We composers and music producers tend to carry big plans in our heads. Creating albums, building catalogs, crafting new sounds. That long-term vision is part of what draws us to this work.
You likely have a clear picture of what you want to build, and ideas and inspiration are rarely the problem. The gap between intention and action is.
Talking about the music you want to make is easy. Opening the session after a long day and doing the work is much harder. When the project stops being a concept and becomes a blank DAW session, suddenly, resistance appears. You feel intimidated, distracted, or not fully ready, and you tell yourself tomorrow will be better.
To be honest with you: I have fallen into that pattern more times than I can count.
BIG GOALS CREATE DISTANCE
Assuming that strong ambition produces strong action is a mistake.
Large goals create distance. “Write a cinematic album for label X” sounds clear, but it hides dozens of tasks: composition, orchestration, revisions, mixing, mastering, possibly even artwork, and release strategy. When our brain registers that scale, it often hits the brakes and looks for a way out.
Instead of composing, you research new libraries that give you that sound. Instead of writing a melody, you reorganize your template to utmost perfection. Instead of designing sounds, you watch another tutorial about soft-clipping. You call it preparation, but often, it is just procrastination dressed up as optimization.
Don’t get me wrong, planning and preparation have their place, for sure. Research can and will help. But preparation without practice does not move your creative output forward.
SHRINK THE COMMITMENT
What changed things for me was reducing the size of the commitment.
Not “I wanna write a full cue today.”
Write sixteen bars.
Not “I need to improve my orchestration skills.”
Study one specific voicing for strings.
Not “I want to become better at trailer sound design.”
Create one riser from scratch and save it.
When the action is small enough, the resistance to taking action drops. Opening your DAW to write a couple of bars feels manageable. Studying one orchestration technique is contained. Designing one riser does not require ideal conditions.
The smaller the entry point, the harder it becomes to justify skipping it.
Of course, sixteen bars will not change your career overnight. One designed sound will not define your signature sound. The point is repetition.
If you want a concrete way to structure these small commitments, my approach with 30-minute composition blocks shows how short, timed sessions can keep your work forward-moving without pressure.
ACTION BEFORE INSPIRATION
You begin with a small task. You program a rhythm. You sketch a chord progression. You design a pulsing bass. And before you know it, ten minutes later, you are more engaged than when you started. Ideas connect. Variations appear from nowhere. A rough sketch turns into a usable cue.
Inspiration tends to show up after you begin.
Waiting for the right mood keeps you stuck. Starting with a contained task reduces the threshold. Once you are already inside the session, extending the work by another ten or twenty minutes feels natural.
For trailer and film composers, this approach fits the structure of the craft. Writing, orchestration, sound design, mixing, arrangement, and delivery formats. Trying to improve everything at once creates friction. Improving one narrow skill each day is sustainable.
CONSISTENCY BEATS “FEELING READY”
For many of us, the problem that slows our creative output down is waiting to feel ready.
You tell yourself you will start when you have more time, sharper focus, or a better idea. Meanwhile, project files pile up and remain in folders called “Sketches” or “Ideas 3.”
This might sound contradictory, but instead of making things harder for you, lower the daily bar instead of raising it.
Choose one small commitment connected to your craft and repeat it daily.
Keep the scope modest. Keep the rule strict. Do it regardless of mood. Build musical memory.
After a week, you will have seven short sketches, seven new sounds, or seven refined passages. More importantly, you have seven repetitions of showing up. I guarantee you that is what will produce finished cues, a growing sound library, and a sharper sense of arrangement over time.
Lower the bar. Open the session. Complete the small task. Repeat it tomorrow.
We composers and music producers tend to carry big plans in our heads. Creating albums, building catalogs, crafting new sounds. That long-term vision is part of what draws us to this work.
You likely have a clear picture of what you want to build, and ideas and inspiration are rarely the problem. The gap between intention and action is.
Talking about the music you want to make is easy. Opening the session after a long day and doing the work is much harder. When the project stops being a concept and becomes a blank DAW session, suddenly, resistance appears. You feel intimidated, distracted, or not fully ready, and you tell yourself tomorrow will be better.
To be honest with you: I have fallen into that pattern more times than I can count.
BIG GOALS CREATE DISTANCE
Assuming that strong ambition produces strong action is a mistake.
Large goals create distance. “Write a cinematic album for label X” sounds clear, but it hides dozens of tasks: composition, orchestration, revisions, mixing, mastering, possibly even artwork, and release strategy. When our brain registers that scale, it often hits the brakes and looks for a way out.
Instead of composing, you research new libraries that give you that sound. Instead of writing a melody, you reorganize your template to utmost perfection. Instead of designing sounds, you watch another tutorial about soft-clipping. You call it preparation, but often, it is just procrastination dressed up as optimization.
Don’t get me wrong, planning and preparation have their place, for sure. Research can and will help. But preparation without practice does not move your creative output forward.
SHRINK THE COMMITMENT
What changed things for me was reducing the size of the commitment.
Not “I wanna write a full cue today.”
Write sixteen bars.
Not “I need to improve my orchestration skills.”
Study one specific voicing for strings.
Not “I want to become better at trailer sound design.”
Create one riser from scratch and save it.
When the action is small enough, the resistance to taking action drops. Opening your DAW to write a couple of bars feels manageable. Studying one orchestration technique is contained. Designing one riser does not require ideal conditions.
The smaller the entry point, the harder it becomes to justify skipping it.
Of course, sixteen bars will not change your career overnight. One designed sound will not define your signature sound. The point is repetition.
If you want a concrete way to structure these small commitments, my approach with 30-minute composition blocks shows how short, timed sessions can keep your work forward-moving without pressure.
ACTION BEFORE INSPIRATION
You begin with a small task. You program a rhythm. You sketch a chord progression. You design a pulsing bass. And before you know it, ten minutes later, you are more engaged than when you started. Ideas connect. Variations appear from nowhere. A rough sketch turns into a usable cue.
Inspiration tends to show up after you begin.
Waiting for the right mood keeps you stuck. Starting with a contained task reduces the threshold. Once you are already inside the session, extending the work by another ten or twenty minutes feels natural.
For trailer and film composers, this approach fits the structure of the craft. Writing, orchestration, sound design, mixing, arrangement, and delivery formats. Trying to improve everything at once creates friction. Improving one narrow skill each day is sustainable.
CONSISTENCY BEATS “FEELING READY”
For many of us, the problem that slows our creative output down is waiting to feel ready.
You tell yourself you will start when you have more time, sharper focus, or a better idea. Meanwhile, project files pile up and remain in folders called “Sketches” or “Ideas 3.”
This might sound contradictory, but instead of making things harder for you, lower the daily bar instead of raising it.
Choose one small commitment connected to your craft and repeat it daily.
Keep the scope modest. Keep the rule strict. Do it regardless of mood. Build musical memory.
After a week, you will have seven short sketches, seven new sounds, or seven refined passages. More importantly, you have seven repetitions of showing up. I guarantee you that is what will produce finished cues, a growing sound library, and a sharper sense of arrangement over time.
Lower the bar. Open the session. Complete the small task. Repeat it tomorrow.
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