PRINCE's work ethic

Summary

This video explores six key lessons drawn from Prince's extraordinary creative process. The lessons focus on working quickly, finishing what you start, avoiding perfectionism, creating daily, balancing work with sleep, and developing a 'vault mentality'—maintaining a long-term vision for your creative legacy. These principles helped Prince become one of the most prolific and successful musicians in history. By adopting these practices, you can increase your creative output, maintain momentum, and sustain a productive workflow in your own work.

Takeaways

• 😀 Work quickly and efficiently: Prince's recording process was incredibly fast, with completed songs in a single day due to minimal friction in the studio.
• 😀 Embrace the 'finish' mentality: Prince always focused on finishing projects rather than perfecting every detail, sticking to ideas while they were fresh and exciting.
• 😀 Stop striving for perfection: Prince often left mistakes in his music, believing the raw emotion and energy in the first take was more important than technical perfection.
• 😀 Create art every day: Prince worked relentlessly, making music every day, whether on tour or in the studio, demonstrating the importance of consistent output.
• 😀 Value sleep: Despite his intense schedule, Prince understood the importance of rest, even going as far as to have a bed placed in his studio to ensure proper sleep.
• 😀 Develop 'vault mentality': Prince built a vault to protect his legacy, storing thousands of unreleased songs, focusing on long-term creative output over immediate releases.
• 😀 Focus on momentum: The key to creativity is maintaining momentum—Prince's process was all about getting the work done quickly and keeping the flow going.
• 😀 Build a personal legacy: Prince treated each song and album as part of his broader creative legacy, seeing his work as something that should stand the test of time.
• 😀 Embrace collaboration: Prince often preferred to work with women in the studio, ensuring a frictionless environment that allowed for rapid music production.
• 😀 Don’t burn out: By incorporating sleep and taking care of himself, Prince ensured that his productivity was sustainable over long periods, avoiding creative burnout.

Q & A

What was Prince's approach to recording music in the studio?

Prince's approach was to work fast and efficiently. He preferred a no-friction environment, often working with female engineers because they allowed him to work quickly without distractions. He would complete a song in a single day, from writing the lyrics to recording and mixing it.

Why did Prince prefer working with women in the studio?

Prince preferred working with women in the studio because he believed it created zero friction. This allowed him to maintain a fast pace in his creative process, which was essential for producing his prolific output.

What is meant by the term 'finisher' in the context of Prince's creative process?

Being a 'finisher' refers to Prince's ability to see a project through to completion without getting distracted or second-guessing himself. He stuck with his ideas while they were fresh, working on them until they were finished, rather than endlessly perfecting them.

How did Prince feel about perfectionism in music creation?

Prince rejected perfectionism in favor of capturing the initial emotion and feeling of a piece. He often took the first take, even if there were mistakes, believing that it preserved the raw emotion and energy of the moment.

What did Prince's work ethic look like on a daily basis?

Prince's work ethic was extraordinary. He worked every day, making music whenever he was awake. This included long hours in rehearsals, sound checks, and recording sessions, often recording into the night after a full performance.

Why was sleep important to Prince despite his intense work schedule?

Despite his demanding work schedule, Prince valued sleep. He had a bed in his studio and prioritized rest whenever possible, even taking naps on planes or buses to recharge. This helped him maintain his creativity and energy levels.

What is 'vault mentality' and why is it significant to Prince's creative process?

Vault mentality refers to thinking about your creative work as a legacy rather than just a single project. Prince created a vault to store all of his recorded material, including songs and albums that were never released. This mindset helped him produce an immense body of work, protecting and preserving his creative output for the future.

What did the 'vault' represent in Prince's recording process?

The vault was a secure storage space where Prince kept all of his recorded songs, including those that were never released. It represented his long-term vision for his musical legacy and was a key element of his creative strategy.

How many songs did Prince have in his vault at the time of the interview?

At the time of the interview, Prince had around 2,000 songs stored in his vault. These were fully mixed and completed tracks, many of which never saw the light of day.

What can aspiring creatives learn from Prince's approach to creativity?

Aspiring creatives can learn several valuable lessons from Prince: work quickly, finish what you start, avoid perfectionism, create consistently, and protect your creative output as if it's your legacy. These practices can help build momentum and increase productivity.