Balance

Lately I've just been really busy working, and practicing for NYOC. Practicing sucks up my life, and I think that's the way it will always be. I don't necessarily have a problem with it, because I love playing, and it makes me feel really good... It keeps me happy. But I've found it's keeping me from my friends and family more than I would like.
Some musicians will tell you that your music (particularly practice) should come first before all else in your life, but I disagree. If you start to realize that your music is keeping you from your friends and family, you've gone wrong somewhere. Don't ever, for one second, think that your music is more important than the people in your life. That kind of thinking will put you on a one-way track to unhappiness. If you are unhappy and alone, your music will soon become lifeless.
Balance is most important.
Balance between your art, and whatever (or whoever) else it is in your that keeps you alive.