--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: For me, songwriting is something like…" description: "\"For me, songwriting is something like breathing: I just do it. But that doesn't mean you're fantastic.\" — Adam Duritz" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eea/adam-duritz-12230_breathing_for-me-songwriting-is-something-like-bre_2765497.png" --- # For me, songwriting is something like breathing: I just do… ![“For me, songwriting is something like breathing: I just do it. But that doesn't mean you're fantastic.” quote by Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eea/adam-duritz-12230_breathing_for-me-songwriting-is-something-like-bre_2765497.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eea/adam-duritz-12230_breathing_for-me-songwriting-is-something-like-bre_2765497.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eea/adam-duritz-12230_breathing_for-me-songwriting-is-something-like-bre_2765497.png) > “For me, songwriting is something like breathing: I just do it. But that doesn't mean you're fantastic.” [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Songwriting feels instinctive to him, yet he cautions that natural talent doesn’t guarantee excellence. **In simple terms:** Songwriting is instinctive, not always great. Key Takeaway Practice to refine talent. Themes creativity music humility Mood inspirational realistic Type musician advice When to use this quote - songwriting workshops - collaboration - feedback loops Key Concepts artistic process skill development Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance instinct with effort? - What habits improve songwriting? A Different Perspective Talent alone isn’t enough. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Breathing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathing/) [Breathing Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathing-just-958106/) [Fantastic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fantastic/) [Just do it](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just-do-it/) [Like Breathing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-breathing/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Mean Fantastic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean-fantastic-3201739/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Songwriting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/songwriting/) [Songwriting Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/songwriting-like-384573/) ## Related quotes > [Loving you is like breathing...I just can't stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/loving-you-is-like-breathing-i-just-can-t-stop/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Songwriting is like editing. You write down all this stuff - all this bad, stupid stuff - and then you have to get rid…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juliana-hatfield/songwriting-is-like-editing-you-write-down-all-this-stuff-all-this/) [Juliana Hatfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juliana-hatfield/) > [I often say songwriting is like trying to climb down a ladder at night. You put your foot on the next rung and test…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/crowder/i-often-say-songwriting-is-like-trying-to-climb-down-a-ladder-at/) [Crowder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/crowder/) > [My songwriting... it's almost like a kind of self-therapy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paolo-nutini/my-songwriting-it-s-almost-like-a-kind-of-self-therapy/) [Paolo Nutini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paolo-nutini/) > [Most songwriting like poetry takes a careful selection of words. Sometimes you're just channeling something and a selection of words come out that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vance-joy/most-songwriting-like-poetry-takes-a-careful-selection-of-words/) [Vance Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vance-joy/) > [Just because you cant see the air doesn't mean you stop breathing. And just because you cant see God doesn't mean you stop believing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alone-boy/just-because-you-cant-see-the-air-doesn-t-mean-you-stop-breathing-and/) [Alone Boy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alone-boy/) > [Be thankful your still breathing, because someone out there just took their last breath..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/senoraroy/be-thankful-your-still-breathing-because-someone-out-there-just-took/) [Senoraroy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/senoraroy/) > [“Don’t stop breathing just because night has fallen! Don't stop breathing just because you are sleeping”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-agyemang-yeboah/don-t-stop-breathing-just-because-night-has-fallen-don-t-stop/) [Ernest Agyemang Yeboah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-agyemang-yeboah/) > [I do a little bit of yoga-style meditation. Relaxing and breathing even just one minute a day makes a big difference.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dolph-lundgren/i-do-a-little-bit-of-yoga-style-meditation-relaxing-and-breathing/) [Dolph Lundgren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dolph-lundgren/) > [Life is too short to take things for granted. Be thankful you're still breathing because someone out there just took their last breath.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/life-is-too-short-to-take-things-for-granted-be-thankful-you-re-still/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Listen, are you breathing just a little, and calling it a life? While the soul, after all, is only a window, and the opening…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/listen-are-you-breathing-just-a-little-and-calling-it-a-life-while/) [Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/) > [Keep breathing. Just keep doing it. It's easy. In and out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-downham/keep-breathing-just-keep-doing-it-it-s-easy-in-and-out/) [Jenny Downham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-downham/) > [“ I want to hold my breath for as long as it takes. I want to stop breathing just long enough to know what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jaye-murray/i-want-to-hold-my-breath-for-as-long-as-it-takes-i-want-to-stop/) [Jaye Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jaye-murray/) > [“One does not hold their breath and say that they are breathing; Just the same, One cannot advance in life and remain the same.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gillian-duce/one-does-not-hold-their-breath-and-say-that-they-are-breathing-just/) [Gillian Duce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gillian-duce/) > [“It's ironic, isn't it? How hope keeps us breathing just to kill us in the end.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-lyons/it-s-ironic-isn-t-it-how-hope-keeps-us-breathing-just-to-kill-us-in/) [Nicole Lyons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-lyons/) ## More by Adam Duritz > [You want to embrace, but I can't figure out how to hold on to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/you-want-to-embrace-but-i-can-t-figure-out-how-to-hold-on-to-it/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [There just is exponentially more money in the movie business than in the music business. As a result there are more people involved in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/there-just-is-exponentially-more-money-in-the-movie-business-than-in/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [I find that truly heartbreaking that, like, it's such a common, constant thing in people's lives - a brutal abuse of people by other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/i-find-that-truly-heartbreaking-that-like-it-s-such-a-common-constant/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [If dreams are like movies, then memories are films about ghosts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/if-dreams-are-like-movies-then-memories-are-films-about-ghosts/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [If you've never stared off in the distance, then your life is a shame.