One of the hardest parts of working on project is getting started. Writing the first page of a novel is difficult enough, but every single time you sit down to work on it you have to start all over again. Long term projects require you to maintain the same creative urge for months or years at a time. You have to create a signal to you brain that it needs to enter a creative state.

My favorite way to do this is to pick a theme song for every project. Just like the opening credits to a TV show, play the same music every time you start your project. As you create more and more, your creative state will get linked to the music and you’ll be able to get into the groove instantly.

The best songs to use are the more simple or corny songs with positive lyrics. Don’t use something that makes you think or already has some emotional connection for you.  Don’t Stop Me Now, by Queen, is one that I use all the time. I know people who use the theme from Rocky and Funkytown.

Different music can be used while you are creating to help you enter different emotional states or to help you zone out. This tip is just to help you take that first step, if you can’t do that then nothing else matters.