Do the Work of Inspiration

Inspiration is the ideal starting point and goal of all music.

That is why it’s the composer’s greatest scapegoat:

• You may feel that inspiration is fleeting and unreliable—that it comes on its own time and in its own way.
• You may think that inspiration is just a feeling—something you can’t always conjure with thoughts or actions.
• You may feel that inspiration is necessary to do good work—or even to work, period.
• You may think that inspiration comes all at once—or that it should.
• You may feel unmotivated without it—and even justified in lacking motivation.
• You may think that non-musical pursuits do not count as inspiration—including self-care.
• You may reject inspiration that doesn’t fit your expectations, ideology, or assumptions—

But with all these limits you place on inspiration, is it any wonder you struggle to access it?

Inspiration can also flow as wide and powerful and constant as the Mississippi River—if you let it.

Yes, inspiration is a feeling.

But it’s deeper than that:

• It is a collection of associations and ideas.
• It is why you care about them.
• It is why you believe others should care about them, too.
• It says, “Here is something worth noticing you might not have seen,” and, “This is how the world might be.”

In short, inspiration is meaning.

That’s great news, because meaning is not some fickle feeling or finicky “higher power.”

Meaning is something you are constantly creating, every second of your life. Every mood you vibe, every thought you think, every choice you make—it’s all meaning.

This is why inspiration is one of the four elements of musical magic.

As you create meaning for and about the music you write, you increasingly know the world of your music. You progressively understand which of its details to reveal when. You steadily find yourself in a state of creative flow.

Inspiration is not merely what motivates or prompts the work—it is the work.

The work of inspiration is creating meaning that matters for the people you serve.

Do the work of inspiration.