01-19-2015, 01:51 PM
I am fighting with this too. For an extremely long time I hated everything I did. I tried to do things a million different ways and I have shed an ocean of tears over it and then I finally realized what was wrong.
I was focused on an outcome, not the work itself. I have a tendency to look at other people's work too often and then I become too self conscious of what I am doing and my perfectionism spirals out of control.
I have been reading a lot of books with mindfulness as the central theme and it is helping. Once I sat down and was completely present with the image I was trying to make, not thinking about what else I could be doing, or what it would look like, etc, and simply trying to enjoy each part of what I did I breathed a little easier. Now, this doesn't happen every single time. I get so anxious when I am working- especially as more days pass (I'm 26 and I feel like my opportunities are just skipping right past me) that this is a hard thing to accomplish. I struggle with discipline and doing "false work" which I consider work that is not the real act of drawing or painting. I spend more time "researching" than I do drawing a lot of the time and I know it comes down to fear.
Here is what I have learned so far in my struggle that I hope will help you.
1. This is in no way easy. It seems like it should be, but because we are ambitious about our drawings it will always be a struggle.
2. You have to learn how to accept the uncertainty and the uncomfortable feeling of time pressing in on you and start to face your fears and anxieties head on.
3. do the hardest part first, first thing in the morning. Your energy and willpower depletes throughout the day and the sooner you can get to work on a drawing, the better.
4. Small efforts add up. Do a little of the practice you don't want to do each day and get it out of the way and then the rest of the time, go ahead and play and find what it is that you want to say in your art
5. If real life bores you, you aren't looking closely enough. Spend more time outside observing. Look at the colors and shadows and shapes and patterns. It will take a while to see, but once you start paying attention things will begin to look too gorgeous for words and then you will feel horrible because you can't capture the beauty. Personally, I love drawing from life because I feel like I am experiencing it better and it is meditative and takes some of the stress out of being creative and innovative.
I am having a hard time sticking to my schedules too. Part of it is that I haven't figured out the best way to juggle all of my responsibilities and still get it done, part of it is trying to deal with my energy levels and part of it is something I don't understand yet. I bet it is tied to fear.
If you want a boost, listen to https://www.youtube.com/user/JamesVictore these videos. They will make you feel so much better. Good luck to us both!
I was focused on an outcome, not the work itself. I have a tendency to look at other people's work too often and then I become too self conscious of what I am doing and my perfectionism spirals out of control.
I have been reading a lot of books with mindfulness as the central theme and it is helping. Once I sat down and was completely present with the image I was trying to make, not thinking about what else I could be doing, or what it would look like, etc, and simply trying to enjoy each part of what I did I breathed a little easier. Now, this doesn't happen every single time. I get so anxious when I am working- especially as more days pass (I'm 26 and I feel like my opportunities are just skipping right past me) that this is a hard thing to accomplish. I struggle with discipline and doing "false work" which I consider work that is not the real act of drawing or painting. I spend more time "researching" than I do drawing a lot of the time and I know it comes down to fear.
Here is what I have learned so far in my struggle that I hope will help you.
1. This is in no way easy. It seems like it should be, but because we are ambitious about our drawings it will always be a struggle.
2. You have to learn how to accept the uncertainty and the uncomfortable feeling of time pressing in on you and start to face your fears and anxieties head on.
3. do the hardest part first, first thing in the morning. Your energy and willpower depletes throughout the day and the sooner you can get to work on a drawing, the better.
4. Small efforts add up. Do a little of the practice you don't want to do each day and get it out of the way and then the rest of the time, go ahead and play and find what it is that you want to say in your art
5. If real life bores you, you aren't looking closely enough. Spend more time outside observing. Look at the colors and shadows and shapes and patterns. It will take a while to see, but once you start paying attention things will begin to look too gorgeous for words and then you will feel horrible because you can't capture the beauty. Personally, I love drawing from life because I feel like I am experiencing it better and it is meditative and takes some of the stress out of being creative and innovative.
I am having a hard time sticking to my schedules too. Part of it is that I haven't figured out the best way to juggle all of my responsibilities and still get it done, part of it is trying to deal with my energy levels and part of it is something I don't understand yet. I bet it is tied to fear.
If you want a boost, listen to https://www.youtube.com/user/JamesVictore these videos. They will make you feel so much better. Good luck to us both!