Many artists complain about very little progress they make in art. However, when asked what’s their problem exactly they rarely are able to give a specific answer. It seems that many of them didn’t really identify their problem and a very few have any idea what steps should they take to finally move on.
Set your own goals
Recently someone told me, that for the most of our lives someone else has been creating a list of goals we ought to achieve, so it’s hard for us to finally think what we really need to do. And I think it’s very true, we were relieved of the trouble of choosing: parents at home teaching us household chores and executing our daily schedules; teachers at school creating syllabuses for each subject, giving us a homework exercises, and deciding when to pass a test.
We were relieved of the trouble of choosing.
We subconsciously agreed for the path that was chosen for us, because we trusted that our guardians picked what’s best for us. If you think about it, you will notice that we were given not only goals, but also a lists of steps to achieve it. How simple and safe is that?
Create a list of tasks
After a busy day, to spend out free time we tend to choose things that come easily for us. Well, hard to blame anyone for that. Easy things are nice and relaxing. However, time passes, and we usually discover that it’s hard to go beyond certain level of skill. What was satisfying for a kid may become boring and clumsy for a teenager. What was exceptional for a hobbyist may not be good enough for a professional. Our precious, relaxing hobby became frustrating…
Nobody ever showed us how to identify our goals and create our own progress path.
During my tutoring sessions, I often emphasize that becoming an artist is not only about one’s talent, but rather about dedication. Talent is good when you’re a kid or when you start picking up basic skills. But later in the progress path everyone needs to start asking the question: what kind of things do I have to work on more?
That’s why it’s so hard for us to make a progress in art. Nobody ever showed us how to identify our goals and create our own progress path.
Lear to evaluate your work
As artists we need to learn how to evaluate our work. We need to know whether it’s good or not, and to not base this decision on the audience response only. Art gives us freedom, but it comes with a whole package of tasks with no labels on them. You need to learn how to name them for yourselves.
That’s why I had decided to run a challenge for artists. And the beginning of the year is a great time to create a plan for progress, because a lot of us is making New Year resolutions. Join the #BoldPlan challenge and prepare a plan that will help you reach your goals in 2020!