Comments for dumbdrummer http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com Real life at the intersection of art, money, and creative partnerships. Wed, 03 Dec 2008 16:00:41 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 Comment on Letting Go – Removing The Handcuffs Of Self-Doubt by dumbdrummer http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2008/04/22/letting-go-removing-the-handcuffs-of-self-doubt/#comment-37 dumbdrummer Wed, 03 Dec 2008 16:00:41 +0000 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/?p=33#comment-37 Hi Paul, You can be sure that you're not alone. It's just that we tend not to talk about it with each other. While there's no magic pill for overcoming self-doubt when you play, you CAN overcome it. Confidence can improve the more you play and the more you record; you start to see that those little mistakes really don't matter in the big picture, and what matters most is maintaining a positive, adventurous spirit. Confidence also improves the more you consciously commit to not being so hard on yourself when you perform. Practice is the time for examining your playing closely. Performance, on the other hand, is the time for letting go, the time for play, and flubs are going to happen now and then. Once you accept that, you'll accept your playing. Finally - and this is really interesting - keep in mind that what you hear as a deficiency in your playing might be heard by others as the thing that makes your playing great and unique. I talk about this idea more in an article I wrote called Diving For Pearls, which looks at how our personal styles evolve. I'll post that one soon. Best of luck, Paul. Eric Hi Paul,

You can be sure that you’re not alone. It’s just that we tend not to talk about it with each other. While there’s no magic pill for overcoming self-doubt when you play, you CAN overcome it. Confidence can improve the more you play and the more you record; you start to see that those little mistakes really don’t matter in the big picture, and what matters most is maintaining a positive, adventurous spirit. Confidence also improves the more you consciously commit to not being so hard on yourself when you perform. Practice is the time for examining your playing closely. Performance, on the other hand, is the time for letting go, the time for play, and flubs are going to happen now and then. Once you accept that, you’ll accept your playing. Finally – and this is really interesting – keep in mind that what you hear as a deficiency in your playing might be heard by others as the thing that makes your playing great and unique. I talk about this idea more in an article I wrote called Diving For Pearls, which looks at how our personal styles evolve. I’ll post that one soon.

Best of luck, Paul.

Eric

]]> Comment on Letting Go – Removing The Handcuffs Of Self-Doubt by 14drummers http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2008/04/22/letting-go-removing-the-handcuffs-of-self-doubt/#comment-36 14drummers Wed, 03 Dec 2008 12:25:35 +0000 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/?p=33#comment-36 Hello Eric I am 28 and first started playing drums when I was 6 and straight in to a working band when I was 13. The biggest problem I've always had is my self confidence and the way I seem to over think everything, I feel it really ruins any enjoyment, I seem to always question what I am doing and how I am doing it, this creates tension and then I don't play so well, if I do play really well then I start worrying about playing as good next time - this state of mind seems to come in stages, when I don't have it I seem to be released and my playing just breaks free - I have always looked upon drumming as a very instinctive thing, I just wish I could stop questioning myself all the time. It's kind of like waiting to fall asleep, if you are waiting to - it will never happen, you just need to let go. The reason I am writing this is because this article seems to be touching on this problem and I felt like I needed to tell someone how I feel. I do feel sometimes that I am going totally mad and it really frustrates me because I know if I just "play" then everything will be fine, the minute I start thinking how I am playing I know it wont be. I wish there was a way to overcome this but I am guessing that I am not the only one. thanks for listening all the best Paul Hello Eric

I am 28 and first started playing drums when I was 6 and straight in to a working band when I was 13.

The biggest problem I’ve always had is my self confidence and the way I seem to over think everything, I feel it really ruins any enjoyment, I seem to always question what I am doing and how I am doing it, this creates tension and then I don’t play so well, if I do play really well then I start worrying about playing as good next time – this state of mind seems to come in stages, when I don’t have it I seem to be released and my playing just breaks free – I have always looked upon drumming as a very instinctive thing, I just wish I could stop questioning myself all the time. It’s kind of like waiting to fall asleep, if you are waiting to – it will never happen, you just need to let go.

The reason I am writing this is because this article seems to be touching on this problem and I felt like I needed to tell someone how I feel. I do feel sometimes that I am going totally mad and it really frustrates me because I know if I just “play” then everything will be fine, the minute I start thinking how I am playing I know it wont be.

I wish there was a way to overcome this but I am guessing that I am not the only one.

thanks for listening

all the best

Paul

]]> Comment on Bloom – Trusting Your Muse by wpm1955 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2008/07/21/bloom-trusting-your-muse/#comment-34 wpm1955 Sun, 17 Aug 2008 12:41:37 +0000 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/?p=46#comment-34 I just wanted to tell you that I enjoyed this post as much as all of your previous posts. I think you always have a lot to say about life, and your thoughtfulness and life experience really show through. I don't know if you're married, or have kids, but I think you'd be a great father, with a lot of philosophy and life experience to pass on to your kids. Best regards, Madame Monet Writing, Painting, Music, and Wine winewriter.wordpress.com I just wanted to tell you that I enjoyed this post as much as all of your previous posts. I think you always have a lot to say about life, and your thoughtfulness and life experience really show through.

I don’t know if you’re married, or have kids, but I think you’d be a great father, with a lot of philosophy and life experience to pass on to your kids.

