Maker Time, Manager Time, Money Time

This post was inspired by Paul Graham’s famous essay, "Maker's Schedule, Manager's Schedule". Paul Graham is the founder of the startup accelerator, Y Combinator, and helped launch some of the most successful tech companies in the world (like AirBnB, Stripe, Coinbase, and Dropbox to name a few).

I stumbled onto the idea of Maker’s and Manager’s schedule several years ago, and it definitely helped me unlock new levels of productivity. Recently, I heard a podcast talking about the concept and I was inspired to adapt it to the music industry.

To truly thrive as you are building your creative business, you need to master the art of dividing your schedule into three major parts:

• Maker Time

• Manager Time

• Money Time

Let’s dive in to find out what that means and how it can change the trajectory of your creative career!

Maker Time: The Art of Making Something Extraordinary

When you hear ‘Maker Time’, I want you to think of deep, focused creativity.

This is the time that leverages your skills and creative drive to produce something truly remarkable—whether it’s new music, new merch, or new content for your fans.

Maker Time is where you need large, uninterrupted blocks of time to get into the creative zone.

No notifications. No distractions. NO MEETINGS DURING MAKER TIME!

This isn’t an hour here and there; it’s multiple four to five hour blocks each week where you can dive into a project without coming up for air. The goal here is to create something extraordinary, to pour yourself fully into the process of making.

Remember, if you don’t protect this time, no one will.

Making music is the heartbeat of your career, and nothing can replace the output of a focused, dedicated creative session.

Pro Tip: Block out Maker Time on your calendar for the hours when you feel the most creative and energized. Be ruthless about protecting it. You can’t produce your best work if you’re just squeezing in time between other commitments.

Manager Time: Making Moves in the Business

Great music isn’t enough to build a long-term career—you need to actively move your projects, opportunities, and relationships forward.

That’s where ‘Manager Time’ comes in. You’re managing your career, not just making art. You’re ‘working on the business’ not just ‘in the business’.

This part of your schedule is about communicating, coordinating, and pushing the business forward.

Manager Time is when you connect with collaborators, your team members, or industry contacts. You follow up on leads, schedule sessions, have meetings, brainstorm with co-creators, and build your network.

This is about leveraging the relationships and people around you to make things happen. Even if you have a manager, who is managing them? YOU.

Music creators are entrepreneurs and they have to be their own CEO.

That means you need dedicated hours for networking, planning, and execution.

Pro Tip: Keep your Manager Time in dedicated blocks on certain days. This is when you take meetings and calls so it does not interrupt your creative focus during Maker Time.

Batch your management tasks together so your creativity isn’t constantly split by jumping between making and managing.

Money Time: Keeping the Dream Alive

Money Time is exactly what it sounds like. For the vast majority of creators, music alone doesn’t yet pay the bills, and that’s okay. 

You need to earn money in the most effective, efficient and least stressful way possible, so you can keep working toward your true passion without constantly worrying about finances.

Maybe you’re gigging on weekends, freelancing, or doing side hustles.

Whatever it is, Money Time is about earning what you need to sustain your creative journey.

Treat this like a job—because it is. The purpose here is to generate income efficiently, giving you more bandwidth to focus on growing your music business.

Pro Tip: Maximize the efficiency of Money Time. Look for opportunities that let you earn the most money in the shortest amount of time and with the least emotional drain. OR Look for opportunities to ‘double dip’. That means that you are able to accomplish some of your music-related goals while on the clock. Maybe you Uber and play your music for all of the tourists, maybe you play cover gigs that help you keep your chops up, maybe you teach lessons, make songwriter demos or write custom music for clients… that’s a double dip!

Just remember, the top priority is to stay energized and inspired for your creative work, so choose Money Time that supports and does not sabotage your goals.

Balancing the Three Types of Time

Now that you understand the three types of time, it’s time to actually put them on your calendar 📅

The magic here is in balance.

If you spend all your time in Maker Mode, your career might lack momentum. Spend too much time managing, and you lose your creative edge. Neglect Money Time, and you risk running out of resources.

Look at your calendar and decide:

When is your Maker Time?

When will you manage?

When will you grow your finances?

Create these big weekly recurring time blocks on your calendar and mark them now!

This is about being deliberate—balancing your creative work, your business, and your finances in a way that keeps the dream alive.

When you get this right, it means:

• You’re making better music than ever because you’re getting deep into Maker Time.

• You’re making more strategic moves because Manager Time lets you think like a CEO.

• And you’re earning enough to keep investing in your career, your craft, and yourself with Money Time.

Apply this Lesson and Watch it Work

Most creators and entrepreneurs who struggle don’t have a time issue—they have a focus issue.

They’re constantly switching between making, managing, and hustling for cash in a stressful way, without dedicating enough focus to any one thing to really move the needle.

By breaking your week into Maker Time, Manager Time, and Money Time, you’re compartmentalizing your bandwidth and giving each area the attention it deserves.

And by forcing that additional level of focus, you will naturally learn to accomplish more in each allotted time block.

So, block off your calendar, protect your creative time, and commit to mastering your schedule. With deliberate planning, you’ll be creating the best music of your life, building your career, and growing your finances—all at the same time.

Let’s make it happen Homies!