Self-Defined Human Podcast

I got this email from a former piano player: “I’ve given up on piano. I’m just not good enough to play the pieces I love. I took lessons from a teacher once, but he had a short temper and made me feel stupid for not knowing exactly what he wanted me to do. I’m 70 years old. I told him I just wish could play Bach like the 9-year-olds I see on YouTube, but he laughed and told me to ignore them. Fina...

Let these words sink in: fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuck shitshitshitshitshitshit fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuck Now, let this sink in: Your piano playing sounds like f*****g s**t because you can’t even read these words without obsessing over the moral decay of society. Stop being so entitled. Do some f*****g work. —Michael P.S. I may have a few ideas for you, but first, I’ve got to check something. I need to...

A fellow trendsetter posed the following problem to me: “I’ve got all these great creative ideas, but when I go to do them, I get bored and quit and do something else. As a result, I never make any money because I’m not sticking around long enough to build whatever I’m trying to build.” Here’s what I think: you’re wrong about what’s causing this. It’s NOT because: * You’re stressed out * You’re an...

I got this Instagram DM from a future superstar: “I’m not moving my body freely when I play piano, because I’d rather play well first. I’ve always struggled with hand positioning, you brought up a weird way I put my hand that I hadn’t noticed, accepted and now try not to.” That’s not good enough. Remember what Yoda said: “Do or do not. There is no try.” So, let’s make this practical. Otherwise, it...

In this video, you can see a familiar riff from the song “Bohemian Rhapsody”. The video shows the wrong way to play it and the right way. I’m emphasizing the word “see” rather than “hear” because this is obvious when you’re looking but not so obvious when you’re listening. I can see, just by watching, that there’s all this extra effort. Maybe you don’t know what you’re looking at, but I know you c...

Let me give a quick recap about why you suck at piano, because I don't think this is a matter of lacking clarity . I think there's something else going on, so I want to throw it out here as a way of starting a conversation. Here’s how you look at the problem From your perspective, you have no time for piano because you need to spend all your time making money. But, you have ADHD, so no matter what...

Here's the thing: maybe we're not ready for clarity. Maybe we should sit with the confusion for a bit longer. Why rush through this? Why rush to a point where you know what to do next? Would that be based on anything, on what’s happening NOW? No, it would be based on idealizations about the future. See, I don't think we've hit rock bottom yet. There’s an order to things, and I’m expecting that bef...

Lately, I’ve been asking a bunch of people, “how’s it going with piano?”, and by far, the most common answer is “It’s not, sadly! Been insanely busy lately but it’s all good!” Since I’m a piano teacher, you may think I’ve some particular reaction to that answer. I don’t know, but I’m not judging it. I don’t think it’s a bad answer, but I do want to know where it’s coming from. I want to know what...

You suck at piano. It sounds like s**t when you play. I hate listening to it. You mess up even the most basic things. But, you care more about not messing up than what it sounds like. You don't care what it sounds like. You don't care about keeping a steady beat. You care so much about doing it right that you're not willing to leave out notes, to make a decision, to have an opinion. It's horrible...

You get that piano's hard, right? You're not going to master it overnight. I know you've got other stuff going on, but I don't see how that's relevant. You're always going to have other stuff going on. It's been that way your whole life and it'll always be that. One project after the next. Hold on. You’re hypnotizing me. Again. Damn it. We need to back up. Can we get more specific about where we'r...

The other day, I was chatting on Instagram with someone who didn't seem all that enthusiastic about piano (this is someone who’s been a client of mine). I remarked that this lack of enthusiasm was why I didn't want to waste my time chatting about piano. In response, they sent the following message: "In one of our early conversations about piano, you said something like piano is a lifetime journey....

I got this reply to one of my emails a few weeks ago: "As I indicated in one email, I have given up on playing piano for over 2 years except for playing it on CDs. It is far more enjoyable." Let me give my reaction to that. On the one hand, this sounds like a perfectly reasonable position, and based on conversations I've had, I'm guessing it applies to most people reading this email. But, it puts...

I haven't written for a couple of weeks because I've felt like I have "nothing to say". Now, however, I'm forcing myself to write, and that’s risky . I mean, what if you don’t care what I have to say? But, here's the thing: I'm interested in what you’re doing. Now, admittedly, you’re not on my mind all the time. It’s a once-in-a-while kind of thing. But, the fact is, your life is one of the things...

