First off, I've only been studying audio for like 6 months. I don't know sh** about audio and can't offer any helpful advice about it.
But when I saw the ALL CAPS and the exclamation points and the page count in this thread, I knew exactly what I was walking into. I hope headcase is still reading this thread, because nothing in this thread is about audio. It's about attitude.
I spent most of my adult life studying graphics, animation and trying to please insufferable clients and bosses. All process, little-to-no reward. I never got affirmation or compliments or "f*** yeahs" about my craft, I was lucky to get paid for the jobs I took up. I got ripped off about a dozen times before I left the freelance scene behind because I couldn't afford to go to small claims and get the fees I was owed.
I've also spent much longer than that around musicians of all types and was raised alongside a few of them.
Look, we all love it when mommy puts our crayon drawings on the fridge. But at some point, you stop running your mouth and explaining your mistakes, roll up your sleeves and get dirty. This attitude is so prevalent in every single walk of life that you can smell it from half a mile off. Your work speaks for you. If you have to throw in a disclaimer, or worse yet, blow up your nonexistant credentials, that's keeping you from doing your work. And yeah, it's work. If it means that much to you, you'll treat it as such. When someone comes along and tells you how to improve and you read that as a downer and throw a tantrum, you might as well curl up like a contortionist and stick your head up your own ass. At least that would be physically impressive compared to running your mouth, which any kindergartener can do.
The very best thing you can do is attach your name to something you put out and then shut the f*** up. If you have to ask for help, then it's not there yet. Don't even try to hype it. If it's good, someone else will. It's like every fat girl on the bus talking about what a pretty, unique princess they are while contributing nothing to society. You can't decide how good/talented/pretty you are. That's for everyone else to judge, and judge they will.
I know those songs you've been pouring yourself into are highly personal and mean something to you, no matter how it ranks. So treat it like it means something to you. No matter what you pull off, you'll look back in five years and wonder what the hell you were thinking. It's not the product that's valuable, it's what you learned pulling it off. That's the sh** you take with you.
And if all you're cultivating is a legacy of burned bridges and sh**-talk, that's what your name gets attached to. That's your f***ing CV. Even the most punked-out motherf***ers understand what a reputation is and how it's important.
When someone tells you to "grow up," that's what they mean.
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