We all want our songs to be perfect. However, we should want them to be ‘excellent’, not perfect. Why? There’s a big difference between perfectionism and being excellent!
3 THOUGHTS FROM ME
1. Perfectionism is often a curse, not a virtue. Perfectionism means that you can’t finish stuff, or that you are probably wasting time on small details almost nobody, if anybody, will notice it. If this makes you take longer to finish a song, that could be seen as procrastination in disguise. A good finished song is better than a perfect unfinished one.
2. Perfectionists often set themselves unrealistic goals, which lead them to over-necessary work. As hard as it may be, committing and letting go is the key to overcoming it. For example, start by transforming your midi channels to audio, or using stems in a different project for mixing. Kill the opportunities to overdo what you’ve done.
3. Perfectionism and excellence are totally different. Excellence is the pursuit of the best achievable result, and perfectionism is the pursuit of an unreal expectation. Art is not and never will be perfect as it is subject to other people’s opinions, so even your perfect song may be ‘ok’ to someone else. Make it the best you can since perfect is unreal.
1 QUESTION FOR YOU
Mixing is normally the part where we are most perfectionists, and often struggle to finish it. How can you make your next project less prone to perfectionism?
a. Create a list of to-dos and stick with it;
b. Ask for feedback. Your ‘undone’ may already be finished in the eyes of others;
c. Commit and let go. 0.1/0.2db here and there won’t really change a thing to the listener;
d. Seek the ‘best you can’, not the ‘best you don’t have a clue how to do’.
