— It’s funny how carefree and uninhibited little kids can be … and how uptight and stressed out we become as adults. And holy cow, we artists tend to get REAL crazy. Worry, self-doubt, frustration, creative angst … stuff like that just doesn’t occur to a 7 year old armed with a paint brush.
I think as we grow up, we become more and more concerned with doing things “right” and “proper,” with fitting in, with gaining approval.
When we are really young, we fly through the world with abandon. We act silly. We goof up and we just laugh about it.
Everything is a crazy adventure when you’re a certain age.
And that is so awesome.
It’s only when we grow up that we begin to treat every little thing we do or create (much less anything anyone else might think, say, or post about it) as if our lives hung in the balance.
In working with as many artists as I do, I see this all the time. Otherwise sane human beings, competent and capable adults — all but crippled under the worry and fear that their creative work might not “measure up,” that someone might judge them and think they aren’t any good.
Fearing failure (according to whatever bizarre notion they have of what that might mean), they spend all their time studying, studying, studying … yet never producing anything of their own, never trying anything original, and certainly never sharing anything they do create.
It’s tragic.
So many voices unheard. So many imaginations kept caged and shushed.
And know what’s funny? One of the biggest fears most would-be artists have is that others will judge them … but the reality is, no one else really much cares.
Seriously. You’re worried about what people think of you and your work? Here’s a news flash — they mostly don’t. They don’t really think about it at all. Beyond a quick moment or two when they first see something of yours (when they’re not so much thinking of you anyhow, but whatever they’re seeing or reading), fact is, they’re not thinking about you at all. They’re off worrying about their own stuff.
But that’s great. And here’s why: Because it means you are FREE. You are free to create with abandon, without a care in the world what anyone is going to think about it.
Because really, for the most part, honestly, they’re not going to think about it. At least not for more than a few moments.
I actually came across a fabulous quotation by Elizabeth Gilbert on precisely this point:
You are FREE, because everyone is too busy fussing over themselves to worry all that much about you.
Go be whomever you want to be then.
Do whatever you want to do.
Pursue whatever fascinates you and brings you to life.
Create whatever you want to create — and let it be stupendously imperfect, because it’s exceedingly likely that nobody will even notice.
And that’s AWESOME.
The important thing is to lighten up and get excited about creating again. Tap into that silly, crazy, funny little kid you used to be. Stop worrying about what other people think, and go start having FUN with your art. Take chances, take risks. Be willing to throw yourself into the imaginative process without any concern with what others might think. Be willing to “fail,” and then get busy, go fail often — so that you can learn and grow and eventually become GREAT.
It’s all a delicious adventure. If you make it one.
So stop basing your self-esteem on what others think (or worse: what you think others think … when they’re probably not thinking much at all).
Instead, remind yourself that this is your life, that your voice counts, your imagination counts.
And remind yourself that over time, the more you sing and shout and play — the more you throw yourself into your work with abandon — the better you are going to get at this weird and wonky thing we call ART.
And when that happens, people will take notice.
They will take notice, and they will admire you … and wish they could express themselves with the same freedom and the same joy.
– Sebastian