Making the Most of Your Precious, Limited Time as a Recording Musician

ChatGPT estimates that there are "likely around 300,000 to 500,000 part-time recording musicians in the U.S." This includes home producers, sync writers, session musicians, and indie artists who record and release music but don’t earn a full-time income from it.

So how many is that across the world? Surely the number is in the millions. And we likely all have one thing in common: a struggle to find the time to devote to our passion - creating and recording music.

The average part-time musician is usually part-time because they work full-time. And many of us have other important responsibilities that require part of our day - kids to raise, loved ones to care for, a household to maintain, etc. It's a wonder we find the time to pursue music at all.

So what can we do to make the most of the time we do have? Can we find more time or make better use of the time we have? Yes, we absolutely can.

Here are some of the techniques I have found useful to get the most out of the limited hours in each day.

COLLABORATE

This is huge. Not only can you get more done, but you can raise your game and have a blast doing it. Collaboration has been a game-changer for me.

I am nearing the release of my first full-length record and just about every song on it has been enhanced and improved by one or more collaborations. It has been my pleasure and privilege to work with some amazing musicians, all without having to leave my home studio (I share a blog post about it on my own website, here).

So how can you get started with collaboration if you have not done so already? Here are a few suggestions:

• Join an online group (preferably one where you meet "face to face" virtually): there are many such groups (like the weekly Mastermind available to Team Essentials customers every Saturday at 1 PST / 4 EST). This can be a super convenient way to connect with other musicians, share your passion, and discover others who are willing and able to share ideas and record parts to contribute to your latest project.
• Join a live group or go to a conference: if there is an in-person meeting of musicians you know of, check it out. Open Mics can be a great place to connect with fellow musicians (even if you don't go to perform). Another option is music related conferences in your area, or that you can travel to.
• Reach out to those musical friends you may not have talked to in a while.
• Use paid options (like Fiverr, AirGigs, Studio Pros, etc. - note that these are not endorsement, just examples) it doesn't have to cost a lot to find someone to add a great bass line to your song, or contribute a piano part, for example. I've had quite a few outstanding parts recorded for songs I've written, usually for under $100. Of course, professional mixing and mastering services are another commonly used service to help independent artists up their game and get more done.

SET ASIDE A DEDICATED TIME SLOT FOR MUSIC

Most weekday mornings, I have a little extra time between when I wake up and when I go to work. This is partly by design. I wake up around 5:15 AM each day and make it a point to spend 15 to 30 minutes in my studio, moving some project forward.

I can use that time however I wish - work on a new melody, review and submit to briefs I get in the email, write a chord chart to move a collaboration forward, work on a mix in progress, study music theory, practice, etc. There is no end to the list of things to do for the composing and recording musician, so I do whatever appeals to me the most or is most urgent.

It is a great way to start the day, and adds hours of accomplishment to my week.

You may find that some time at the end of the day (after the kids are asleep) may work best for you. This was the ticket for me for a decade or more when my kids were younger.

The bottom line is that by setting aside a dedicated time slot and being consistent with honoring it, you can definitely get more done.

INVEST (BUY TIME!)

I mentioned this above as one way to find collaborators. There are so many resources out there. You might have to try a few times to have a good experience, or you might strike gold right off. I have had a few attempts to procure the services of different musicians that were not productive, but then once I found individuals and services that knocked it out of the park, I would go back to them repeatedly, making this time and money well spent.

To expedite your effort to find resources that are worth the price, seek recommendations from friends and colleagues, review ratings online, and look for paid collaborators that are willing to provide an initial consultation at little or no cost.

MAKE A TO-DO LIST

I truly believe that one of the best ways I can manage my time is to make and manage a To Do list. If you forget important things that you need to get done, this can turn into a real time-suck and pull you away from other opportunities. If you have important goals and tasks that need to get done, write them down. Review and re-prioritize your To Do list frequently. This is sure to help you make the most efficient and effective use of your limited time.

KEEP LEARNING!

This may not seem like an obvious way to save time, but it absolutely can be.

Every time you learn a new technique to improve your writing, playing, or mixing, you up your game and ultimately save time on the road to masterpiece recording quality.

Learning will also help you avoid time-consuming mistakes.

Have you ever had to go back to the drawing board on a song because you had some musical element out of harmony, or had comb-filtering in some audio you captured, or there was some other issue you may have avoided if you had learned more about theory, or engineering, or whatever tripped you up? The more know, the quicker you can go!

Never stop learning!

PLACE QUALITY over QUANTITY

A masterpiece recording that takes three or four times as long as a so-so song is more than worth the extra time spent.

Or to put it another way - you can churn out a dozen "not bad" tunes that may fail to gain the interest of many listeners, or... create a few high quality recordings that leave you with your head held high and gain more fans, and maybe even earn those sync licensing opportunities you seek. Which is a better use of your precious time?

Quality is ultimately a more efficient use of your time than Quantity.

It took me a few years to get on board with this, as I sat by frustrated while my producer worked to improve a part that I felt was already "good enough". But in the end, I always realized that it was more than worth it.

So there you have it - a half-dozen techniques to help you up your time management game. I hope you find some of these tips useful and wish you the best of luck in making those hours count! Rock on! If you have some other tips or techniques that have worked for you, please drop a comment and share!