The Last 5% Is the Hardest

0:19 What's good, everybody?It's Scoobert Doobert here.Welcome back to Love Music More.Today, I want to talk a little bit about finishingand why getting to the end of a creative projectis always the hardest part.And kind of all the reasons that go into thatand some of the tips, I don't know,some of the things I'm going through right nowas I'm finishing my record,then hopefully we'll apply to your creative endeavors

0:43 and help you get over the humpas I'm trying to get over the hump myself.

1:57 So what I'm working on right nowis my own vinyl record.And so there's this weird time crunch that I actually havebecause I'm getting pressed into vinyl for this one,my very first time.

2:28 So Vinyl Moon was the first two timesthat I had my singles pressed.And it was great because a bunch of people discovered my musicand it's an awesome community of people that are on there.But I'm taking the first little leapinto actually having real music,like not just digital music, physical music.And for some reason it feels even more tangible than a CDor CDs like transmitting data.

2:53 This is transmitting grooves into a vinyl needleand to a speaker in a visceral way.That really excites me and it also kind of scares me.And I love that.You know, one of the best things that you can dowith any creative endeavor is to do somethingthat pushes you to the absolute brink of your ability,but not over it.And that's what this is doing.So part of what also is the trick

3:17 is I have to get the music in a lot earlier than I normally do.So as a digital music artist, I can finish the song,put it online and it's up in a matter of days.Usually I'm two or three weeks at least before the release.I get the song up.And now I need like a three to six months windowand all extra design steps and all these things.So I'm having to really pushand get this record done as quickly as I possibly can.

3:49 And it's fun because I think that it's making it sounda certain type of way because it's like in a head space.It's in that moment and it's coming across.I'm really excited about that.And there's also an element of acceleratingthe creative process for good and for bad.I am feeling more feelings now than I ever haveabout like self doubt and fear.And that again, that's exciting

4:17 because that means I'm doing something hard, pushing.I'm not settling and just doing the same thing againbecause it worked, because it probably won't work again,you know, I'm instead, I'm trying to find a new thing.I'm trying to be an artist, right?But being an artist, it exposes you to this artist's journey.And the demons always show up.I don't actually want to give them the power.

4:41 The gremlins, they're not demons, they're not that powerful.These little gremlins, they start to show up, right?When you're close to the end, that last five percentis when they really, really try and push back at you.And I like to personify them because that helps me externalize itbecause this is a very internal battle, right?So here's my most recent example.I'm on a run and I actually really like running

5:09 as an analogy for this because running is really hard,it sucks, but when you do it, you feel great about it.I'm on a run, running up my favorite mountainand I am about halfway through,I'm listening to my record, trying to digest it.I've got two more songs left.Really like song in a half or maybe even less than thatis one of them's pretty well done.I think I just need background vocals

5:37 and some extra guitars and maybe some synthsand that song's done.So I'm like right at that finish line, right?And I'm running up a mountain so I'm physically exhausted.I haven't been sleeping very muchbecause I've been working on this recordand I am listening to my music through a phone speakerand that was a moment that I was like,is any of this even good?Am I even good?Should I be doing this?

6:03 Am I worthy of being pressed on the vinylor having anybody listen to me like this podcaster?You know, that imposter syndrome thing came out really strong.And so I'm physically exhausted.I'm mentally exhausted, I'm spiritually exhaustedand I'm creatively exhausted.But I keep pushing and the second I get to the topof that mountain, I see the beautiful ocean viewand I look over and I see the San Bernardino mountains

6:29 that are covered in snow.Look over see San Jacento mountain.Hopefully it pronounced that right,getting heat from my pronunciation,but I'm trying my best y'all.And I see these mountains,I'm at the top of my own little mountainand I realize that that fear means that I'm close.It's a good thing, it's not a bad thing.And while it's hard, that doesn't mean I'm failing.So I put the music away, I finished the record

7:03 and listened to the whole thing.Put the music away.And I ran back down the mountain shower,jumped back in, started producing.Because I knew that if I gave it an inch,it would take a mile.That if I didn't go back and get to work again,I would take multiple days offand that I would stay in that rut,that feeling of inadequacy.But instead I attacked it, it was hardand then I made a song called,

7:31 it gets better and I really like it.Because it has that spirit that angstof like pushing back against those gremlins.So the finishing, that's the hardest part.And that's what I wanted to talk about on the part,was like, what do you do there?You have to meet it head onand you also have to minimize it,acknowledge it, but minimize it.And that's really, really hard to dobecause we're emotional creatures, we're humans.

7:58 You know, I've bent out a shape about the stupidest stuff,but that's reality.You know, like I try and use thosewith learning moments that I can get better.But I'm going on this journey just like all of you are.It's not like I'm successful, I go to my day joband then I come back and I do music,I take all the money that I make for musicand I use it to hire musicians or pay for mastering

8:19 or luckily I do most of my own stuff, so that helps.But it's not like I'm at the top of the mountain herewith music, I'm climbing too.But that's the reason why I even started this podcastis I think that it's so much more interestingto hear somebody struggle as you're struggling.Rather than just have somebody that gets upto the top of the mountain and goes,oh yeah, I took this path, you should take that path.

