Being Deliberate

[rayzer]

Milfus,Welcome, buddy!Thanks for your example of writing and re-writing. I did a lot of that with my latest song on my commute to and from work this past month. It was surprising how much refining could get done that way.I think your first two goals could be addressed with one action. How would you feel about taking voice lessons? With the right teacher, you could address issues with your singing AND address your stage fright at the same time. If you took group lessons with 2 other people, you would learn a lot about technique and would be forced to sing in front of at least 3 other people every lesson. Then, if your teacher had regular recitals, you would be able to get up in front of 25 strangers and face your fear in a safe, supportive environment. The only way to get over it is to face it and do it until you're comfortable with yourself and with performing. Is there a college near you with voice professors? Don't worry about them turning you into an opera singer (if that's not what you're after), gaining solid vocal technique will allow you to sing in any style without stressing or damaging your voice.Good luck.Regarding joining Taxi--I'm pretty high on Taxi because of the recent Road Rally, and this forum is keeping the momentum going, so I hope you decide to join, but you have to come to that conclusion by yourself. Just know it's full of well-connected, helpful people with GPS turn-by-turn directions for your music career, and is definitely for real.See you on January 15!

[arkjack]

Hey Rayzer, thanks for bringing it back. It really does help to take stock in the progress. Well, I guess I had a fairly productive month. Although, I don't think I met the criteria for 'being deliberate'. Its more like I had a list a mile long, and certain things happened, and others did not. But here goes:1. Went though my catalog both stored on drives and what is posted to my TAXI site and Myspace. Reorganized and decided what was junk, and what should be retained and promoted. Posted new songs to Taxi & Myspace.2. Posted 5 songs from production, submitted 17 times to listings since November 14. 7 new returns, still no forwards.3. Re-wrote and recorded 2 songs. No new songs written. 4. Got together with Casey for a 5 hour jam and co-write session. Got the basics of a tune were working on. Burned MP3 files and sent to Casey for further work.5. Recorded 5 recordings of songs previously written. Tried re-recordings of 4 songs previously written. Experimented with various other tracks, learning, synth programming, and drum programs.6. Performed at open mic. Easily smoked the rest of the talent. Took guitars to luthier for check up.7. Wired up an old ART reverb unit as outboard gear into the recording chain and it sounds cool. Found a knob that raises the noise floor and cuts the mic hiss and rumble in the recording chain.Backslides and disappointments....1. Didn't get a call back from the country singer for 1st call guitar player. still on 2nd call list.2. Taxi rejections confirm that my material, recording skills, and submission targeting are still deficient.3. Spending weekends working the accounting business, and have a bunch of deadbeats on my receivable list.... which means I'm working my ass off and not getting paid....My goals for January 15.....1. Collect form the deadbeats and get the firm ready for tax season. Find new clients for accounting and tax business.2. New recordings of previously written songs. I'd Be Free, Isaiah 54, Chasing the Breeze, In Your Dreams3. Fix or remix existing recordings: Whose Side, Blue Unicorn, Until Tomorrow4. Go into archives and reload old recordings that might work as backing tracks or instrumental submissions on remix.5. Write songs targeting high bar listings for Bentley, Keith, and Shelton.6. Work on songwritng for female artists.7. Continue study and work on integrating the drum tracks from the three drum modules for cohesive live sounding tracks. Lay down the schedule for wintertime late night technical drills for improving playing dexterity.8. Put together package of material for custom critique.9. Continue work on collab project with Casey. Finish song and rough demo.10.Use the guitar synth and blues harps more in the next recordings.I guess I should have getting a forward as a goal, but that kind of goes without saying. I'm writing and recording and collaborating all with that goal in mind. Good luck all.ArkJack

[rayzer]

Hey ArkJack, thanks for checking-in.You had a really productive time, which is the main goal for every month. Being deliberate is just the way some of us need to live to get it done. Imagine what would have happened if you were being deliberate See you (electronically) January 15.Oh, and thanks for the happy reminder about tax season

[milfus]

Hey thanks,yeah I actually did join taxi, I got some professional voice lessons, but they are recordings, so, 2 out of 3, I think having some material might help, and learnin to sing, with the stage fright. but yeah, everyone i know knows when my note book comes out theres just no point talking to me, cause im about 3 worlds away.

