Have you ever felt like what you created wasn’t “good/cool/awesome enough” to share?
I did.
I’m going to share how I got over my own feelings of not-good-enough below.
But first, a little context.
I used to do a lot of fashion illustration.
Everyone told me my work was great, but I still wanted my sketchbooks and drawings to remain tucked away for the most part.
In some ways, I felt insecure about my work because there was always this voice telling me that my drawings looked funny.
Okay.
Now to the part you’re here for.
How do you get over your own feelings of inadequacy as a creative?
3 Steps:
- Who exactly comes to mind when you tell yourself that you’re not good enough? This person could be you, your parents, a sibling, or a stranger.
- the point of this question is to pinpoint your history of how this feeling started
- Who exactly are you creating your work for? Who is your current audience?
- Do your answers to question 1 and 2 match?
- If no, perfect. Now you know what you’re creating is NOT INTENDED for whoever made you feel inadequate. Keep creating for who you want to be creating for, and don’t stop.
- If yes, perhaps it’s a good chance to reassess your work and your audience.
For me, it was a family acquaintance who made me feel awkward about sharing my work with others. Nothing weird and mostly harmless—just a little teasing of my cartoon ballerinas when I was 10 years old.
Except that moment stuck with me into my 20s.
It took a lot of thought to separate that feeling from my current reality.
But it is possible.
If you can separate your negative feelings from the sharing of your art, you’ll be in a much better place to grow your creative career.
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