John Mayer expected too much of himself.
The ‘Free Fallin’ hitmaker believes the pressure he put on himself in the past was "a little bit unnecessary" and is enjoying taking a back seat from fame nowadays.
He said: "The reason I’m so happy now is because a lot of expectation that I had for myself was probably a little bit unnecessary. I have a perfect image of ambition and reward for my life right now. I know what to expect, I know how much I should be asking for when I knock on the door, and I get it.
"I really write down on a piece of paper what I want out of life and what I want out of work and what I want out of "fame" – and I have all the stuff I want. And, yeah, I would probably like another 10, 15, 20%, but that comes with another 85% of headache. That’s the truth. It would take another 85% of my happiness to get another 15% to 20% famous and, like, culturally relevant or whatever. You know?"
And the 39-year-old singer he is feeling "good" right now as he is able to go at his own pace and "lead the charge".
He added to GQ Style: "Yeah, there’s nothing in my life that doesn’t feel good. I’m not being pushed into battle, I’m leading the charge. Because I understand what my vision is – and yes, I believe we can still use the word vision.
"So I don’t walk around going, like, Man, why is The Search for Everything not … in the Top 10 on iTunes? It’s a relatively introspective record. I don’t expect that people are going to bend the way they think about music just to meet this one record."