Being passionate about what you do will only really get you so far. Enthusiasm is great but it’s taking action and steamrolling through obstacles that will get you to where you want to go. Yes – even when you’re having an “off day”!
You’re reading this article and working on your projects because you want to get better at what you do. Positivity and drive will take you far but there can also be days when you get bogged down in negativity, spend too much time on certain aspects of the process, or place too much emphasis on the little mistakes you make. If you do that, you’re going to squeeze the life out of something fun, lose your passion, get frustrated and risk ending up with a weak end product.
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So… How passionate are you about this?
Some people say they’re passionate about mixing, music and pursuing their dreams, but how much do you really love this? Ask yourself the following questions…
- Is being part of a creative music or audio production process something that you simply need to do to feel fulfilled?
- When you get up in the morning, is it exactly what you want to do?
- If you have a day job, does your mind wander to your audio projects during the day? Is this how you want to spend your evenings and weekends?
- If your day job is audio related – whether you’re an employee or working freelance, do you absolutely love what you’re doing?
If you answered no to the question(s) relevant to you, then you have something to think about.
Whether you’re a rookie or a pro, there will always be days where you don’t feel as passionate about tackling the project in front of you. It’s human nature and we’re not just emotionless button pressing robots – no matter how much our clients would sometimes like us to be!
There are many reasons why you could be having an “off day”.
It can be hard to be passionate about what you’re doing if…
- You’ve had a long day of recording/mixing the day before.
- You’re tired in the evening after working your day job.
- You’ve taken on a job that you’re not 100% happy about.
- You’re dealing with issues in your personal life.
You might feel disillusioned for any number of reasons and have lost some of your earlier passion for being creative.
However, if you want to get your project completed, all of that needs to go on the back burner and you need to find your motivation. There are answers to all of these problems if you break them into small, manageable chunks.
Let’s look at some solutions for each scenario…
If you’ve had a long day the day before and you’re short on sleep, do the things that get you fired up to take on the day. Some examples:
- Write out a goal list. What do you want to get out of the day?
- Go for a morning run.
- Get in an early gym session.
- Meditate.
- Eat a healthy breakfast to kick-start your day.
Use whatever works for you. We all know what can cheer us up at the start of a potentially tough day. These days happen, so focus on making the best out of them.
If you’re tired in the evening after working your day job, take some simple steps to re-energize. Some examples:
- Use your commute home to clear out any thoughts about your day job and relax.
- Have a quick nap. You might need it!
- Be grateful that you can go home and work on something that you love. An attitude of gratitude will help you get going.
- Listen to some reference mixes or sketches of your ideas.
- Make sure everything is ready to go when you get home. This might involve having all of your gear plugged in and ready to go from the night before.
Being too tired to work on something is an easy excuse to make. You might feel tired, but more often than not, it’s just the case that you’ve had enough of a specific task for the day. If you were legitimately exhausted, you’d need to go to bed.
For example, I have a photographer friend who works long hours and often gets tired after a full day of shooting/editing, which is completely understandable. Yet, when he gets home, his tiredness disappears when he gets to work on his music. He loves both photography and music, but sometimes the brain just needs a rest from a specific task and a new challenge.
You have to get your head in the game.
If you’ve taken on a job that you’re not 100% happy about, then that’s really your fault. You have no one else to blame if you’ve committed to delivering something you’re not comfortable with. An easy way to avoid this is to:
- Be selective. Only work with your ideal clients.
- Set the terms of the project before you start. Make sure budgets/agreements are in place before anything gets going.
- Ask yourself why you’re not happy about it? Are you the obstacle?
- Change your attitude and be grateful to be doing something you love. Grin and bear any mistakes you made in setting up the project and get on with it.
- Look at the experience as a learning opportunity. It might not be exactly what you want right now, but make the most of it and who knows where it will lead you?
If you’re dealing with issues in your personal life, then as hard as it might be, you’ll just need to separate them from your professional life and get on with your commitments until the job is done. After that, you can pick up where you left off with any personal situations.
Everybody has an “off day” every now and then. The key is to not dwell on it and give the idea of an “off day” more importance than it deserves. Yes, it’s important to analyse why things aren’t going the way they should for you on any specific day, but once you have the answers, you have to keep going until you get the job done.
Once it’s done, you’ll feel better. Otherwise, no one will ever hear your fire mixtape!
How do you deal with “off days”? Is there something important I’ve missed?
Leave a comment below and let me know!
professional sounding mix every time...
I’m pretty sure in the last 4 years of getting into audio engineering, I legit wanted to seriously quit for good about a dozen times. It seems like the people who succeed are the ones who don’t give up. Sometimes the best thing I’ve done is to just sit with all the difficult feelings and doubts until they pass away (prayer/meditation/contemplation.) The storm comes and goes, and eventually I’m back at it, until the next storm comes again. and goes again. Everything you said is on point. Healthy mindsets and staying healthy are the most important for sure. Thanks for taking the time to write to us rookies. I know I and many others don’t tell you enough how much we appreciate these reads. It’s like a pat on the back that reminds us whether we’re going in the right direction or not. Hope you have a good week and can stall on those ‘off’ days for a while 🙂
Fuck yeah Bryan! That’s a very healthy attitude. Thank you for your kind words and please do persist. Anything that is worth having is always worth the work involved!
Yeah is agree. Appreciative of these and I think it’s literally exactly the getting through the storms that makes the difference between a pro and someone who gives up. Just think that every time you keep going anyway, you’re taking a massive step towards real success. Times of doubt are rites of passage.
Amen Cer!
How true is it that at night our ears are basically “destroyed”, so mixing and mastering aren’t a good idea? For the last months and for who knows how much time in the future I will only be able to do both at night, and I feel that I would be a “downgraded” version of myself that would do it in the morning.
Personally, I don’t think there is any difference. It all depends on whether you’re a morning person or a “night owl” but I’ve had to mix early in the morning and late at night. The only thing that matters is the end result.
Smoke some good bud then if you feel better you can get down to some good work in the studio. Remember to save often.
This made me laugh, Peter! Nice comment.
“It’s human nature and we’re not just emotionless button pressing robots – no matter how much our clients would sometimes like us to be!”
So true!
Whereas not a pro yet, I`m in a transition period rebuilding a new power-machine to replace an exhausted laptop, and waiting for, I just realize the daily addictive need of making music ! So just go to conclusion I´m on the good way …In case of “off days”, I take time to play keyboard and increase my skills (chord progressions, scales, finger drumming…), then often find a new idea that will give me motivation for next coming days ! ;))
Great stuff Etienne! Keep up the good work.