Do these little guys look familiar? One is very upset because his trumpet playing is just never good enough no matter how much he practices. Poor guy. The other fellow unabashedly displays his who cares attitude. Poor guy.The first is usually an emotional wreck and a perfectionist grump, while the other just shrugs and yawns apathetically. We have obsession and ambivalence, total opposites yet both preparing for a career in music! Which one 's going to make it? Maybe neither! Attitudes matter. Unfortunately their attitudes usually have the same result: their music has died. Why?
One works like crazy and is never content, while the other is content not to work. Somewhere there exists that wonderful balance between these bitter extremes. An all-consuming passion for learning music must be balanced by an it's-not-the-end-of-the-world mindset, but it must never descend into lethargy. Have a passion, but have a life! Where do you fit in?
Sadly this poster has little to offer for the ailments of the frenetic and the discouraged. You'll have to prescribe your own remedies. Just saying that we should beware of both of these little guys. You will observe that no method book has a section on obsessing or laziness.
So, work wisely. Feed the music beast. Stay inspired, my friends, but be reasonable. Don't be crazy, and don't be lazy.
