1 Simple Rule to Remove Frustration from Creating Art

I have had many times where I become frustrated while creating art, whether it be a pen & ink drawing or a watercolor painting. I would guess around one-third or even more of my art is just garbage - or not quite the quality I was looking for. This is just how it is sometimes.

But I’ll be honest, it always used to bother me. I would get annoyed or upset and it would ruin my mood for a little while. There’s something about investing an hour or two of work and creative energy towards a piece of art - only to have it turn out badly in the end.

Of course, when I created something I thought was good, life is great. But if it doesn’t go the way I expected, then there’s a problem.

The Problem & Solution

What I’ve realized is that the problem isn’t creating something low-quality, the problem is my reaction itself - and the expectation in my mind. So many problems artists face, deal with the mind and how they think or react. I’ve experienced this a lot myself.

The one thing which I feel really helped me to control this sense of expectation with my art and deal with the emotions of creating a bad piece is by creating more often - almost daily if possible. I realized that when I created at least 1 piece of art everyday, it didn’t seem to bother me as much when I created something terrible or not as good as I had hoped for.

The reason is because I can easily create something better tomorrow. There’s always another day of creating. Another chance to see what will happen.

And after I did this for a while, I kind of became numb to the bad pieces - and also the good pieces to some extent too. I was just creating because it’s something I love - no matter the outcome.

A Change in Perspective

It’s almost a numbers game for me. I took note once that I created mediocre pieces for 5 to 6 days in a row (and this happened a lot too). And then the next day I created something which was really great. It made me stop and think, “What if I gave up on the 4th day?”. I would’ve never made it to the 6th or 7th day where something great was created.

This changed my entire perspective on how I think about creating.

I started to understand that I shouldn’t expect to create a “masterpiece” everyday. It’s just not probable. The odds aren’t in my favor and I will only end up being upset. And as a human being, I don’t want to be upset everyday.

A Greater Understanding

So the best course of action for me to take is to let go of the unrealistic expectation - or any expectation for that matter. And just enjoy the process of creating something. Learn from what I do wrong or don’t like.

Every bad piece of art is an opportunity for growth and learning.

Once I experienced all of this and developed a greater understanding of these concepts, I can now freely create and feel good - no matter the outcome. I know that I will always try to give it my best. And I can create without the fear of failure. Because I now know it’s just part of the process of creating.

Try to create everyday for a month or two and see how you feel. It will be a learning experience and you’ll grow a bunch. Let me know what happens.

Peace.