What is your vision?

When you start making something – music for example – the process can be overwhelming. At the beginning, you don’t even know what you don’t know. You don’t know which tools are essential, or what gear is desirable – versus just plain excessive. Do you need a hardware drum machine and a keyboard synthesiser, or will a software DAW cover all the bases? What headphones should you buy? These decisions are tough and can be financially costly, so it really is important to do your research. Balancing what you need now versus a future-proofed solution is tricky and there is never a single solution.

The important bit that no one seems to talk about though also has long lasting implications. It can be the difference between success and failure (more about these metrics in a bit). That is identifying your artistic vision. You need to distinguish between your technical aspirations and your artistic goals. Get this bit wrong and you can find yourself with a super flexible setup which is ready for anything – but you’ll still churn out music that you’re unhappy with.

What does success look like? Well, that is entirely up to you – the aesthetic choices, the scope and size, the timescales you work to are all important choices. Maybe you want to compose and produce full albums with themes that build and progress and live forever in a follower’s playlist. Alternatively you might be looking to quickly jam and perform short tracks that are super short-lived but burn brightly with your audience. Either way, it’s important to know what the goal is.