[rayzer]

Saved by being deliberateWell, it’s the 15th again. I’m checking in and hopefully encouraging some of you to find time to meet your goals even when time is taken away from your day.You may recall that my daily times to focus on music were in the shower, on my commute, and at the office during slow periods. I’m still showering and commuting to work, but there weren’t any down times this month at work. My regular year end tasks have been compounded by my company merging with another company January 1st. Getting our computers to like each other has been time consuming. We also have new product lines that need attention and new relationships to develop to promote peace and harmony. Not only did I lose any down-time at work, I’ve been working extra hours just to keep the number of things on my to-do list steady at 15 items. Combine that with Christmas and New Year’s filled with extended family and tight schedules, and there was less time than ever this month.My music computer is giving me hassles, too. One problem appears to be a Vista/Tascam/firewire issue causing extreme latency and dropouts, and the other is my new video card isn’t sorted out yet. It’s pretty frustrating spending my music time on tech issues.A lot of people wouldn’t fault me for getting nothing done in music this month (except maybe Steve ). It would have been easy to justify letting this month go and getting back to it next month. But…if I did that; If I didn’t hold myself accountable to my commitments, I know I would start to fail. I’d start rolling back down the hill I’ve worked hard to start climbing. Soon I’d forget what it was like to be on my way, and starting back up the hill would get harder and harder.I guess I’m talking about inertia—an object at rest wants to stay at rest and an object in motion wants to keep moving. I started moving on November 16th, and had a great month. I didn’t want to roll back down the hill this month. I wanted to have another great month to build on and get further up the hill. So instead of going backward, on January 3rd 2008, I stopped. It was like I was on a roller coaster heading up the first big hill until it suddenly stopped. The coaster wanted to drop down to where it started, but those clackity-clack safety locks did their job and held it until it could continue its exciting climb. I may have stopped for a while, but I didn’t roll back down. I looked around and assessed my situation. My new mantra became, ‘No excuses.’ On January 3rd 2008, I made a conscious decision to meet my commitment made before you good people no matter what. I cut back on sleep and time spent on these forums and got busy (I’ve been such a footnote here, that you probably didn’t even notice I was gone, but now you know.) The end result is another great month. So, if you’re still with me after my sleep-deprived philosophizing, I am officially checking-in for our Day of Accountability, January 2008.My January 15 results:1. Buy Kontakt and Stylus RMX and start learning them.Ordered and installed. The learning process has just begun2. Keep working on EW, Vienna, and EZdrummerSlow and steady3. Get a video card that allows for dual monitorsXFX 8500 GT. Dual monitors working, but I’m struggling with memory allocation. Vista seems to be taking more system RAM for video than before I had a dedicated video card (turbo cache?). The system memory is allegedly just held there in case I need it for video, but nothing works as well with the card in. Further study is required before my next day of accountability.4. Look into selling my PRS 20th anniversary Custom 22 10-top guitar that I thought I had to have (but only played twice), to help pay for all this stuff I’m buying.I examined my options. Friends that want it are broke, local music stores take a big chunk on consignment, ebay makes me nervous, maybe try to sell it at a guitar expo in May.I may go the consignment route if they can sell it for a decent price, but maybe I’ll just hold onto it and keep the economy going with my revolving credit balance.5. Write a new song my usual way and submit it to at least one listing.It’s called ‘Common Ground.’ I will submit it tonight to two listings by 11:59 p.m.6. Write a new song using the new libraries and virtual instruments I’ve been buying and submit that to at least one listing.It’s called ‘A Walk in the Ocean.’ I I will submit it tonight to two listings by 11:59 p.m.7. Take my wife on an overnight for our anniversary (January 1). The best part of my month.In other news:I got another forward!I received my ASCAP card in the mail! (I’m surprised at how personally validating this was)My goals for February 15 are (in no particular order):1. Follow up on a lead from my uncle. He runs (literally) with a well-known band member/songwriter from the ‘80s who is interested in listening to some of my stuff.2. Work out all the tech issues in my studio3. Get more knowledgeable with my new instruments/libraries4. Write a new song incorporating what I’m learning with my new instruments/libraries and submit it to at least one listing5. Rewrite ‘You and Me and Maxine’ based on critiques I should receive soonThat’s about all I’m committing to with work the way it is right now. I’ll check back soon to see who else checks in, and I’m hoping to spend at least a little bit of time here on the forums to catch up on everything, but not today. Back to work. Thanks for being here for me.

[ibanez468]

Quote:Joining TAXI was in itself the kick in the booty I needed to get serious. . .Me too! But I might be a little different. I absolutely MADE time. I told my wife, "I was doin' this before I met you, and I gonna' continue to do it". She's pretty much learned to leave me alone when I'm in the "Dungeon", as I call it. And I'm in here alot nowadays, simply because...I have no job to go to. But that's another story. Even when I had a job to go to, when I got home, and took a little time to unwind from the hour and half long trip, first thing I'd do is hit the switch, and get to composin'. That's been 12, going on 13 years now, consistently. She gets mad and tells me I need to spend some time upstairs with my family, so now I get up there regularly, to see what's goin' on. I watch movies with 'em, and we all talk about what's goin' on. I do that for a few hours, and they seem to be O.K. then (mine are 15 & 11) And I explain to 'em, "Hey, if I should get lucky enough to start makin' some money doin' the TAXI thing now, you all won't have any complaints". I'm not just doin' this for me! That's why I'm really glad to hear about the new couple that came back to TAXI (greenteam, I think it is). At least they're both on the same page. I'm sure that makes things alot easier. In a nutshell, sometimes you just gotta' take the time you need to do your thing. I know what might work for some, may not necessarily work for others, but then, when will you get to be happy? I know it's tough, but hang in there.Squiddy, you are in my prayers! Take care.ibanez468PS-- Sorry guys. Looks you all have really been fillin' this thing up. I'm way behind in my post. Have to help the kids with their homework.