Best regards,
Madame Monet
Writing, Painting, Music, and Wine
winewriter.wordpress.com

]]> Comment on Bloom – Trusting Your Muse by he doesn’t write like a drummer… | workingthrough.com http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2008/07/21/bloom-trusting-your-muse/#comment-33 he doesn’t write like a drummer… | workingthrough.com Sat, 26 Jul 2008 19:30:16 +0000 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/?p=46#comment-33 [...] Dumbdrummer has good things to say about creative partnerships and more… Great art blooms from the heartfelt, illogical, sometimes even embarrassing impulses we harbor. When we mess with those impulses too much, when we censor them, smooth the edges, and try to conform them to something we presume people will like, we destroy the vitality that makes our work compelling. [...] [...] Dumbdrummer has good things to say about creative partnerships and more… Great art blooms from the heartfelt, illogical, sometimes even embarrassing impulses we harbor. When we mess with those impulses too much, when we censor them, smooth the edges, and try to conform them to something we presume people will like, we destroy the vitality that makes our work compelling. [...]

]]> Comment on Evolve Or Die – The Value Of Taking Chances In Your Creative Process by wpm1955 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2008/05/07/evolve-or-die-%e2%80%93-the-value-taking-chances-in-your-creative-process/#comment-30 wpm1955 Wed, 28 May 2008 20:53:57 +0000 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/?p=37#comment-30 What a thoughtful article, as usual. This analysis can apply to creative partnerships in any field, even in a marriage where you have two very different individuals contributing to a partnership in very different ways. Madame Monet Writing, Painting, Music, and Wine winewriter.wordpress.com What a thoughtful article, as usual. This analysis can apply to creative partnerships in any field, even in a marriage where you have two very different individuals contributing to a partnership in very different ways.

Madame Monet
Writing, Painting, Music, and Wine
winewriter.wordpress.com

]]> Comment on dumbdrummer is by gardenmakersnw http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/about/#comment-16 gardenmakersnw Mon, 18 Feb 2008 17:38:47 +0000 #comment-16 a fantastic connection and lesson to read especially being such a HUGE fan of Carole's work and talent. you NAILED it! Scott Seattle a fantastic connection and lesson to read especially being such a HUGE fan of Carole’s work and talent. you NAILED it!

Scott
Seattle

]]> Comment on OK, Go! – The Creative Power Of A Nomadic Mind by John Munson by dumbdrummer http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2008/02/05/ok-go-the-creative-power-of-an-open-mind-by-john-munson/#comment-7 dumbdrummer Mon, 11 Feb 2008 21:59:07 +0000 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/?p=11#comment-7 Great to hear from you MM. I'd love to hear a painter's thoughts about their process, too. The longer I think and write about drumming, music and the creative process, the more I hear from other artists, and even non-artists, that our creative journeys are similar, or at least analogous. So much so that our differences surprise me more than our similarities! Hope you're well on the other side of the earth. DD Great to hear from you MM. I’d love to hear a painter’s thoughts about their process, too. The longer I think and write about drumming, music and the creative process, the more I hear from other artists, and even non-artists, that our creative journeys are similar, or at least analogous. So much so that our differences surprise me more than our similarities!

Hope you’re well on the other side of the earth.

DD

]]> Comment on OK, Go! – The Creative Power Of A Nomadic Mind by John Munson by wpm1955 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2008/02/05/ok-go-the-creative-power-of-an-open-mind-by-john-munson/#comment-6 wpm1955 Sun, 10 Feb 2008 19:38:45 +0000 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/?p=11#comment-6 Wow, what an interesting blog entry this is. I play a flute weekly with a friend of mine who plays a violin. We mostly play classical music. This discussion about where a musicians new ideas come from reminded me of where my own writing ideas come from (I write three blogs). You kind of immerse yourself in new ideas, and then suddenly a synthesis occurs. The process between music and writing sounds very much the same. I wonder if for painting artists, they have to go through a similar process of looking for new ideas? Best regards, Madame Monet Writing, Painting, Music, and Wine winewriter.wordpress.com Wow, what an interesting blog entry this is. I play a flute weekly with a friend of mine who plays a violin. We mostly play classical music.

This discussion about where a musicians new ideas come from reminded me of where my own writing ideas come from (I write three blogs). You kind of immerse yourself in new ideas, and then suddenly a synthesis occurs. The process between music and writing sounds very much the same. I wonder if for painting artists, they have to go through a similar process of looking for new ideas?

Best regards,
Madame Monet
Writing, Painting, Music, and Wine
winewriter.wordpress.com

]]> Comment on The Invisible Thread – Exploring the mysterious tie that binds a great group together by Try This Link - Great Advice From Experience « Stuart Wood’s Weblog http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2007/12/29/the-invisible-thread-exploring-the-mysterious-tie-that-binds-a-great-group-together-2/#comment-5 Try This Link - Great Advice From Experience « Stuart Wood’s Weblog Sun, 30 Dec 2007 18:06:48 +0000 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2007/12/29/the-invisible-thread-exploring-the-mysterious-tie-that-binds-a-great-group-together-2/#comment-5 [...] Check Out This Link [...] [...] Check Out This Link [...]

]]> Comment on The Invisible Thread – Exploring the mysterious tie that binds a great group together by waywood http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2007/12/29/the-invisible-thread-exploring-the-mysterious-tie-that-binds-a-great-group-together-2/#comment-4 waywood Sun, 30 Dec 2007 17:44:14 +0000 http://dumbdrummer.wordpress.com/2007/12/29/the-invisible-thread-exploring-the-mysterious-tie-that-binds-a-great-group-together-2/#comment-4 Congratulations on a great post. There is real wisdom in what you say because you're writing from experience. I will be linking to your blog for updates and look forward to hearing more soon. Take care, best wishes & Happy New Year! Congratulations on a great post.

There is real wisdom in what you say because you’re writing from experience.

I will be linking to your blog for updates and look forward to hearing more soon.

Take care, best wishes & Happy New Year!

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