This is a strange episode but I kinda like it, so I’m putting it up here. It’s audio that was recorded on February 6, 2021. It was a livestream I did on Instagram where I was playing Donkey Kong Country 3 and talking about some stuff that had happened to me in the first year of the pandemic related to: 1. The music school I’d been playing at before the pandemic, and 2. A marketin...

Lately, I’ve been a cheerleader for boundaries. That’s funny because the second episode of this podcast was called “Stop Setting Boundaries”. In this episode, I explain how my thinking has changed by reacting to Episode 2. Timeline: 0:00:00 – Introduction 0:03:09 – Reacting to Episode 2: “Stop Setting Boundaries” 0:04:37 – Drama Triangle &...

Spiral Dynamics is a framework for making sense of the forces that drive culture. It helps you understand why YouTube commenters are such jerks. Also, why the Godfather cares so much about respect. And why Osho started his cult. And why air traffic controllers aren’t to blame for mid-air collisions. I’d take it to a desert island. Stay tuned for more episodes on the other colors. (Inst...

Only you can teach yourself how to read music. I have no power over you. The Universe will do its thing, and no, it’s not fair. But here’s a placebo to keep you company. It might even work. (Instagram live, April 24, 2023) 0:00 – Introduction 1:30 – How to read music 10:44 – Major and minor keys 16:48 – The Karate Kid (homework 1) 18:21 – Major and minor c...

All about meditation, language, non-duality and waking up to b******t. This is graduate-level piano material. Actually, it’s a bit beyond that. (Instagram Live from April 22, 2023) 0:00 Introduction 0:48 Meditation 10:10 Is classical music better than contemporary music? 11:30 Enlightenment 21:52 Form vs Function 25:45 A language exercise 30:43 Duality vs Non-duality 35:30 Why YouTube commen...

Welcome to 4-dimensional space. Glad you could join me on this higher plane of existence. Now, let me set the record straight about some of y’all’s problems with me. (Piano Time Live on Instagram, April 21, 2023) Timeline: 0:00 – Introduction 1:39 – Golden Hour 5:48 – 3-step exercise to play with both hands 10:51 – The 4th dimension 19:18 – Für Elise 22:26...

I invited Dr. David Servias to have a conversation with me about the Bach Toccata & Fugue fiasco. We discuss the history of the piece, why the NERDS can’t process one out-of-place note, and how I’m dealing with hate on my YouTube channel. For the backstory, watch the original video (and read the comments ) Timeline: 00:00:00 – I posted a cute little piano tutorial and the music theory NERDS freake...

Let’s talk about how to learn to play the piano. It’s a big subject, but we’ve gotta start somewhere. Timeline: 0:00 – Should I change the name of the podcast? 0:47 – Pandemic regrets. Being taunted by the piano in your living room. 2:31 – Why I get irritated when people want to learn piano. My experiences with language learning and classical guitar. 4:40 &#8211...

People with ADHD have to do these things differently: Finding out if a teacher is qualified Learning a new song Buying a piano or keyboard Writing music…getting ideas out of your head Dealing with criticism Getting excited and then losing interest Following advice Practicing regularly The standard advice just ain’t gonna work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with...

How I got obsessed with piano scales. Why audiences liked to watch Pavarotti struggle. Pianists are clueless about body intelligence. Why you learned in school to hyper-fixate on outcomes and suck at physical education. 0:00 Why I’ve been reluctant to go into anything technical on this podcast. 3:00 How I got started with scales and why I hated them at first. 7:30 Why piano should be easy an...

My post read: “Your ex wasn’t abusive. You made a decision to get into that relationship and you made a decision to get out. Take some responsibility for your decisions.” Some people got triggered. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nomichaelhere.substack.com

A conversation with Fabienne Egger (@this_is_fabienne on Instagram) about yoga, the metaverse, speaking on camera, the Drama Triangle, and the true purpose of meditation and yoga. If you teach yoga or meditation, or are a serious practitioner of either, you should be aware of your responsibilities. For the first half hour, we catch up on some personal stuff. The real content starts after that poin...