If you’re like most artists, you don’t necessarily have the luxury of focusing solely on music. Even if you work professionally as a musician or in adjacent careers, carving out space for your passion project can be challenging.

Fortunately, there are several steps you can take to maximize your creative time and bring yourself closer to meeting the creative goals you set for yourself. Below, we’ll share some actionable tips and tricks on how to effectively manage your time as a musician. 

5 Ways to Increase Your Productivity as a Musician

Use these strategies to create more sustainable and efficient habits as a musician: 

Navigate between different types of tasks.

Operating as a musician comes with several jobs. Between building beats, writing songs, mixing, and marketing your work, there’s a lot to wrap your brain around. When you feel yourself becoming fatigued while working on a certain part of the process, try switching to something completely different. 

You may find on some days you prefer honing in on marketing versus mixing, and that’s completely fine! Working variety into your schedule can help you maintain momentum while staying engaged in your work. While we might expect ourselves to work linearly (i.e. focus exclusively on finishing a song from start to finish), this level of focus rigidity can be restrictive and lead to us doing less than we intend. 

Create output goals and work backwards. 

Reaching lofty goals can feel insurmountable in part because you have yet to define the steps it takes to get there. The next time you have a large creative goal, say, releasing a single, break down that large goal into smaller chunks. In this case, some of those subgoals may be: 

1. Write and record the song
2. Produce additional instrumentation
3. Mix and master the track
4. Create cover art
5. Release the track to distributors
6. Share the single across social media

Once you’ve determined each of these smaller goals, set a date that feels obtainable for each. Working backward from the finish line can help you create a more realistic, feasible timeline and give you a greater sense of accomplishment while you work your way through your mini goals. 

Have accountability partners.

Trying to balance all your responsibilities in and outside of music can be isolating on your own. Having other musicians or artists to check in with on your project status or even collaborate can help you manage your time effectively due to increased accountability. Consider setting up a regular session with a friend, even remotely, where you can swap progress and talk about your goals for the next week or month. 

Schedule your breaks.

There is nothing wrong with a break! Taking time for yourself can also present valuable opportunities to get inspired and rest your creative juices so that you can come back swinging. Instead of falling into burnout, schedule breaks into your schedule on a regular basis. Knowing that you have a periodic break coming up can help you be more productive and motivated to accomplish your musical goals. 

Practice artistic discipline.

This isn’t as much of a strategy, more so a reminder of the importance of discipline in art. It’s all too easy to forget that crafting something you care about is not just reveling in the beautiful sparks of spontaneous inspiration. Art can feel like work because it is. Working through the less glossy components of creative expression allows you to find more of those beautiful, coveted moments.

Balance your favorite parts of the creative process with the less enticing ones to give yourself a more even balance between the engaging and less enticing aspects of your process. 

While these strategies can certainly help you make the most of your creative time, remember that it’s not the end of the world if every music-making session isn’t adeptly “optimized.” Creative tasks are anything but straightforward, so try not to get discouraged if you fall off the wagon every now and then.

Managing your time is all about making more space for you and your art. Enjoy carving out space for what matters most. 

About the Writer

Kate Brunotts is an audio engineer and music producer from New York City. When she’s not writing about music, producing music, or singing and songwriting, Kate helps others realize their unique sound, whether through a fresh mix, new instrumental approach, or total rework of a particular sound.