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Podcast running time: 9 minutes
Do you every worry that, as a songwriter, you just don’t have any talent? I’ve been there. I practically live there.
In this songwriting podcast, we’ll talk about “talent” and where it comes from. Here are some podcast highlights, with timestamps:
02:45 — Songwriting is difficult, and it draws from up to six different disciplines. You can expect there to be a learning curve. Or many curves.
04:40 — Here’s the secret to making peace with your mistakes and making fewer mistakes in the future.
07:33 — A preview! Two choruses and one verse of a new song called “Until You Run Out”. You’re the first audience I’ve played it for.
Further Reading
In case you’re skeptical about whether talent is really something you can learn and develop, here are some sources you can investigate:
- “On the Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance” by professor K. Anders Ericsson
- Mindset by Stanford researcher Carol Dweck
Excellent podcast! For the last year or so, I’ve been struggling with not only talent, but after 12 years of writing, I’ve mysteriously developed a really strong fear of failure, which causes me to not write. Specifically, I’m not writing lyrics, and when I do, they turn out cringe-worthy (because of lack of practice). It’s actually worse than writer’s block! Anyway, your podcast came at the perfect time, because I decided today to push through it, and see what happens. Thanks!
P.S. “Until You Run Out” is sounding awesome so far!
Randman, thanks for listening!
I’m actually going to be tackling the topic of writing badly in the next podcast! So please let me know how it’s going, and whether you find approaches that work for you
Great breakdown of the hats to wear as a singer/songwriter. I never thought of it this way: lyric writer, music composer, vocalist, instrumentalist, performer, studio engineer…wow! Add business and marketing to that for promo, booking gigs, etc, etc. Thanks man.
Singer/songwriters wear an unbelievable number of hats. I’d like more songwriters to understand that, and to be kind to themselves about their shortcomings. It all takes time.
Thanks for listening, Allen.
I enjoyed this podcast. I am fairly new to songwriting, returning to my first love of music after a lifetime of pursuing other careers. I have been working toward the goal of performing my songs for others at open mics, but the fear of failure, of making mistakes, makes it difficult to even practice well sometimes. It seems I always focus too much on messing up, instead of what I do well. I think this will help. I like your encouraging approach and look forward to future podcasts. And your song is cool, original and thoughtful. Thank you!
Hey thanks for listening and thanks for the kind words about “Until You Run Out”
You might find it helpful to scope out the open mics well ahead of time, and just watch. At most open mics you’ll find that almost every performer makes mistakes and still gets love from the audience. Keep us posted, will you? I’d like to hear how it all goes.