[arkjack]

Well its been an interesting 30 days for me. I was on track with my list. 1. Contacted the deadbeats and tole I'd like to get paid. Some funds came in to keep me going and got 4 new clients.2. Finished first mix of I'd be Free. Only recording out of a goal of 4. 3 Got the archive files straighted out and backed up and ready to reload for new mixes and revisits. 4. Working on 1 new song, might do for male or female.5. Submitted 9 songs, got returns on 12 submissions from December.Not Done:Drum track work, collaboration work, custom critique, guitar synth.One big development was when I was backing up the hard drives I accidentally connected the laptop to my system and realized I could expand my system into a software based module. So I did a ton of research and let Protools, Sonar, and Cubase battle it out. PRoTools lost the 1st round because the CPU couldn't support it. In the second round, Sonar failed to play nice and communicate with the audio interface in a friendly and appropriate way. It was dismissed from the hard drive last night, and Cubase has come out the winner. I'm now neck deep in the manuals and tutorials, and about 50% of the way toward integration of Cubase into my setup. The downside of this as I expected is that I have stopped recording while I learn all these neet things about how to work soft channels, MIDI programming, and VST pluggins.My Goals for the next month:Get competent with Cubase and get it connected with my system. Once it is in-line and tested, start with where I left off on revisiting remixes of prior year's works.ArkJack

[rayzer]

Ibanez468, it really is a trick to balance priorities, necessities, obligations, and passions. For example, it’s great to have time to go to your ‘Dungeon’ without a job taking up your time, but a paycheck comes in pretty handy when the mortgage/rent is due. Good luck with all that. I already knew that honoring commitments was the right thing to do, but now thanks to ArkJack, I’ve also realized that reserving some time just for me every month is okay, good and important. Like the good book says, ‘All things in moderation.’Speaking of ArkJack, thanks for checking in. Nice job this month. Your happy accident sounds cool, refining and exciting. In fact, everything you did this month helped lay a solid foundation for all the success that will come.Now all we have to do is keep going.

[epister]

Kudos to the opening poster in this thread. That'a very heartfelt assessment of your life, and thanks for giving us a very personal look. I'm a single dad with two kids, a house, a Jack Russell and a fulltime job, and knew the only way I would find time for writing is by pure peer pressure! That is why I created The 30 Week Challenge (www.eliotpister.com/30weeks).The 30 Week Challenge is personal pledge to write and record 30 demos - one per week - and post it onto my site without fail every Monday. I have no choice but to use those little cracks in my day to write, write, write. And then on the weekend, record, record, record.More than an exercise in self-discipline, though, the 30 Week Challenge is a fun, collaborative effort dreamed up to involve all my friends, musician pals, and fans (yes, both of them) to the songwriting and recording process. During this time, I will be writing and posting 30 all-new original songs in rough form to the site for their scrutiny and suggestions. You can leave your comments, or preferably cast your vote using the little VOTE link next to that week's song.The next step is what I'm most excited about: After the 30 weeks is all over, the 8 most highly rated songs (one for each month) will be collectively produced by anybody that wishes to contribute their musical talents. I'll post a list of what instruments we need and where within the tune, and any musicians among you will be able to upload your parts on the site for inclusion in the final product. I'm just the referee at that point. The end result will then be available for purchase as an album from the site, with proceeds going to the Breast Cancer Foundation. Please, please get involved. This thing will only be fun with your support. Please visit: http://www.eliotpister.com/30weeks to find out more, and to participate!

[ibanez468]

Quote:Ibanez468, it really is a trick to balance priorities, necessities, obligations, and passions. For example, it’s great to have time to go to your ‘Dungeon’ without a job taking up your time, but a paycheck comes in pretty handy when the mortgage/rent is due. Good luck with all that.Oh, I totally agree with you. And thanks for the good luck.Quote:...but now thanks to ArkJack, I’ve also realized that reserving some time just for me every month is okay, good and important.This was the point I was really trying to make. Of course you have to take care of your priorities, those come first. No argument from me on that. But at some point, ya' gotta' do for you. That's all I'm sayin'. When I see myself doin' and doin' and doin', and I'm not doin' what I'd really like ta' be doin', eventually there's gonna' be a little flip of the script. I'm gonna' throw a few different acts & scenes in the play here, if ya' know what I'm sayin', and get back to what it is I enjoy. Allbeit, in a nice, quiet and respectful kind of way. ibanez468