SETTING GOALS AS A MUSIC PRODUCER

It's the start of the new year, and you are pumped full of energy of what feels like a new beginning, a new opportunity and a new chance to accomplish some things musically you haven't reached yet. All of this is true, and although every day is a new opportunity to start, the beginning of the year gives us a longer metric to judge ourselves by once the end of the year comes. All this is fine, but have you actually set your goals? I mean have you really thought them out, with a time timetable to achieve them and then wrote them down on paper. If not this is the first step accomplishing anything, let alone your music production goals.

What Do You Want To Achieve?

This is the first thing you have to have sorted out in your mind to actually set real tangible goals. There are so many aspects of music production you could choose to work on, without writing them out , with specific intentions on reaching them, you could get off track and go wayward, which will have you all over the place. So you want to be a better music producer? OK what areas do you need to work on? Do you have trouble finishing beats, do you want to learn more music theory, do you want to learn how to play a instrument, do you want to get better at drum programming, maybe you want to dive into a new genre, maybe you want to get better at making your own sounds and kits, do you see what I mean by saying there is a lot to possibly work on? You still have things like getting better at social media marketing, getting faster at creating beats, maybe trying your hand at full production , meaning making the track, writing a song for it , recording yourself or a artist to put vocals on it , then mix and master the finished product.

Write It Down On Paper

Now that you have all of your goals set in place, it's time to write them down on paper. Why should you write them down? Have you ever heard of the concept of creating a "vision board". Basically this is getting your vision out of your head and putting it in a place where you can see it everyday and envision it. This method has proved to be a tried and true method of those who achieve more. So as a music producer, you need to write down your goals on paper. Also you need to have "specific" goals as opposed to general goals. Again when you think in a deliberate, specific mindset, you can achieve exactly what you aimed for. Just think , which seems more intentional, "I want to create a lot of music this year as a music producer", or saying "I want to create 12 beats a month, mixed and mastered ". See how the more intentional goal seems more attainable? That's because you know where you are going, and where you want to end before you start your journey. This is the key to goal setting for anything, music production included.

Set Up A Schedule

Now that all of your goals are set, you have to set up a scheduled in order for you to achieve them. You may work a 9 to 5 , you may be busy with other ventures, whatever the case is, having a realistic schedule is a big part of setting your goals. With that being said, think big , but also think in the realm of what you really have time to accomplish. When you set too many goals , but don't have time to complete them, you tend to lose motivation and give up.

Reward Yourself

When you achieve a goal, it's a great feeling. It's makes you want to do more and more , which is a great thing. I personally say make it a habit of rewarding yourself , every-time you reach a goal. That may mean a nice dinner, a new piece of equipment, maybe buy a few sound-kits , etc. The reward can be whatever you like, but make it a habit for all the hard work that you went through to accomplish it.

Work Hard

The last piece of my advice for setting goals as a music producer, is to work hard. After you set all your goals, and write them down, you will already have a feeling of satisfaction that you are about to be on the right path, and you are. Now it's time for the real work though, make sure you grind hard and stay focused on what you wrote on that paper. It's so easy to revert back to bad habits , and that is not what you want to do. You are trying to create new successful habits, so this is very important. If you feel yourself drifting off track, grab the paper and look at what you wrote down and think about why you set those goals in the first place. You can do anything you put your mind to, the more intentional you are the better. Good luck to you all, in this new year, lets get to work !