Something I've been thinking about recently after reading @lxfsn's reply in this thread:

https://audiosex.pro/threads/im-looking-for-two-producers-to-onboard-for-private-coaching.84552/

By the way, this isn't a criticism of what @lxfsn shared, it's just my way of thinking through the process of finishing music. I really appreciated his comment because it made for an interesting observation.

I know we hear a lot about building good production habits. Show up, put in the work... and honestly, there's nothing wrong with that. But the longer I make music, the more I see it from two sides.

Sometimes not showing up is the right call. Not as an excuse or a way out, but because a producer who's burned out isn't the same as being lazy, and knowing the difference is actually part of the process.

The catch is you can only know that if you've shown up consistently enough to understand how you work first. Which I think is exactly what @lxfsn was getting at. The advice isn't wrong, it's just incomplete. And for a lot of producers who struggle to finish music I think getting that balance wrong is a big part of why that is.

I wrote something about this recently that uses parenting as a frame... which sounds like a stretch, but bare with me:

https://aymat.org/two-things-can-be-true-with-music-production-habits/

Curious if anyone else has wrestled with this one.

 

Last edited: May 21, 2026 at 1:04 PM

Spoiler: Der Mensch ist keine Maschiene. (In deutsch geschrieben, KI frei !)

Der Mensch ist keine Maschiene. (In deutsch geschrieben, KI frei !)

Manche Menschen funktionieren nur mit einer DeadLine, also eine festen Abgabetermin, das heißt wenn die Zeit knapp wird, fangen sie an die innewohnenden Kräfte zu mobilisieren, die Zähne zusammenzubeißen und zu arbeiten. Manche Menschen kennen das Gefühl unter Druck zu stehen, deswegen teilen sie sich die Arbeit in sinnvolle Abschnitte ein, um die ganze Sache durchzuhalten und weder Stress noch Burn out zu bekommen. Das eine ist Vernunft und das andere harte Arbeit.

Was sie machen @aymat, ist Ihren Körper zu trainieren um mehr Leistung und Stress zu bewältigen, das ist genau de richtige weg, den Du ja auch auf deiner Webseite beschrieben hast ob man das mit einem Sandsack oder 20 Kilometer Radfahren erreichen kann bleibt mal jedem selber überlassen.

Wenn Sie Unternehmer sind und viele Aufträge annehmen müssen sie entweder mehr Arbeiter einstellen damit die Arbeit geschafft wird oder intelligent und schneller arbeiten damit die Aufträge geschafft werden, denn dafür bezahlt man sie ja einen Auftrag fertigstellen wie vertraglich vereinbart.

Das ganze basiert auf Können und einem gelernten Handwerk als Beispiel. Wenn sei kein gelernter Pilot sind werden sie keine Boing 737 fliegen und landen können. Wenn sie also eine Mix nicht fertig bekommen ist es einerseits versagen, andererseits nicht können der Materie, für einen Song der nicht richtig abgemischt ist oder das ende fehlt werden sie kaum Geld bekommen.

Bedenken sie das eine fundierte Ausbildung wichtig ist, wenn sie Schwächen haben, trainieren und lernen diese Schwächen auszugleichen.
Wenn sie einen Mix nicht fertig bekommen, lassen sie Ihn liegen, wenn sie zu viele Mixe liegen haben suchen sie sich eine heraus wo sie das Gefühl haben, ich hab eine Idee oder es geht weiter. Sie können sich auch sagen ich setzte mir 3 Tage Zeit um Ihn fertigzustellen, denken sie vom Ergebniss her, hören sie sich vielleicht ältere Stücke an die sie schon gemeistert haben, wenn sei schon etwas Berufserfahrungen haben werden sie das auch meistern erwarten sie nicht unbedingt das er der Nächste Nummer 1 Hit wird, sondern eventuell nur mittelmäßig.

Schauen sie sich großen Bands an, Nummer Hits sind selten, besondere Song sind auch eine Rarität. das meiste ist halt solide Handwerkskunst. Hat auch was mit Glück zu tun. Manche Musik will einfach in die Welt.

Humans are not machines.

Some people only function with a deadline, a fixed delivery date. When time is short, they start mobilizing their inner resources, gritting their teeth, and working. Some people know the feeling of being under pressure, so they divide their work into manageable chunks to persevere and avoid stress and burnout. One is common sense, the other is hard work.

What you're doing, @aymat, is training your body to handle more performance and stress. That's exactly the right approach, which you also described on your website. Whether you can achieve that with a punching bag or by cycling 20 kilometers is up to each individual.

If you're an entrepreneur and accept many orders, you either have to hire more workers to get the work done or work smarter and faster to complete the orders, because that's what you're paid for: to complete an order as contractually agreed.

This is all based on skill and, for example, a learned trade. If you're not a trained pilot, you won't be able to fly and land a Boeing 737. So, if you can't finish a mix, it's partly a failure, partly a lack of skill. You'll hardly get paid for a song that isn't mixed properly or is missing the ending.

Keep in mind that a solid education is important. If you have weaknesses, practice and learn how to compensate for them.
If you can't finish a mix, leave it. If you have too many mixes, pick one where you feel you have an idea or can move forward. You can also tell yourself to give yourself three days to finish it. Think in terms of the result. Maybe listen to older tracks you've already mastered. If you already have some professional experience, you'll be able to handle this too. Don't necessarily expect it to be the next number one hit, but perhaps only mediocre.

Look at big bands. Number one hits are rare, and truly special songs are also a rarity. Most of it is just solid craftsmanship. Luck plays a part too. Some music simply wants to be out in the world.

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I'd say that mostly depends on why you're making music, and your mindset.

