Losing interest in playing

[TapperMike]

I'm having a harder time getting motivated to play recently.  Mostly I attribute this to burn out.  Cook professionally can take a lot of energy out of one. I put in a lot of hours at that.  As well I put in a few hours a day both before and after my regular job doing support.  I'm finding it harder and harder to do anything with my freetime.  I'm dead tired I occasionally make posts online and I'm just not interested in playing guitar.  These have never been excuses for me in the past.  If anything working lots of hours were an encouragement for me to find the time to play.

 

I'm hoping in a month or two when my internet job is no longer that I'll have the time and inspiration to play regularly again.

 

[john]

Frustrating when that happens Mike. It's happened to me in the past, but the moment passed. Looking back I think it was the sense of futility in that "I am never going to get to do anything with this because I have not time" coupled with simple exhaustion setting in.

There is light at the other end of the tunnel. Give yourself a goal. You might not have time or energy just now, but a goal or two will make a world of difference (if you mean it). That could be recording an album, or playing a gig, or pretty well anything that is something you want to accomplish. If you find that  even past goals feel jaded and tired, well there's nothing that robs them of their shine as much as not working towards them... then they always seem impossibly far away and that just gets unbelievable and tiring.

Setting goals takes little energy. What I would say, is don't just set them... write them down, work them out, talk about them, make them alive. It is you that breathes them into life, but goals can gather their own momentum once they start rolling. You know you have loads of friends here that will be only to happy to clap and cheer you on.

[Just1L]

Sorry to hear it. It does happen to everyone, some more than others, and it always sucks. All I can offer is to try to turn that negative into a positive. I'm sure you've heard of songs written when things were bad, after a break-up, death of someone, etc… Since things are sucking (time and energy) it could be a good time to try to go with those bad feelings and maybe pump out some ideas. One thing I do a lot of the times is to sing through it in my head. Turn everything your doing into a song inside your mind and let it rip. Anger, rage, sadness, hopelessness, anxiety etc... are all very powerful emotions. Sing in your head, what your feeling, everything your feeling. I'd bet that even though you may not be writing stuff down or playing guitar, something will come of it that can inspire a song. Probably just a really great phrase that you may not have been able to come up with without the emotions your feeling added to your current job situation. Rest easy knowing that eventually it will pass and while it's still around, try to harness what your feeling. And just maybe finding that awesome line will be enough to inspire you to pick up the guitar to play along with it. Until then, I'd suggest having some sort of recording device only so you can capture that line combined with whatever melody you're coming up with for it.

Hope things get better.

Randy

[TapperMike]

I'm trying to do that but even that is a challenge.....

 

I don't have a car.  A friend of mine is a full time working musician who happens to host a blues jam on Sunday nights. I work on Sunday nights.  I usually get off work right about the time the show begins.  It's a two hour walk with guitar in hand to the show.  I'm trying to convince someone to drive me out after work to the gig.  And until last week I was relearning many of the blues standards I used to know. But that's faded.  Usually I'm just not energized enough for the free time that I have to do much of anything.  

 

Just like today.  I got up, worked support, Supplied the above post (and a few other online things)  walked out to do some grocery shopping dragged my bags and myself home..put everything away and now I've got to do some things around the house (cleaning) and get ready for work.  Tonite, it's work, then come home and more work in support then the same tomorrow.  My one day off I'm usually beat tired and all I want to do is lay in bed to recuperate from the week.

 

[TapperMike]

There is a light at the end of the tunnel but it's a very dim light.  I doubt if it's an oncoming train.  I just hope it's not like a ride at disneyland.  Where you wait in a very long line and you think your near the end. Then you get to that point and find out they just hid how long the line is by having to go through a door where you see another very long line which leads to another door and another long line and then after that one more door with one final long line.  45 minutes standing in line for a 5 minute ride.

[Rudi]

It was a bit scarey when it happened to me. I got over it within a couple of months. Your circumstances are different, and it might be due to a number of things. You have a lot going on.

One thing I notice now is that I cannot mix creative pursuits. So if my head is into photography, the music has to go on hold.

[TapperMike]

I've had an occasion or two when I put all music playing in the rear view window while pursuing other things. Fortunately there were always a few turns in life that allowed me to pick it back up and throw it in the car and carry it along in this wondrous journey called life.

[TapperMike]

Here's something interesting.

 

As many of you know I've gone back to cooking and still working tech support.  The cooking job is killing my hands.  Between the dry heat of the kitchen and constantly burning myself and rarely getting any playing time in.....I can't play the guitar anymore. My hands and fingers have been burned so many times it's not funny.  Thank goodness I still have the baby z to play with it's rubberized strings or I'd be out cold.

