1. Sharpen your songwriting skills everyday. Just like an athlete who practices to reach the peak of their performance, a songwriter should also practice regularly. Professional athletes do not reach the peak of their performance by accident. It takes long hard work. You may be naturally talented when it comes to songwriting but just like a professional athlete, talent alone will not make you a professional. Make a 30 minute songwriting time per day and use it to experiment with chords, write themes or jingles, maybe rearrange something you have recently heard or are familiar with. This is a simple and easy start to what will become a good habit to practice.

2. Spend some time every day listening to music. Concentrate on the lyrics and melodies in the songs you hear. As you listen more you will unconsciously adapt more to music in general.

3. Don’t limit yourself to one style. Some of the hottest songs played on the radio today are crossovers that have been re-mastered to appeal to a different audience. To become a successful song writer; you will need your song heard by everybody. Do not limit your success by limiting your creative influences.

4. Play the game the way everyone is playing it. Just because you think you have the perfect melody or tune doesn’t mean the world, or other song writers and performers, will think the same thing. There are no set in stone rules to songwriting, however, there are practices you need to become familiar with. Rewrites and edits are a part of that game, be open to this. A closed mind does not make for a good songwriter. Whenever possible, learn the basics of lyrics and poetry writing. Learning is an ongoing process and it’s a fact that as you learn more about the rules of the game, you become more skillful bending those rules. Always remember that writing a smart melody or composing a catchy tune can only be done successfully by practice.

5. Don’t be shy. Make everybody know about your songwriting skills. Show it to friends and family first, then to songwriting communities and finally, seek professional critiques. As you get your work more fine tuned, you will become more confident and, consequently, will be open to advice and recommendations. Remember, it’s the people whom you are writing for, their thoughts do matter.