Almost as scary as having a baby: I turned email off on my iPhone
When I asked Chris Dupont and Betsy King what it was like to have a baby and be self-employed songwriters/artists, they said, “We quickly learned how to stop wasting time!” (Chris and Betsy King had their first baby, Leo, on November 30! He’s awesome.)
Betsy and Chris tracking for Matt Jones’s new record!
Natalie and I have only been members of the parenthood club for four day, and I have already missed one deadline, my monthly songwriting challenge for PVSG.
I know my songwriting friends will give me a pass, but finishing this first song while being a father is an important step. I need to prove to myself that while my schedule has changed, my songwriting abilities haven’t.
I guess it’s not really about songwriting abilities; it’s about time management.
Balancing time requires a deliberate mindset. The lizard brain tells me to feel stressed out about my new limitations of time; instead, I want to follow Chris and Betsy’s footsteps and see it as an opportunity.
I’ve already determined my biggest distractor: my iPhone. Last year, I deleted all social networking apps from my phone. Last week, I made an even more difficult choice: I turned off email.
It’s April 1st, but I’m not joking: I’m limiting my time holding my iPhone, and balancing my time between holding my baby and a musical instrument.
Since we’ve gotten out of bed, I’ve changed three poopy diapers; Natalie’s fed Ginny four times. By the end of this day, these numbers will increase, yet hopefully I’ll have a new song finished, too.
The song might never make a record, but it will be one of the most important tunes I finish this year.
Ginny likes my mandolin, and she doesn’t mind if I sing out of key!
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