Overcoming your fears to become an artist.
Put this little robot in the middle of the dark and unknown jungle and even he gets scared.
We all hate to put ourselves in situations that are unknown, awkward, or downright scary. As an artist, that means every time I sit down in front of a blank piece of paper or screen. I never know what’s going to happen; whether it will turn out or end up in the scrap heap in the sky. More often than not I have to try, try, try, try again. I’ve redone whole paintings three or four times because they refuse to turn out. Each time it’s a little easier and less scary.
So just keep trying and learning and growing, you might not get out of the jungle but it will seem a lot less foreboding.
Don’t Get Comfortable
Have you heard the tale of the lobster? He has to shed his shell and grow a new one every few years because he just gets too darn big. So he crawls under a rock for protection, shed his old shell, and sit there until his new shell grows in. How does he know when it’s time to start the process?? When he starts to feel uncomfortable he knows it’s time to shed the old and become bigger and better. Lesson learned.
Feeling scared and uncomfortable is a sign — telling us that it’s time to grow into something new and better, even if it is a bit scary, uncomfortable and maybe leaves us feeling naked for a while.