#if i'm going to achieve anything on this hellsite it will be hyping other people

[echosong971]

any ideas on how to get more confident in your art or just things you make in general? I struggle a lot with my thoughts and always talk myself out of trying to get better at art because of stuff so was just curious if you had any thoughts on the subject? thanks !

HI HELLO! I'm always up for hyping up fellow artists!

So, I used to struggle a lot with being confident in my art to the point where I solely relied on other people's opinions of my art to validate my self-esteem. It really sucked and dampened my enjoyment of drawing quite a bit. But one thing that helped shift my focus that I eventually realized was this:

I wasn't letting myself be proud of my own work.

It is not self-aggrandizing or wrong to simply be happy about something you have created, to look at it and go "Y'know what? I really like the way I drew that nose. And those flowers look AMAZING, actually." It's perfectly normal and healthy to hype yourself up and in fact, I encourage it! Be your own hype-man! Look at an old drawing you made and instead of only focusing on what you think looks bad, just focus on what you think you did well! Give your art three compliments today, I promise you it will make you feel better about your art skills.

Of course, that's not to say you can't critique your own work, or that you should blind yourself to what you can improve on. But you are your own worst critic, and often times people fail to remember that proper critiques and constructive criticism include mentioning things you enjoyed about the work alongside the potential improvements.

Bullying yourself or beating yourself up is not constructive, it is destructive. And thoughts that don't have your best interests in mind are not thoughts worth listening to.

And another thing, you need to accept yourself where you are. You cannot do better than your best and that is ok. With time and study and practice, you will improve. But if you don't let yourself draw in the first place, then how are you going to get better? Like a very helpful person once said: "bad art is good art because you made art."

And one final note: Art as a general, overarching concept is not something to "get right," it is not something with cut and dry rules that must be followed to the letter of the law. It's a form of expression. It is a product of passion that is tailored to the individual. And it is beautiful. When you let yourself pour your heart and soul into a piece and share it with the world, people will see that; even with any technical mistakes that you may have made, what people are going to notice and latch onto first is the love you have for art and the passion you carry for the craft that shines through what you make. So when you love what you do, other people will too :)

Like my mom always tells me: seek to express, not to impress.

I hope this advice helped ya out my dude and I want you to know that I'm rootin' for ya in your artistic journey! Art can be tough and really frustrating at times and I'm proud of ya for makin' it this far and seeking ways to improve!

I hope you have a good morning, good day and a goodnight, wherever you are Anon! ♥️