Mindset and using FL Studio

This section will focus on sharing personal experiences and information shared with me by some of the world’s greatest producers, songwriters, and mixing engineers, which are related to staying disciplined and motivated to continue to be teachable when absorbing new information, and about the mindset commonalities successful producers use when executing productions with FL Studio. This section will also include introducing you to the concept of affirmations and how to create and conceptualize them, and ultimately, you will be prompted to create your own affirmations in the Exercise section.

Making hits that work for the masses

I started at the same place as most of you reading this book – I had no money and no experience, just FL Studio and a dream. When I ventured out into the wonderous world of Los Angeles and I had finally managed to get around big producers, engineers, and songwriters, I took the approach of listening and learning before I did anything else.

First, FL Studio is an extremely versatile software tool that must be mastered to create great workflows and workflow habits. Most of FL Studio’s theory comes from trial and error, but there are lessons in what I shall impart to you that I learned from observing other masters at work. There are two concepts called the two pillars of practice, which are as follows:

• The pillar of mastery as it relates to mindset
• The pillar of action as it relates to FL Studio

The pillar of mindset rules the pillar of action. Without the correct mindset, your actions are fruitless.

The pillar of mindset shows that the following applies to each master I learned from:

• They had a chief objective
• They believed that the objective was possible, even if it was farfetched and outrageous
• They programmed their minds to focus obsessively on their goal by thinking about it daily
• They took daily action toward the goal
• They understood that discipline trumps motivation, for motivation gets you going but discipline keeps you going
• They had a ferocious appetite for learning everything they could about FL Studio
• They experimented creatively and technically
• They aren’t afraid to take risks in creation
• They are perfectionists in their own right

Before I share with you the first key lessons that will set the tone of this book, we need to focus on the concept of affirmations, or narrowing down your why.

Successful musicians, producers, engineers, songwriters, and the like all use affirmations to train their subconscious minds to set in motion the action and discipline they will need to start and complete the objective they wish to attain. Think of affirmations as your destination and the technical frameworks of this book as the directions. Affirmations should be recited regularly and updated as goals change. The truth is your subconscious mind doesn’t know whether you are capable of achieving a goal or not. That’s why it is important to affirm within yourself that you can and will attain your goals.

For the purpose of this book, we will focus on affirmations that are related to your skill set as a producer or composer, and the goals someone in this profession may have. It’s important to write down your affirmations and verbalize them in private regularly. I say this because most people who don’t share the same mindset of setting goals will think you are crazy! If your goals aren’t crazy, they aren’t big enough. It’s important when writing affirmations that you frame them when you write them as something that has already been accomplished. When writing an affirmation, you want to write it as if you have already achieved the goal, not as if you want to achieve the goal. We want to affirm that you are heading there, not simply dreaming of heading there.

For example, a bad affirmation would be, “I want to be the best music producer ever.” The reason this affirmation isn’t powerful is because it implies you want to be, not that you are. An example of a good affirmation to the contrary would be, “I’m excited and happy knowing I’m the best music producer ever.” This implies you already are, and not simply wishing you are.

This is very important! So please, take note and practice writing goals and objectives correctly – it absolutely matters, and whether through coincidence or serendipity, you will see your goals unfold if you internalize these objectives through repetition. I want to make it clear, there are a lot of books and seminars that purport simply wishing your goals into existence; this is a misnomer. When you have identified a goal, it must be followed by these:

• A genuine internal feeling of excitement
• Consistent action toward achieving that goal

Without these two components, you are simply just writing words on a page, and it won’t help you internalize the techniques taught in this book. If you are writing goals and affirmations and you feel doubt, negativity, or frustration, that just simply means you need to dial back and focus on the next logical step instead of the objective you feel doubt over. This is important as when you feel doubt, you internally don’t believe you will get the goal, and you won’t! On the contrary, if you feel motivated, positive, and accelerated when you write a goal down, you’re in the sweet spot and you need to follow through with taking action.

Again, let’s simplify the concept of affirmations by following these steps:

1. Write your objective down as if you have already achieved it.
2. Consciously repeat it to yourself every day.
3. Feel excited and motivated when you repeat it.
4. Take ruthless action until it is achieved.

Remember, objectives are moving targets – you can only go as far as you can see, and when you get there, you will be able to see a little further. Let’s look at some further affirmation examples you can use or modify as they relate to this book:

• I’m thrilled and excited that I have mastered FL Studio and have worked with some of the biggest artists and songwriters in the industry
• I’m grateful that I have earned Grammy Awards and nominations using FL Studio in my genre
• I’m humbled that I’ve been able to create a career using FL Studio that allows me to earn a fantastic living for myself and my family

Now that we have explored the concept of affirmations and the art of setting goals, we will discuss the concept of viewing growth through the lens of what I call the mental balance scale.

The mental balance scale

Mental balance is simply the idea of taking action on your goals, objectives, and clearly defined affirmations that you must be balanced in your approach to both the how and the why. Although this sounds simple in nature, the truth is (and this may go over your head), the most important part of mental balance is actually your why. The conscious mind nourishes the subconscious, which in turn exerts its influence on your actions and thoughts within your reality.

As we discussed in the Perfect practice makes practice perfect section, without a strong why, you won’t put in the required effort to learn the how. The concept of mental balance is a “conventional thought” or “conventional wisdom.” To be super successful, I need you to start thinking outside of the box, outside of conventional wisdom. Your status as a producer, composer, or arranger using FL Studio is a culmination of all of the thoughts and habits you have created to date. If you continue to think and do what you always thought and done, you will continue to get what you have always got!

All of the most notable producers I have worked with in the business know this, and they continue to be teachable even after all of the success they achieve. They continue to set new goals, they go as far as they can see, and when they get there, they know they can see a little farther. The art of goal setting is knowing that there will always be another step, another aim, another objective once you complete an affirmation. The most successful producers I have worked with, in most cases, aren’t musical geniuses, they weren’t Mozart when they started, but they dreamed big. They had a powerful why that drove them to learn the how as they progressed in their careers.

The truth is with FL Studio, you don’t need to be an expert in musical theory, playing instruments, or composing when you start. FL Studio is a powerful tool that gives you everything you need to make your ideas come to life. It is practicing with the correct mindset that will enable you to master the software and become a great musical theory expert, instrument player, and composer.

Now that we have covered the basics of mindset as it relates to becoming a true power user, I’m going to show you the how.