Maintain a Positive Mindset in 2014

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We’re now into the second day of 2014 and I’m sure you have dreams of making it big. What if I told you that something as simple as your mindset can have a huge impact on whether or not you achieve your dreams?

Musicians work in a creative field – and like many creatives they’re often plagued with self-doubt. Questions like “Is this song good enough?” or “Will everyone ignore me when I play live?” are always bouncing around in the subconscious thoughts of musicians. After all, you are putting yourself out there emotionally and creatively when you write, record, and perform. Intentional or not, these negative subconscious thoughts often manifest themselves in your actions. You can become shy and uncomfortable, pushing people and opportunities away. On the other side of the equation, if you work towards maintaining a positive mindset you will project confidence and good things will follow.

Nikki Loy is a singer songwriter who managed to turn her career around by addressing those negative thoughts and making them positive. She wrote this article for Cyber PR. Here is a short excerpt, but if you’re interested you can check out the full article here.

What do you really believe about your music career? If your thoughts about your music were announced to your audience on the P.A. system through which you perform, what would we all hear?

Do you only think great thoughts? Or do you catch yourself thinking ‘I’ll never make any money at this’, ‘It’s too hard!’, ‘There’s too much competition’, ‘No-one notices me’, ‘I wish a major label would sign me and make life easier’, ‘No-one likes my kind of music’, ‘I make Un-popular music’ ‘I’ll be poor forever’ ‘Musicians don’t make money..’ ‘I’m just one in a million other talented songwriters’

If you have negative beliefs about yourself and your career, you will always feel like you are climbing your mountain of musical success with a bungie cord strapped round your waist pulling you back to the bottom. Wouldn’t it be great to get rid of that cord and just be free to ascend unhindered?

I suggest you take some time to find a comfy place, where you won’t be disturbed. Take out a notebook or journal, and get really honest with yourself about this. Don’t hold back. Get those thoughts and feelings out. Without judgement, let your emotions take over for a bit and write it all down. Find out what you have been rehearsing in your head that is contrary to the desires of your heart. Ask your self how any negative beliefs are effecting your ability to make money from music right now. Write that down too. And how will they effect you in the long term?

The thing about beliefs is that your subconscious mind will orchestrate your life to reinforce your beliefs. You will unwittingly make choices and decisions, and adopt behaviours and expectations, that re-affirm your beliefs. For example: ‘No-one notices me’ used to be a big one for me. It manifested in audiences literally ignoring me. When I realised that I was subconsciously communicating ‘Ignore me’ to the crowd, through my tone of voice, my body language and my lack of interaction, I saw how I had created my own reality. Then I took action to change all of that behaviour, and it hasn’t been a problem since – Every crowd chants for an encore!