[Rudi]

Its a setback.

 

Steve's playing suffers because of his work carpet fitting. His hands are a mass of caluses. 

I struggle because of the worsening osteoarthritis in my thumbs. Pain is now informing my technique.

Don't let it stop you.

[TapperMike]

I have little time for playing these days.  Even today.  I'll work support for an hour followed by 12 hours of cooking followed by more support work when I get home.  Right now I'm saving for a linnstrument.

 

 

[Rudi]

Great idea. A bit tech heavy for a simpleton like me. Post up when you get it.

[TapperMike]

Will Do,

 

Now it's just a matter of pay and surviving the last month or so.  

Edited October 26, 2015 by TapperMike

[justsoulin]

It's just an 'off the cuff' idea Mike, but even with your limited time and tiredness, helping someone perhaps to learn, at least at the beginning, could help energise you with their enthusiasm and bring back reminders of why you began, or create some of the goals you want that John mentioned. As I said, just an idea.

Feel better m8.

[mississippidave]

One thing that might help ... I don't know if you've ever heard of a book called The Artist's Way? It has a lot of great tips for people who are blocked with writing. But the same ideas can apply to playing. Even though you are blocked up right now or not motivated, maybe just for two weeks set up a music schedule. Like force yourself to follow it. Even if it is just 20 minutes a day of strumming around, and not working on anything specific. Just allowing yourself to get in to the habit of playing again might jar something loose for you. I think the trick is to not make it feel like work. Let yourself just play with no specific goal in mind.  Try to reconnect to those days where picking up a guitar was just something you did for fun or to relax. Maybe you'll rediscover why you started playing in the first place?  Hope maybe any of this helps a little. 

[Greg Monks]

It's tough being in the arts these days. I've just retired, and have to say that getting away from the biz is a huge relief.

A huge problem is that there's less and less light at the end of the tunnel. As a brass player, the gigs were drying up when I entered the professional scene back in the 70s, I switched to Top 40 because that's where the money was, and today there are precious few live venues left here in Canada. Back in the 70s there was more work than there were bands. Today, you can't buy a gig.

There are some things you can do to make things bearable. At the top of the list is your social life. Having like-minded friends in the same boat is a good start, but simply hanging out isn't enough. Planning and doing things helps you stay focussed and connected.

For example, when I lived in East Vancouver and on the Sunshine Coast in BC, Canada, we would get together regularly for pot-luck dinners. They're a great way to save money and feed a big crowd, plus if you plan them well, they're a great way to meet new people.

I personally feel that as a musician, it's important to get to know people in other arts. If you think it's tough being a musician, try being an actor, a painter, a sculptor, or worst of all- a poet! Who ever made a living as a poet? And how do they stay upbeat, in a world that is never going to pay them a living wage?

Putting on multimedia gigs is a great way to feed your brain, even if you're not making a lot of money doing it.

Anyway, that's my two centimes. Good luck.

[TapperMike]

 Today was a good day for BIAB and me.

Thanks for everyone's input. It seems when I move two steps forward I get kicked 20 steps back.  Last time I went to a show.... My car broke down and it was in the shop for 3 weeks. Now I'm more concerned with getting other things done like finding another job.  I've been thinking of getting back into open mic nights and blues but here are the caveats.  I can't stay focused playing blues for very long especially not "Chicago Blues"  Mostly because I've done that and done that and done that and I'm done with that.  I can tolerate jump blues which used to be known as Rhythm & Blues because it includes a lot of Charlie Parker type jazz ideas (CAGED for my guitar friends) But as Greg points out in this business the playing out choices are very limited.

Locally... I have no musician buddies. There used to be a time in the restaurant biz when musicians could be found left and right. Not anymore.  I'm the only musician where I work.

I have several questions for you Greg,  I'm about 10 years your junior.although I do recall the 70/s and 80's fairly well.

Why retire?  Are you going to quit playing out cold turkey? Have you ever tried the newer midi based trumpets like the Yamaha EZ-TP or the Morrison Digital Trumpet? (A buddy of mine used to play trombone he switched to a yamaha WX5  his opportunities skyrocketed. 

