoy it, at least in the first few songs. Write more songs than you release and as you release them you'll feel better even if some of them will not “perform” as good as you would expect. But the most important is to do it and enjoy the ride. And do not overthink it!
Do your best with what you have in a deadline defined by you and move to the next song :) We all want to hear your songs! We already enjoy all your small cinematic tunes you've been sharing here. You have nothing to fear. Done is better than perfect!
Let me know if you need some feedback on your songs if you feel you're loosing perspective. Would love to help you move forward!
You are spot on here. Couldn't agree more to be honest. I noticed though that putting out finished "demos" for fun was a lot easier than putting out "real" songs.
In my case I really enjoy writing songs, but recording and mixing them is another story. That's very tedious for me and I really don't enjoy that process as much at all. So, that's where most of my procrastination kicks in. When I have to record the "real" takes instead of the demo ones.
I will definitely take you up on that. What's the best place to bounce ideas and talk, would it be your email?