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/if-you-ve-never-stared-off-in-the-distance-then-your-life-is-a-shame/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [I've been playing music most of my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/i-ve-been-playing-music-most-of-my-life/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [For all the things I'm losing I might aswell resign myself to try and make a change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/for-all-the-things-i-m-losing-i-might-aswell-resign-myself-to-try-and/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [Being in a band is about making the band the priority.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/being-in-a-band-is-about-making-the-band-the-priority/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [You have to kind of shift the way you look at life when you're in a group of people that you work with. It's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/you-have-to-kind-of-shift-the-way-you-look-at-life-when-you-re-in-a/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [When so much money is involved in these movies, someone somewhere is going to try to screw you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/when-so-much-money-is-involved-in-these-movies-someone-somewhere-is/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [That's where the songs come from: that's what I'd most want people to understand. What sounds good or looks good, that's nothing. The only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/that-s-where-the-songs-come-from-that-s-what-i-d-most-want-people-to/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [When you're young and you play music, you have a peer group, you come out of a scene. There's a lot of people you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/when-you-re-young-and-you-play-music-you-have-a-peer-group-you-come/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [You aren't really writing about what you did; you're writing about how you feel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/you-aren-t-really-writing-about-what-you-did-you-re-writing-about-how/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [A long December and there's reason to believe, maybe this year will be better than the last.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/a-long-december-and-there-s-reason-to-believe-maybe-this-year-will-be/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) > [You don't understand what makes you understand what makes your life better until you take something that makes it so much worse and you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-duritz/you-don-t-understand-what-makes-you-understand-what-makes-your-life/) [Adam Duritz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) [Explore all 55 Adam Duritz quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-duritz/) ## More Breathing quotes > [A thing of beauty is a joy for ever;It's loveliness increase;it will never pass into nothingness;but still will keep a bower quiet for us,and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-keats/a-thing-of-beauty-is-a-joy-for-ever-it-s-loveliness-increase-it-will/) [John Keats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-keats/) > [“As long as we’re breathing, we have a chance to start over and build a stable future.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-ha-campbell/as-long-as-we-re-breathing-we-have-a-chance-to-start-over-and-build-a/) [Kim Ha Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-ha-campbell/) > [People don't think much about breathing. Of all the things we take for granted, breathing has to be number one - even though it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laird-hamilton/people-don-t-think-much-about-breathing-of-all-the-things-we-take-for/) [Laird Hamilton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laird-hamilton/) > [Aging is like enlightenment at gunpoint. Before I had cancer, I lived my life for my art. After I had cancer, I lived my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-halprin/aging-is-like-enlightenment-at-gunpoint-before-i-had-cancer-i-lived/) [Anna Halprin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-halprin/) > [I wish," Jared began, and stopped, breathing in. "Do you remember how you used to believe I wasn't real? Sometimes I wish that was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-rees-brennan/i-wish-jared-began-and-stopped-breathing-in-do-you-remember-how-you/) [Sarah Rees Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-rees-brennan/) > [The still affection of the heart Became an outward breathing type, That into stillness past again, And left a want unknown before; Although the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-lord-tennyson/the-still-affection-of-the-heart-became-an-outward-breathing-type/) [Alfred Lord Tennyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-lord-tennyson/) > [Breathing is give(carbon dioxide) and take(oxygen), such is life, find balance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-williams/breathing-is-give-carbon-dioxide-and-take-oxygen-such-is-life-find/) [Marcel Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-williams/) > [I'll probably be writing as long as I'm breathing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-kristofferson/i-ll-probably-be-writing-as-long-as-i-m-breathing/) [Kris Kristofferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-kristofferson/) > [For me writing is like breathing. I could not live without breathing and I could not live without writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pablo-neruda/for-me-writing-is-like-breathing-i-could-not-live-without-breathing/) [Pablo Neruda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pablo-neruda/) > [I’m in, Cat. I’d never leave you. Especially when you’ve got death breathing down your neck.” “Very funny,” I retorted, since Bones was inches…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeaniene-frost/i-m-in-cat-i-d-never-leave-you-especially-when-you-ve-got-death/) [Jeaniene Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeaniene-frost/) > [Splutter, splutter. Yes - we're off - we're rising. But why start off with an engine like that? But it smooths out now, like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-morrow-lindbergh/splutter-splutter-yes-we-re-off-we-re-rising-but-why-start-off-with/) [Anne Morrow Lindbergh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-morrow-lindbergh/) > [He’d moved toward me again. His hands released mine and moved to my waist, and I noticed I wasn’t the only one breathing heavily.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-mead/he-d-moved-toward-me-again-his-hands-released-mine-and-moved-to-my/) [Richelle Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-mead/) > [My worry is that opera will become an historic art form as opposed to a living, breathing thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/renee-fleming/my-worry-is-that-opera-will-become-an-historic-art-form-as-opposed-to/) [Renee Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/renee-fleming/) > [I'm really fascinated and you know I've been wondering about that usage of language, various breathing techniques and why in these practices language is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathy-acker/i-m-really-fascinated-and-you-know-i-ve-been-wondering-about-that/) [Kathy Acker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathy-acker/) > [I’m exactly right for you, Bella. It would have been effortless for us — comfortable, easy as breathing. I was the natural path your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephenie-meyer/i-m-exactly-right-for-you-bella-it-would-have-been-effortless-for-us/) [Stephenie Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephenie-meyer/) [Browse all 1,666 Breathing quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/breathing/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "For me, songwriting is something like breathing: I just do it. 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