Re, teaching. sharing knowledge.  Oddly I have taught guitar before in a music store.  These days those jobs are extremely hard to come by as fewer and fewer people are learning instruments. They'd rather play games. As well for many a year I shared knowledge about ztars. Setup, technique I featured articles on various ztarists. Harvey Starr loved it but he's about the only one who gave me a shout out and encouraged me to do more.  As for the ztars.  Well I don't think the BabyZ is coming back. It's got a wiring issue I can't resolve myself.  Oddly I did get the Z6 up and running but now it has more dead notes then before.  It's frustrating as hell and I've had to assign fixed velocity to make the notes that do work to work correctly.  It costs less for a new babyz then to repair mine.  I'm not sure starr labs is making them anymore.  If anything getting the z6 up and running has made me want a linnstrument even more.  The linnstrument is something I could pour myself into.  But my financial situation being what it is the linnstrument isn't in the cards till I line up another job and when working two jobs I doubt if I'll have the time to devote to it that I'd like.

Cooking is being there when they need you. Especially if you are at the bottom of the seniority.  Every Friday, and Saturday night and all day Sunday with occasional shifts thrown in elsewhere.  If I get a day position elsewhere usually they are 10-2 or 3.  The only guarantee of working a straight 8 hour shift these days is third shift at a Denny's (11pm to 7 am) and trust me I am not going down that road any time soon.  Many musicians rightly believe that to insure they maintain income playing an instrument they don't give away what they could be paid to do.  I feel the same way about cooking.  I know some may think this is strange or selfish  The industry is not how I left it.  I talk to peers these days and I'm amazed at how low the pay rate is in comparison to  10 or 15 years ago.  It's not just talking it's also trying to live at that payscale.  Working two 30 to 35 hour jobs just to make ends meet.

 

[Greg Monks]

On 11/24/2015 at 10:53 PM, mississippidave said:

One thing that might help ... I don't know if you've ever heard of a book called The Artist's Way? It has a lot of great tips for people who are blocked with writing. But the same ideas can apply to playing. Even though you are blocked up right now or not motivated, maybe just for two weeks set up a music schedule. Like force yourself to follow it. Even if it is just 20 minutes a day of strumming around, and not working on anything specific. Just allowing yourself to get in to the habit of playing again might jar something loose for you. I think the trick is to not make it feel like work. Let yourself just play with no specific goal in mind.  Try to reconnect to those days where picking up a guitar was just something you did for fun or to relax. Maybe you'll rediscover why you started playing in the first place?  Hope maybe any of this helps a little. 

Writer's block is a myth. What it really is is a collection of bad habits, or a bad working environment, or a situation that's not conducive to staying focussed and getting things done.

Speaking as a writer, every writer (and musician) I've ever encountered who complains of "writer's block" has either been in a bad situation or else was a collection of bad habits.

As proof, writers and musicians who write for deadlines never suffer from "writer's block". They punch the clock, do the work, punch out, go home, repeat.

It has to do with structure plus purpose.

[mississippidave]

Greg... 

I certainly agree with some of your points.  But to play counter point a little bit.. Just because certain musicians, writers, and artists punch the clock and do the work doesn't mean the work carries the same inspiration or passion that it might have carried when they started out. So from that standpoint you can call it what you want... People do get burned out and locked up in their creativity for a variety of reasons regardless of if they're cranking out work or not. Bad habits and bad situations often contribute. But sometimes it is just a matter of losing focus, losing interest, an aging muse or any number of other possible reasons that a writer loses momentum. When that happens whether you're forced to crank out music for money on a deadline or not- It is important to try to do things to make it fun for yourself again. When you lose that inspiration it shows up in your music.  The evidence for that is when working bands/writers/musicians put out material that is well below their ability or talent level often just to meet those deadlines you're talking about. And this happens all the time! We're all human and go through phases in our creativity. It never hurts to try new things to mix it up and keep it fresh. 

Edited December 18, 2015 by mississippidave

[TapperMike]

Or well below their capabilities. 

Oddly it's not always knowledge or skill that defines success sometimes it's a marketing choice that pays off.   Stefani Germanotta, was a highly talented "high brow" singer songwriter before she decided fame, fortune and accessibility to the masses was more important than intellectualism. Lady Gaga as she is now known is quite content with her material and her income.

 

 

 

[MikeRobinson]

Dunno ... I thoroughly enjoy the musical tracks that both of these people manage to bring to my XM Radio as I while-away the miles on an otherwise thoroughly-boring highway.

Therefore, may I suggest that "Charles M. Schulz (Peanuts ...) was probably on to something."  He didn't wait for 'inspiration' to strike. Instead, he gave it a daily appointment. Even if it didn't show up, he expected it. And in this manner he produced a vast number of iconic comic-strips.

Whether or not he ever "lost interest in" producing comic strips ... doing so was "his life."  And that is why he succeeded.