Keep at something even when you don't feel inspired. Don't wait for inspiration! I write a lot of songs that are terrible, in the hopes that one song that has something special comes out of it. Just stay at something, and write every day if you're writing lyrics.

It's hard to start and think about having balance. Music is a tough industry, and you have to work your way to that luxury.

Maybe it's easier to have that desire guest-spot-packed album, for example, you're a rapper and you need someone to sing the hook. I guess for us, it just kind of feels like we want to explore ourselves more. That sounds kind of cheesy, but I don't know. I have a lot of artists whose music I have this perfect relationship with, and I don't really feel like I need to meet them or get to know them or write with them because of it.

To foster creativity, I think a little pressure can be good, but stress isn't good. Knowing that you have a defined window of time and you're going to dedicate your attention to it is a positive - but you can't think of it as needing a track that's going to change your life.

Have your own definition of success. Figure it out for yourself. If you really want to be the next Rihanna or whatever you've got to understand what that takes. Or if you want to be the Brian Eno - or whatever it is - who knows? Define for yourself what success means.

It can be tricky with branding these days, because everything is kind of branded.

Keep at something even when you don't feel inspired. Don't wait for inspiration! I write a lot of songs that are terrible, in the hopes that one song that has something special comes out of it. Just stay at something, and write every day if you're writing lyrics.