I send weekly letters about composing, creative fulfillment, and making art that truly feels like you. If you’re tired of tips and ready for something deeper, I'd love for you to join us.
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Make music from the heart—not your head.
Nobody cares about you 🔦
Casey Neistat is probably best known for being one of the earliest adopters of “daily vlogging”.
(He held an impressive streak of 534 days in a row.)
And during that period of his content creation, he shared everything.
All of the imperfections of daily life were laid bare for th...
by Zach Heyde —
Aug 13, 2024
content creation
My big lesson from Big Island, Hawai'i 🌴
Two weeks ago, I discussed the importance of detoxing from social media.
Well - I tried it for myself.
Last week, I went on an 8-day trip with my wife to Big Island, Hawai’i:
During that trip, we:
🚌 Took a full-day bus tour across the island
☕ Went to several local coffee farms (100% Kona Coffe...
by Zach Heyde —
Aug 13, 2024
health
It's time for a digital de-clutter 📲
I’ve recently found that I’ve been relying more and more on my phone for daily dopamine hits:
🛌 When I wake up, I “do the rounds” across my social media accounts.
🍔 While I’m eating, I browse YouTube.
🤣 Before bed, I scroll Instagram for funny videos.
Slowly but surely, this little device in my...
by Zach Heyde —
Aug 13, 2024
health
How to start believing in yourself 💪
One of the most difficult questions I’ve ever been asked came from a 30-year old composer back in 2023.
Here’s what he wrote to me:
"On paper, I have the knowledge, experience, and abilities to pursue a full-time musical career in some form or another. But I lack faith.
On a good day, I still ca...
by Zach Heyde —
Aug 13, 2024
health
motivation
How I start every week to prevent burnout 🔋
As you may have discovered yesterday…
Mondays can make or break your energy and motivation for the rest of the week.
I used to feel like Garfield.
I’d over-exert myself at the start of every week, thinking:
“I’ve got to get EVERYTHING done on my to-do list to stay ahead!”
But every time I’d do...
by Zach Heyde —
Aug 13, 2024
burnout
How I overcame a 6-month creative block 🧑💻
Throughout the last 365 days, my YouTube channel has been climbing rapidly to nearly 100,000 subscribers.
And yet...
For the past few months, I'd been dealing with a pretty hefty creative block. 😓
It all started with a break from content creation I took in November to create the Composing Career ...
by Zach Heyde —
Aug 13, 2024
burnout
content creation
Do you NEED to be in L.A. to compose full-time? 🌎
In case you missed my recent YouTube video…
I moved to Los Angeles in 2019 to continue my pursuits of composing for a living.
Prior to my move, I was in Tennessee, doing various music jobs including:
⛪️ Playing piano at a local church
🎸 Teaching piano and guitar
💻 ...
by Zach Heyde —
Aug 13, 2024
finding work
How to (not) get paid composing work 🙃
Have you ever inverted a question?
This is a technique I learned recently from a business mentor of mine, and the concept blew my mind.
Here’s why.
When faced with a problem, we often ask ourselves how to solve the problem at hand.
But here's the problem:
If we knew how to answer that question, w...
by Zach Heyde —
Aug 13, 2024
finding work