What you need is a workflow that stands like bedrock: non-negotiable, sacred, immune to the whims of inspiration or mood. This isn't just about getting to your studio, your laptop, your piano. This is about creating a ritual that transports you from inaction to action.

Every artist has their own music creation workflow, to a more or lesser extent, which they typically follow without realising it. A certain set of conscious or unconscious steps which could be anything from making a cup of coffee, going for a walk to listening through some music references. The key is making this process deliberate rather than accidental. 

Think of your creative workflow as existing at the intersection of three essential elements:

1. Knowledge - Your musical understanding and influences
2. Action - The consistent work you put into your craft
3. Tools - The systems and resources that support your process

The greater challenge, the one that separates amateur dabblers from professionals, lies in building a structured approach to finishing what you begin. The landscape of music is littered with the skeletons of abandoned demos, half-formed ideas that never reached maturity. The true artist develops the discipline to shepherd a track through its 8 stages to completion, even when it won't see release.

I define completion of a song as:

“Stripping away everything except the heart of the song, then polish what remains until no flaws can be heard.”

This process is deeply idiosyncratic. What sounds "essential" to you, what counts as a "flaw," and when a song feels "complete" are all subjective judgments that evolve with experience. The magic isn't in perfecting this judgment, it's in making it frequently.

The artists who improve fastest aren't the ones who spend years perfecting a single track. They're the ones who complete song after song, each time getting marginally better at identifying what to keep and what to cut. Your ability to hear problems sharpens. Your sense of what's essential clarifies. Your production decisions become more confident and decisive.

This philosophy forms the cornerstone of the Songwriting component. When embraced fully, it provides the distance and clarity needed to objectively identify and resolve every issue within your creation. The result isn't just finished songs, it's a rapid acceleration of your growth as an artist, each completed work building upon the lessons of the last.

Why surrender to such a rigorous structure? Because, contrary to the romantic myth of the unfettered creative spirit, structure doesn't suffocate creativity; it creates the very conditions for it to flourish. This isn't just my opinion; it's supported by research. Teresa Amabile's groundbreaking studies in 1998 demonstrated that constraints, be they deadlines, frameworks, or routines, often catalyze our most significant breakthroughs.

Action Items

1. Add a New Track to Your Songwriting Dashboard
   
   • Navigate to your Songwriting component from the Musician OS homepage
   • Click the + Add button in the sidebar, then select New Song
   • Give your song a descriptive title in the "Name" field
   • Set the initial status to "In Progress" (you can update this as you work)
   • If applicable, add the song's key, BPM, and other relevant details in the properties section‍‍
     

2. Use the Listening Notes System
   When you create a new song, notice how the system automatically generates a framework of listening notes with standard production phases:
   
   • Open your newly created song and scroll down to the Listening Notes section
   • Notice the pre-populated production phases: Writing, Recording, Arrangement, Production, Mixing, and Mastering
   • Each phase has a "Not started" status by default - click on these to update the status as you progress (options include "Not started," "In progress," "Completed")
     

3. Add Detailed Notes to Each Production Phase
   

• Click into each phase (e.g., Writing, Recording) to add specific notes:
  
  • For Writing: Add notes about lyrics that need revision, chord progressions to try, or melody adjustments
  • For Recording: Document mic placement ideas, takes to redo, or vocal performance notes
  • For Arrangement: Note section order changes, transitions to improve, or instrumentation ideas
  • For Production: Track effects to add, sound design elements, or sample replacement notes
  • For Mixing: Document balance issues, EQ adjustments, or automation ideas
  • For Mastering: Note loudness targets, final EQ tweaks, or comparison references
    
    
• To add a sub-note to any phase, click the "New page" button that appears when you hover beneath that phase
  

4. Track Your Creative Time with the Timer Feature
   
   • Before beginning work on a specific phase (e.g., Mixing), locate the Timer column in your Listening Notes table
   • Click the Start Timer button next to the relevant phase
   • When you finish the session, click Stop Timer
   • The system will automatically log the time spent on that phase of production
   • Use this data to better understand your workflow and estimate future project

5. Use Properties to Organize Your Workflow
   
   • Set Priority levels for each phase (High, Medium, Low) to help focus your energy on what matters most
   • Update the Status of each phase as you progress (Not started → In progress → Completed)
   • Use the Deadline property to set target completion dates for each phase
   • Add an Artist property if you're collaborating with others
   • Create custom properties as needed (e.g., "Reference Tracks," "Studio Location")
     

6. Use Views to Track Progress Across All Songs
   
   • Return to the main Songwriting dashboard to see all your songs
   • Use the Timeline view to visualize your production schedule
   • Switch to Status view to quickly see which songs are in what stage of completion
   • Create custom views based on deadlines or priorities to focus your workflow

7. Conduct Regular Reviews to Finish Songs
   
   • Schedule a weekly "Song Review" session in your Tasks component
   • During this session, review all active songs and their listening notes
   • Update statuses, add new notes, and adjust priorities as needed
   • Reference the time tracking data to identify bottlenecks in your process
   • Set specific action items for the coming week to move each song forward