Do you see yourself as a composer?

Hey again—welcome back to the newsletter. 🙂

Since pushing deeper into my personal art and working more closely with composers via mentorship, lots of interesting things have happened both externally and internally.

And today, I'd like to address one of the most common internal pain points I've experienced and have heard echoed from other musicians.

Let's jump in.

Last month in my composing community, one of our members (Colin) was sharing his struggles in balancing his work/life time with his music-making.

With a family and a full-time job, Colin struggled to feel that the limited time he had to compose was "good enough".

So we dug in deeper.
I asked him more about his goals as a musician, and how he saw himself.

And then, Colin confessed something I’ve heard from almost every musician I’ve worked with:

“I don’t see myself as a real composer."

Once he said it out loud, we all felt the space changed.

There was a long silence.
Quiet nods.
The unspoken collective weight of I know that feeling.

But here’s the weird part:
Colin writes music all the time.

Even amongst his busy schedule, Colin is one of the most engaged members in the group.

→ He gives feedback regularly.
→ He shows up to nearly every call.
→ He cares deeply.

But like so many of us, Colin was carrying the learned belief that if music isn’t paying your bills—or if you're not dedicating hours upon hours every day—you haven’t "earned" the title of composer.

You’re still just aspiring to be one.

But what happens when you cling to that definition?

→ That belief urges you to "catch up", convincing you you're falling behind.
→ It'll demand that you "prove yourself" to other musicians with your skills and expertise.
→ It'll throttle your sense of "enough" with your music, aiming for perfection over completion.

Left unchecked, that belief will kill the creative joy that brought you to music in the first place.

And that's the weight that Colin and so many others carry every day.

But that's when Jerry spoke up.

With a shout and a smile, he broke the silence wide open:

“Colin, you make music. You're on the playing field—you have every right to call yourself a composer! Don't ever doubt yourself."

Everyone cracked into a smile, and you could feel the room exhale.

And one by one, each member chimed in to echo their shared feelings and offer mutual support.

This is what I love about our composing community.

It's not about proving or perfecting in here.
It's not about impressing me or anyone else in the room.
And it's not about grinding or suffering through your artistic growth.

This group is about meeting musicians where they're currently at, offering gentle support wherever it's needed, and guiding composers back to joyful creativity.

Because we need more communities where making art is the reward in and of itself.

And if you've been craving that kind of space, know that the door to our community is open for you if and when you're ready.

If you opt to join today, there's a 7-day free trial—and if you're reading this in time, hop into today's live call at 12PM PT.

Now...

Stay curious, and make some art from the heart. 🎶

—Zach

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