8:42 And then they drive away in their Ferrari or whatever.You know, it's like I want the peoplethat are two switchbacks ahead of meto chart the course, not the people that arecoming off the mountain, all satisfied.And so you know, finding those inspirations,pushing through, getting to the endand not giving yourself breaks.I know that sounds like very counterintuitive,but just not, just don't, it's not worth it

9:18 because the breaks can turn into ends.Instead work until you're not able to work anymore,go to bed, wake up and do it again.And then you'll be done.I sincerely believe that when I finish this record,then I can take a break.It's that Kobe thing of like job finished,job not finished, go finish the job,then go to Cancun, and then go do it again.But like, I mean that from basketball sense,

9:45 I'm not going to Cancun, but that idea offulfill your obligation, even though it's hard,even though you're gonna have conflict,even though you're gonna feel bad about yourself,you're gonna face these gremlins in a deal with self-down.You're going to have off days.But sometimes like for example,I was working on a guitar part last night.Couldn't get it right.Try all these different styles and tones,

10:11 I switched guitars, I switched tunings,I used a capo, I took the capo off,I tried different picks, I used my fingers,I ran into different pedals,I ran into different amps, nothing was coming.And at that very moment that I was about to give up,they said, no, I'm not gonna take a break,I'm gonna figure something out,and I figured something out that I really, really like.But there's an energy to it,

10:32 it's inside of the guitar part,that maybe no one else will ever feel,or maybe no one will listen to the song,I don't care, I'm trying to make the music,that I feel good about.And if other people like it, that's awesome.If they don't, it doesn't really matter,that's not the point, that's an after problem.The current problem is making the music and finishing it,and doing it, and putting the energy that I like into it.

10:57 And so a really good example is I'm working on this guitar part,can't get it, can't get it, can't get it.I have to get to the point where I am about to fall asleepas I'm playing it, and that's when the guitar part comes out.There's an energy of sleepiness, of drowsiness,but of striving.The song's called, it gets better.It's like, that's the whole thing, like hope,but you're not there yet.It hasn't gotten better.

11:26 You're just hoping that it will,and believing that it will.You're choosing to be optimistic in the face of exhaustion.So, what are you doing in that same way?Join me, empower me, as I'm trying to empower you.Let's do it together.I really, the whole reason why I'm doing this podcastis not because I want to be, like, Ryan Seacrest.I'm not trying to be on clear channelers,and that's not my dream, that's not my goal.

12:00 My goal is to be a musician all the time, 24-7, all the time.And the goal of this podcast is to try to build other people upwith me and to learn from other people.That's why we have these conversations.I learned a ton from Bermuda,and I hope that people listen to it, and got that too.But that's why I'm doing this.It's not, I want to go there with you.And that's why I want, you know, people to comment

12:29 on this stuff, or message me on Instagram,from a place of actual, like, community.That's what I want to build.Not a community centered around me,a community centered around the idea of doing,and of battling those little gremlins, banishing them,but also thinking them for that feeling of, like,okay, good, I'm on the right path.I'm taking the risky route.But getting it done, and I also like these

13:04 because these silly solo pods, you know,the conversations are probably more entertaining.Instead of just me ranting into microphone,but these are my little moments of soliloquy, of diary,that I can confess to the process,rather than just saying, hey, look, it's done.Or faking a studio video.That's most of the stuff that you see.It's like, oh, look at them cooking in the lab.

13:33 It's like, yeah, the song was done weeks ago.If you actually saw that what it looked like in the studiowould have been chaos, or there would have been tears,pulling out hair, aging.But instead, they paint like this happy picture.I don't want to paint that picture.It is elation, but it's not necessarily happy.You find the threads where it becomes easy,but the moments of searching, of trying to go out

14:02 into the ether to find the golden thread of the muses,that is not easy, but once you latch on,then it becomes easy again.And that's when you enter those flow statesthat I talk about all the time.So that's what I'm gonna do now.I just, the reason why I'm doing this podcast nowis I broke up my weekend, finished a song,finished another song, started a drum part,do this, gonna go treat myself to a drink,

14:28 and I'm gonna come back, I'm gonna start demoing some vocals,because I'm not tired enough to stop.And when I'm tired enough to stop,I'll push a little bit further, then go to bed,and then come back and fight those gremlins again.And don't give them any ground.Don't give them any, you know,it's like don't feed into the self-doubt, acknowledge it,look at it, and keep pushing.Sounds hard to do, it is hard to do.

14:55 I'm living it right now, I don't always win.But because I don't always win,it makes me like steal myself for that battle again,because the whole point of doing this stuffis to do it all the way.It's not to make a million dollarsor to be massively successful.The goal is to create little thingsyou can give to the world.Everything else is the other problem.The whole reason to become successful

15:29 is to maximize the amount of timethat you can spend on making these little vinyl records.And I hope you'll buy it when it comes out.And I hope you end up liking it.But please know, I'm putting everything I have into it.Absolutely, everything.I'm really not trying to make it feel effortful.I'm trying to make it feel intentionaland at the limits of what I can do.And I hope it lands.

15:59 And if not, I hope you can at least feel the energyof that guy running up the mountain with self-doubtfor continuing to push all the way up till it's done.If you enjoyed this podcast, please subscribe it,subscribe to it, talking is hard.I do a lot of it, maybe I should do a little less.Subscribe to this podcast.And if you could rate it five stars,that would be the ultimate gift

16:28 because that is the way that people can discover this.You see those five stars, it pushes it upinto algorithms and whatnot.On the way that you do that.So you go on to the Love Music More,so say you're on Spotify.You go to Love Music More, the podcast page.See the album art, it'll say following.You'll see the little five stars.You'll want to click on the five starto make something happen.

16:49 It doesn't work, unfortunately.You instead have to click on the dot, dot, dot.And then you click on Rate Show.And then from there, you can rate it five stars.So if you could do that for me, that would be awesome.And you can check out my stuff at scoobertdoobert.pizza.Until next week, y'all, we're gonna havesome really, really great conversations in the pipe.So stick around and thank you for joining me

17:10 on my way up this mountain.Let's go together.