some reading on overcoming fear?

[pepezabala]

specifically relating to the musician would be fantastic.

over the years I've developed a problem of thinking of music all day long, wanting to get home and into my studio, and then when I actually get home I think about going into the studio and I get this sense of fear and/or anxiety that keeps me from sitting down to make anything. I know it's related to a fear of THE TASK AT HAND as if it's a daunting task which it shouldn't be. or simply a fear of failure. but whatever it is it just IS and I'd like some literature on how to get over it.

I know most people will just say "just start making music and you'll get over it" but obviously that isn't happening so I'm hoping that there is some reading out there that can help overcome anxiety related to your artistic expression or something like that. I'm certain that there is a point where you just gotta suck it up and do it but I'm also certain that there may be a process you can go through or just simply some perspective that can help.

thanks.

I think I know this issue, it's like this: getting home, checking email, opening live, making tea, looking at the empty template, smoke a cigarette, looking at the empty template, making a phonecall, selecting an instrument, having something to eat, reading the interweb, start cooking, not making music at all.
I don't have that when I meet with someone for making music, and when I have deadlines. So maybe get a project going where you either have to meet a deadline or to meet with people to work together.

[Filterheadz]

"The Creative Habit" by Twyla Tharp is a wonderful book on this subject.

http://www.amazon.com/Creative-Habit-Le ... 424&sr=8-1

cheeeeers,

Bert

www.filterheadz.com

[crumhorn]

A good friend once advised me that the best antidote for stage fright, interview nerves, etc is to eat a banana about half an hour before. I was sceptical, but I tried it and it seems to work. Maybe it's just a placebo but so what if it is.

[Patch]

I hoped for more from this thread. I read the OP and thought "Shit! That's me!" I think about dooing music all day - then I get home and eat dinner and I can't motivate myself to do anything! It's a bitch. Then, I can't get to sleep at night 'cos I'm thinking about making music again!



I started to read "The Artists Way" at the recomendation of The Phat Conductor. Far to much hippy crap for me. Although I did get some help from it.

Hmmm... Might start reading that again, actually.

[3dot...]

http://music.hyperreal.org/artists/bria ... lique.html

[3dot...]

...

[3dot...]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oblique_Strategies

[resonatorman]

Mate, If your reading of the recommended books doesn't help. I would suggest seeing a psychologist, someone who specializes in CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy) &/or Motivational techniques. Unless there is some deep seated issues underlying this, they could have you sorted after a couple of sessions. I wouldn't recommend Valium, as it's not treating the underlying cause & could make you more apathetic to create.

Alternatively you could also see a good Naturopath who uses Bach Flower Remedies (these are like homeopathic medicines & are natural), there are a few good remedies for this type of thing.

I do have a background as a Mental Health Professional & a Naturopath, hence my above recommendations.

Remember be kind to yourself.......

As already suggested daily meditation can be helpful, either Vipassna or Shamatha techniques. Doing daily Yoga with Yoga Nidra or just doing daily Yoga Nidra can be helpful. If you want to be guided & need daily meditations you could check out the book "Taming The Tiger - Tibetan Teachings For Improving Daily Life" by Akong Tulku Rinpoche, there are different daily meditation techniques outlined in this book that you slowly experiment with over several weeks & months.

Just my 2c, hope it helps.........?

Cheers

[djsynchro]

I PM-ed you a link to a PDF, don't be put off by the title. It's a very thorough explanation of why every person is their own worst enemy. I'm going to read it again myself and do all the exercises, I'm also very stuck at the moment!

[Patch]

Feel free to send me the .pdf too...

[forge]

Feel free to send me the .pdf too...

+1!

[Filterheadz]

Feel free to send me the .pdf too...

+1!

+1!

[Big V]

+1 for meditation.

There are some nice little meditation techniques around which you can improve your concentration skills with and will be able to stay more focused.
In the end of the day it's all about doing things with mindfulness.

When you get to your studio sit down as comfortable as possible and try to focus on your breathing (through the nose) for 5 to 10 minutes.
Focus on the incoming cold air at your nostrils when you breath in and the warm air as you breath out.
Recognize thoughts that come to your mind but don't indulge in them and don't try to push them away. Just recognize them as thoughts and then focus on your breathing again.

As I understood it your problem is occurring thoughts of anxiety when you want to do music so that is the point where you have to figure it out.
The meditation technique mentioned above can help you to not being indulged in those thoughts anymore or at least to keep them at a low level.

Another suitable technique could be a kind of Mantra. Something like "May I work without any worries and enjoy my time working on music". Sounds very cheesy but has a effect on your psyche as you're conditioning your mind and this Mantra itself, spoken out loud or in silence, acts like a form of meditation due to being repeated several times. Try it!

When you think of making music over the day, what do you really think about? Just like "when I get home I can finally make music" or something like that?
Maybe it's better to think in a more concrete way, like reflecting how you will transform your musical ideas into reality in terms of what instruments to be used etc.
Try to build a whole song in your head and to hear all the instruments, the overall sound and with what tools you may achieve that.
Then as you get home you have no time for bad thoughts anymore as you'll have a big heap of work in front of you!

And try to watch children and how they approach certain things they want to learn! There is no kind of fear involved with them!

But beware of their parents and the police!

[djsynchro]

PM-ed y'all. Strictly speaking it's copyright infringement, but if i was your neighbour and we were talking about this and I was like "hey, I got this cool book on the subject wanna borrow it?" the result would be the same, you'd get to read it, the author would get nuthin' If it's not your cup of tea, no harm done, if it changes your life go buy the book

Anyone else want it PM me.

[knotkranky]

http://www.emofree.com/articles.aspx?id=14

Proponents of EFT claim it relieves many psychological and physical conditions, including depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, general stress, addictions and phobias. More extreme claims have been made for multiple sclerosis and one proponent claims that "you can also use it for everything from the common cold to cancer.'" The basic EFT technique involves holding a disturbing memory or emotion in mind and simultaneously using the fingers to tap on a series of 12 specific points on the body that correspond to meridians used in Chinese medicine. There are 15 points, if one includes points nicknamed the "karate-chop point," "gamut spot," and the "sore spot," used to enhance the effectiveness of treatment. The theory behind EFT, based on an ancient theory of acupuncture, is that negative emotions are caused by disturbances in the body's energy field and that tapping on the meridians while thinking of a negative emotion or event alters the body's energy field, restoring it to "balance."

The theory states that negative emotions are built in the following stages: A negative experience occurs; negative emotions are felt in response to this negative experience, leading to inappropriate programming inside the body; and then the body's energy system gets disrupted due to these negative emotions. The contention of EFT is that in order to remove the negative responses, tackling the negative experience is not enough, because doing so cannot correct the energy imbalance. Rather, the energy imbalance must be restored along with curing the negative emotions.

The main difference between EFT and TFT lies not in principles, but in application. In TFT, a specific sequence of tapping points (known as an algorithm) is used for a particular problem. This sequence is determined using muscle testing, a procedure also used by applied kinesiology.

In EFT, the order and sequence of tapping points is deemed to be unimportant, and therefore individual algorithms are not required for different problems. Instead, a comprehensive algorithm is used for all problems, and no diagnosis or muscle testing is required. Fewer than all the points may be needed for a particular problem, but because there are so few, it is not worth discovering which are necessary.