Eight Ways I stay Motivated as an Artist

“None of us understand what we’re doing, but we do beautiful things anyway.”

-Allen Ginsberg

My journey of being a young artist thus far has led me to look within myself to see what I’m really made of. I’ve let myself fall into dark places not realizing that I was my own worst enemy. I was believing the negative thoughts about myself until I finally decided that I didn’t want to feel powerless and stuck. Finding motivation helped me take matters into my own hand and I hope whoever reads this is inspired to try something new to keep themselves motivated.

1. Define exactly what you want and how you are going to get it.

It may be a no-brainer for most, but I would just go through the motions towards vague goals that I set for myself and wonder why I wasn’t seeing results. Make your intentions clear in everything. For example, I want to perform operatic roles locally and internationally while having a happy home and family life. In order to do that, I have to plan how I'm going to achieve it. For me at my current level, being an artist requires consistent practice and a steady income to audition and attend programs.

2. Meditation

My first year as a music teacher taught me a lot of hard lessons that I wasn’t keen on learning. Stress and burnout were so bad that I felt physically ill every day going into work. It took about six months into the school year before I realized I had to do something to keep me from insanity. Through this dark time, I found meditation as a light. It is by far one of the best and most effective practices I have implemented in my life.

When stressed, meditation helps to clear your mind of recurring and negative thoughts making you feel a sense of calm. I noticed the physical results of meditation as well. My nausea decreased and I felt more clear and energized to focus on the things that mattered. I started with guided meditations on youtube, but now I use an app called “Insight timer.” It is a free meditation app that allows you to look up guided and sound based meditations. You can search for a particular type of meditation or you can look at their playlists. Some include “sleep,” “peace,” “self-love,” and “mini-moments” for those who need a quick reset. To find the “Insight Timer” app, search the name in your app store or click the following link:https://insighttimer.com

3. Podcasts

Podcasts are the second best thing that I implemented into my life. I commute 50 minutes to and from work every day, which leaves me a lot of time in my car to listen to podcasts. For those who don’t know, podcasts are like subject-specific radio talk shows that you can search and download onto your phone or smart device. You can literally search for any subject you are interested in; self-improvement, travel, true crime, and opera!

I listened to a “happiness” themed ted talk once (which is also a podcast option), that discussed the link between happiness and your engagement with any given task. Those who were completely engaged were happier than those who were distracted. The reasoning was that when the mind is left to wander, it typically defaults on negative recurring thoughts. The more your mind is fully engaged on what it is doing, the happier you are said to be. Because of this, I have become an avid podcast listener, so that I can forget about the negative and mundane from the work day and I often end up learning something new!

Motivational/self-improvement podcasts I’ve enjoyed include: Oprah’s super soul conversations, 15 minutes to freedom, How I built this, and ted talks. Opera-themed podcasts are

: The Met Opera Guild Podcast, and Opera Now! It has been a while since I searched the word “Opera” in the podcast app, before, those were the only two that caught my eye, but now there are several other opera themed podcasts you can choose from! Fun/entertaining podcasts: The budget-minded traveler, My Favorite Murder, Serial, Dear John, the list goes on!

4. Original inspiration

What originally inspired you to be an artist in the first place? For me, it’s seeing others perform beautiful pieces well. Watching a performance is often all I need to be reminded of how awesome opera is. Just today, I was listening to the flower duet from Puccini’s Madama Butterfly. Puccini had such a devotion to capturing the most intense of emotions with his music. I can feel my heart literally swell (or break depending on the aria) when I hear his music. If you haven’t heard this piece you should check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mo3VIBHhZ is my favorite part is at 3:58. 

5. Taking time for yourself

Being a school teacher and a private voice teacher on the side while staying committed to practicing your own craft as well as practice for upcoming gigs and auditions, it is easy to burn out. It seems other artists my age follow the same trends of balancing a couple of jobs while gaining experience with gigs on the side. I find that I sometimes need to take a break from practice and working. This helps me to clear my mind and keeps me happy overall. It is okay to step away for a couple days to watch Netflix or to just simply do what you want to do. Forcing yourself to constantly practice and work often leads to less than quality results if you aren’t giving yourself breaks. I remember the confusion I felt at reading some of my own lesson plans as a first-year teacher after long nights of “getting work done” only to find I was so tired, that I no longer made sense.

6. Inspirational Quotes

I implemented a “Quote of the week” last year in my lessons to help motivate my students. The results were pretty amazing. It was the best year of teaching I had. My students were becoming more kind to each other and the best part was, my rapport with the class was unbreakable. Every Monday, we would discuss the meaning of a quote on the board that was sometimes accompanied with a coordinating video of the person who wrote the quote; then later that week, my students would write a paragraph on what it means to them. I got to know my students better and they got to get feedback from me on their interpretations and experiences. I believe this practice made them feel cared for and encouraged not just as a class, but also as individuals.

What does this example have to do with how this helped me as an artist? Researching quotes to use every week imposed inspiration for practice when I didn’t feel like it. I also think it made me more resourceful in conversation with others.  

If you are interested in implementing a quote of the week for yourself, then look up “quotes about…” (what-ever topic you need inspiration for), find one you like, then find out more information about who the quote was by. I absorbed a lot of information about new role models to aspire to.

7. Seek role models who have been in similar situations

Maria Callas was a legendary performer, but she also had her fair share of cynics who argue that her voice was not beautiful. Pavarotti developed a nodule on his vocal cords that caused him to temporarily give up singing. It was after this struggle when he immensely improved both vocally and mentally.  He said “Everything I had learned came together with my natural voice to make the sound I had been struggling so hard to achieve,” in his autobiography. Reading about the “hows” of others success stories helped me to realize that anything is possible if you are dedicated and work hard enough. Two non-operatic figures who I also find to be incredibly inspiring are Will Smith and Diana Nyad.

8. Self Accountability

I feel more encouraged to keep going when I can measure my own productivity. When I wasn’t seeing the results I wanted, I had to double down and figure out how to know that I am making progress. It’s hard to see the fruits of your efforts when you are trying to make it on your own as an artist. When you are not in school or on stage performing major roles; feedback has to come mostly from yourself. I found that I had to be the one to measure my own progress and success.

Here’s how I do it:

Visual Calendar- I posted a Calendar in my closet because it is a spot that I knew I would look at every day. I use this calendar: https://www.target.com/p/post-it-calendar/-/A-14376222 because I can write as much as I want on it. I include audition dates, dedicated practice time, and workout time. Having audition dates on a calendar showed me how much time I needed to feel like I was fully prepared. It also feels good to check mark the things that you actually planned to do.

Journaling- Journaling helped me to take note of the things I was learning during lessons. I was retaining more information because writing it down helped me remember. I have definitely grown vocally and professionally in doing this. It’s encouraging to look back and see the growth on the previous pages.

Recording- Recording myself through video helps me to see what looks good and what doesn’t look good. Even if you are tired or don’t feel like singing, you can just mime your acting. This technique has assisted me in knowing how to get the message I am trying to convey across.

What are some ways you stay motivated?

I hope you find my insights useful! I'm always looking for new ways to stay motivated. What are some of your techniques? Please let me know in the comments.