You might have the "GOTTA GRIND BRO" mindset, which will make you push through any deterrence and force yourself to create, even when you don't feel like it. Which personally doesn't work for me, and leads to burnout.

Maybe you have lots of work on your hands and deadlines to meet, which also might require you to push through, whether you feel like it or not. Or face the consequences.

On the opposite side of the spectrum, you might wait for "Inspiration to strike", whenever that happens. And don't do anything until you feel like doing it, and you have something in mind that you want to do.

Which works perfectly fine for people doing this as a hobby, just for fun, or whatever reason that doesn't have any urgency to it.

And lastly, the (in my opinion) best path, is as usual, the middle one. Where you don't wait forever twiddling your thumbs until cupid's arrow finally hits you. But you don't force yourself to create at all costs when you don't really have anything to create. But give it a try sometimes.

As Pablo Picasso famously said, "Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working".

 

It's interesting and layered topic, as you said, two things can be true at once, think one should try everything, take a break or push himself from time to time, exercise his skills, break some habits, try some other approaches, genres, gear and etc.

Working with other people is great exercise too, making music for other people too, making music on the spot, remixing something on the deadline, making music with just one piece of gear, flipping one sample, composing whole piece on one instrument, arranging on paper and etc, there's so much stuff one can try, we could probably make a whole thread with these challenges and approaches, it's all valuable.

Sometimes I would just take laptop and go out, visit some cool place, another artist, hang out with people, listen to music with them, make music with them, going to concert and parties always sparked something, even watching parties, movies and etc.

If you take music making as 9-5 job, making new music every day shouldn't be only thing there exist, you can pretty much work on few projects, do few automatons in one, little mixing on another one, mastering on third, some sound design on the side, demo some plugin on the way, go through your samples/presets and etc. Revisiting your older projects too, remixing yourself, improving old ideas and etc.

I'm speaking here from hobbyist perspective, someone who is there to make music for the sake of doing it, doing this as day job in professional matter is different mindset and set of challenges.

 

@PulseWave - Absolutely agree in regards to your reference on procrastination, because I was in that camp for a very long time. Not specifically for music because it's always been an outlet for me. But for work, procrastination is something I've had to learn to overcome exactly as you stated, through consistent training.

"...if you can't finish a mix, it's partly a failure, partly a lack of skill." - I feel like this a good example of two things can be true as well. The reason being is I'm learning that more often than not it isnt for lack of talent or skill. Some producers are perfectly capable of finishing a mix, they simply get stuck. Its the strangest thing and I'm completely fascinated by this psychological aspect of finishing music. Most of us have everything needed to do so, especially NOW with so many tools and resources available to us. And yet so many producers still struggle to finish music. It's like a deer in headlights.

"Some music simply wants to be out in the world." - this 100%. I also think a lot of producers don't realize just how much of that music exists that didn't come from big bands or what some professional would consider special... and yet somehow it does because it resonates even if it doesn't follow a formula or expectation of what professional music is supposed to sound like.


@oFcAsHeEp - I'm the same regarding "gotta grind" mindset. That mentality doesn't appeal to me at all. However, what I do find interesting is the perspective behind it. Because for some people what appears as "grinding" might just be someone else's default state and what they consider grinding might look completely different.

Regarding consequences, its a great point and something that doesn't get attributed as a motivating factor nearly as much as a reward. It's actually a great topic for an article

I think you hit the nail on the head with the best approach, which is mine as well. I find extremes to produce less than ideal situations for making music. but that Goldilock zone right in the middle is just right. Which really at the end of the day is finding balance, which in of itself is different for everyone.

@Melodic Reality - I agree. Making music is so open ended and just so many ways to approach it. I think that's the beauty of it though. Its different for everybody. For me personally, I'm just open to what comes from it. I don't have any particular expectation or goal, I simply just love making music for the sake of it like yourself. Sometimes I wonder how much I would enjoy making music on a professional level if I had the skills to do so, but the idea of monetizing something I love fills me with such dread I don't think I could ever do it.

 

For me, this is clearly psychological, and the reason likely lies in childhood or upbringing—perhaps even inherited—the lack of independence, the fear of not being able to meet high expectations, possibly also an obsessive-compulsive disorder about making lasting decisions, or perhaps even shy children who can't make decisions. In any case, people should be told this so they have a chance to heal themselves. It takes practice, then you can get it under control!

Thanks @aymat for your valuable text and the exchange of experiences!

 

Man, I agree with this absolutely 100%

It's interesting you brought up childhood upbringing because its a topic I plan on using in a future article, specifically because how it affects us not just as producers but in almost every aspect of how we show up in our daily lives. And you're absolutely right, knowing how that affects you I have personally found to be the best way to heal and work through it. Thank you for bringing it up and also for your insightful comments as well. I enjoy reading and talking about this immensely and it really means a lot.

 

It's great that you have more planned and that you're continuing your musical intellectual development and expansion of consciousness.

I'd like to introduce the concept of conditioning and, more specifically, the process of dissolving false, negative conditioning—that is, deconditioning. In other words, we often make life very difficult for ourselves with false, learned beliefs.You're the Pope! That's called a cult of personality. That needs to be broken. You're just as great as Robert Moog or Pink Floyd.

"It has to be this way or that, and I'm right," but there's definitely another way; let's see who has another way to solve a problem. The key phrase is: problems must be solved. Or, problem identified – danger averted.

I'd also like to add that the band Metallica had a psychiatrist present at their rehearsals for a while. The result was that the guitarist and singer underwent alcohol therapy, which is how they saved the band. There's also a YouTube video about it. By the way, the drummer goes jogging.