Hello, my sweet bees, my most kind followers,
It has been too long since I last updated this blog. Which is why I am overjoyed to present to you today’s topic: motivation.
Motivation is the driving force for anything we do in life. In art, it is at the heart of creating. Without motivation, not much would get done. Finding the motivation for me isn't easy. As I type this, I've been lacking the motivation to do anything (even write this very blog post)! But I’m not alone; many people struggle with motivation. I think, for a lot of artists, motivation comes and goes. One moment you can paint several paintings non-stop; the next you can’t put pencil to paper for weeks, or even years!
The infamous “art block” has dominated social circles as this evil dark force that destroys an artist’s motivation. Art block is an evil dragon eating the townsfolk of Motivationville. It’s always hungry, lurking around every corner. Not to fret, my dear reader. Like a knight with a dragon-slaying sword, I will conquer this evil-art-block-dragon . . .or die trying.. While I haven't stopped creating completely, it hasn’t been easy to get back on that metaphorical art horse. I’d like to share the steps I discovered through self-reflection.
Evil art block dragon ^
Step 1: Focus on what you can control
It is a challenge, in regards to motivation, in recognizing what you can and can't control. You can think of motivation like you think of creativity; it’s a resource. An energy bank. You only have so much energy in the day, just like you have a finite amount of creative ideas. . Ever hear of The Spoon Metaphor? No? Yes? Well, I'm gonna tell you anyways. Buckle up, The Spoon Metaphor⸺aka The Spoon Theory⸺was invented by Christine Miserandino during a time she told a friend about her experience with lupus. The idea is, you start your day asking yourself, “How much energy do I have today?” This quota will be represented by spoons. If, for example, you have a task that would take a lot of energy, it might cost three spoons out of the proverbial five you started the day with. The spoon, to put it simply, is a unit of measurement of how much energy you have. Some say that activities, like entertainment or self-care can regain spoons. But I struggle with regaining spoons once they're gone. They are gone for me until the next day.
Much like spoons, you have a creative energy bank. You can store inspiration in there but you only have so much energy before you have to charge it again.
Step 2: Set Small Achievable goals
You probably heard this one before; maybe in a therapy session. Start with something you know you can do, like sketching for 15 minutes. You don’t have to make something new⸺heck you can, at the very least, scribble. What’s important is that you start. Once you have accomplished something small, suddenly tackling that art block dragon doesn’t seem so tough now, does it?
Break things down into steps. I highly recommend the app/website Goblin Tools (which you can find here: goblin.tools ). It breaks down a task for you into easier, more digestible steps. Motivation isn't just something you are born good at; it's a skill to learn and harness. You kinda have to trick your brain, especially the reward center, to build your muscle of motivation. You can do this by giving yourself little rewards at the end of tasks, like candy, and this will trigger the chemicals in your brain to be like “oh hey if I do this thing I get something I want out of the deal.”
Also try co-working, aka body-doubling, aka parallel play (make up your mind on the name, definition scientists!). Co-working is the process of working next to or near someone who is also doing a task. It doesn’t matter if it’s the same task, or another one entirely. Sometimes, for me, just having someone else in the room tricks my brain into working. Total brain-hack if you ask me.
Step 3: Letting go (of perfection)
This one is really tricky to write about, at least for me at the moment. I still struggle with the idea of perfection as a concept, let alone the idea that part of me wants my art to be perfect. So I'll cheat by talking about other people’s wisdom. A wise person once said to me, “The only paint that is wasted, is paint that is still left in the tube.”-Anonymous
I saw this quote in a letter sent to me virtually in the mobile self-help game, KinderWorld. (I might talk about KinderWorld in a different blog post). It’s true: there’s nothing wrong with making mistakes. Mistakes are merely tools to learn. Not only is making mistakes necessary, they’re inevitable. Mistakes are how you learn.
“Getting something 60% done is better than 0% done, at least then you’ll have a passing grade”- Elise of Sadderday Mourning Cartoons check them out here: https://sadderdaymourningcartoons.webador.com
Not everything you make is gonna be perfect; in fact, a lot of what you make is gonna be trash, and that’s okay. Embrace the trash. Embrace it like a raccoon. The best way to learn is by doing. Not everything you make has to ever see the light of day, afterall. This is YOUR art journey, no-one else’s. Look, I understand, it feels great to dream about becoming a famous artist, but sometimes in our efforts to do great, we forget to do good. (yes i did just quote netflix hit animation series Arcane, what are you going to do about it?) The dream may feel great, but it’s only a dream and, without action, it's just in your head. I've seen many people give up on their dreams because they thought it had to be perfect. It ruined them. Listen closely: you won’t ever do anything more perfect than being yourself. You are perfect just the way you are. Fame is fleeting anyways.
Step 4: Give Up
Haha, no but I'm somewhat serious here. Sometimes the best thing you can do for your creativity is take breaks. Find new forms of inspiration. Watch that new tv show, play that video game, read that book. There’s no time like the present. That’s why it is a gift. :) Most importantly (and I’m talking directly to myself here) GO OUTSIDE.
I mean it. Even just a slight change of scenery can do wonders for your creative energy bank. Be inspired daily by something new; go to that concert, experience that food, meet new people. That last one might be especially difficult for my fellow socially awkward bees, but look at it like this: everyone in this world knows at least one thing that you don’t and people are funny characters, with an endless pool of a unique self. You never know what you’ll discover. You don’t even have to ever see them again! Just the idea of putting yourself in different scenarios and experiences is what I’m getting at. How can you be expected to create new wondrous things of art if you never try to experience the wondrous things this life has to offer?
Recently, I have been getting lots of visions whilst meditating. The visions are of me in the future where everything works out. A spiritual guide, taking the form of a dragon with feathered wings, says,“Just keep painting.” The guide reassures me to continue on even if I feel like I am drowning.
While people might find it strange for me to write about this, I think its essential, in our modern era, to write about our mental health. Mental health is difficult to speak about. I find most people don't speak about their mental health out of fear of ostracization. It is valid to fear being judged differently, but I try not to let the fear of being judged keep me from being me. I only get one life, as far as I know, so I might as well learn to love myself while living it.
Anyways… I hope you enjoy my silly rambles and even sillier drawings.
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Lots of Love,
Faith Anne Miravich aka HoneySplashArtistTLDR: Art Block is an evil dragon that can be defeated by focusing on what you can control, breaking things down into easier steps, and letting go of perfection.