How do i get motivated when i’m feeling lazy or uninspired?

Try thinking about it like this… There are really only two modes… Or, what i call, functional perspectives from which-we (passionate and persistent music makers/songwriters/artists/home recordists..!) operate…

1. Inspired creative flow…..

… and all the other times!

Really tho… We just need to make sure that when that inspiration comes we are able to effectively harness it, and create or produce… We have to make sure we have handled the “outside of our making music world” stuff, in such a way that affords us the ability to completely tap into our gifts and talents when the ideas just start pouring out… Feeling lazy just isn’t an excuse the way i see it…Personally, i think we should BE lazy or beach-bum on a day that we have set aside for relaxation and rest, so that you can work when you work and chill when you chill ya know?

As far as motivation goes… I remember a quote i heard that has stuck with me for a while… (can’t recall the author’s name right now) and paraphrasing a bit, he said – “successful people make habits of doing the things that unsuccessful people don’t like to, thus don’t do…”

I think there is a ton of gold in that sentence.

Can i ask you a question? Does the lack of motivation have to do with creating music, or is it with doing the “other things” to keep you doing what you love?

Here’s one very condensed and pragmatic explanation of an approach that works for me…

When im operating out of mode 2, and im handling left brain stuff,  i’ve found that by focusing on one particular thing (ONE thing), whether it’s with the songwriting, record/music production, or one particular thing that i know I should become more proficient at…. If I completely engage – just doing that task… the right way… not lazily or passively engaged; then it doesn’t really matter what we are doing, because whatever we do, we’ve done it effectively… In other words, it’s not what we do, it’s how effectively we do it.

I’ve found that its usually if i can keep myself moving forward and not spend an entire night cutting 50 versions of a (scratch tracked) chorus melody, and instead just think things through in terms of priority, things just come together… AND, its frequently longer bursts of inspiration with less time in between them…

Best wishes to all, Merry Christmas!

Jamie