I caught myself cheating on my current project. I was brushing my teeth and I spaced out. The next thing I know, I am daydreaming about the musicians and arrangements that would be perfect for my next project. I don’t even have all of the songs written for my current project and I am already brainstorming about the next one. I felt very guilty.
We’ve been taught that successful people have a singular focus. They eat, sleep, and daydream only about their current project. They are obsessed with whatever they are working on. Thanks to our society’s high-profile examples, I feel guilty if I am not obsessively working on a project. I love my work so much but I never get obsessed with a specific project.
I think I do better when I am working on multiple projects at the same time. I get easily distracted and I love to go where the creative flow takes me. My best work develops when I am not obsessing but causally following the muse. I am sure there is a diagnosis for my inability to stay focused. I sometimes complete a project, eventually. I start chasing a good idea and then get overwhelmed by shame because I am already thinking about a different good idea and then I abandon the first idea completely. I need to embrace also instead of next. Next makes me feel guilty. Also is freeing.