The Secrets to Building Your Creative Endurance
It’s tempting to believe that creative work doesn’t need discipline.
We’ve all heard the phrases – “I get my best ideas in the shower” or “It just happens!”. But the truth is like any other skill, it’s all about practice.
Just like athletes train regularly to stay in shape and perform at the highest level, art also needs a consistent routine with creativity exercises and good creative habits.
The only difference between an amateur artist and a pro is the amount they practice and their ability to persevere through the pressure of perfection or uninspiring moments.
No one does well at something new from the get-go. You have to develop the skills, discipline and mindset over time.
This is why strengthening your creative endurance is so important. It will keep you in shape so you can grow your art practice.
Let’s learn how to build momentum in your practice and improve your creative stamina.
Make time to create
All you need to improve your creative stamina is 10-15 minutes daily.
We spend more time than that scrolling through social media, flicking through TV channels and doing the many things we don’t need to do or do out of habit.
Jot down what you do during the day and go through the list – be honest with yourself.
You just have to find one thing to eliminate to have enough time to draw.
During this time, switch off all other distractions and focus on what you’re creating.
Push through the discomfort
When you first start your art practice, chances are some things will go wrong. A lot of what you create won’t be up to your standards and the journey will be messy and frustrating.
I’ve thrown countless “bad” drawings into the bin before I managed to convince myself that this is all part of the process.
If I had stopped creating during this phase, I wouldn’t be where I am today.
It took some time to realise that every drawing, no matter how good or bad, helps build my art skills.
So, now, even when my drawings aren’t coming out as expected, I embrace the messiness and discomfort and reflect on what’s working and what’s not, so I know which skills I need to work on.
If you don’t know where to start, art prompts and art challenges are a great way to get going.
Don’t limit yourself
Striving for perfection only slows us down.
Most of the time you won’t have that aha moment that will lead to meaningful artwork.
By expecting perfection or not starting altogether, you’re only wasting opportunities to make progress.
All the work you create during that uncomfortable phase is actually making you better and only through that practice will you eventually create the art you want.
The more you create (even the throw-away stuff), the better your strokes, style, composition and other art techniques will become and the more confident your creative voice will grow.
Be curious
When you start a drawing, it’s easy to get caught up with all the flaws you notice and miss out on the beauty of your work.
Instead of letting the flaws and mistakes stifle you or make you quit, learn to embrace what the struggle is trying to teach you.
When you become curious about your abilities and stop judging yourself, you will start to be able to identify what you’re good at and areas that need improvement.
Learn to forgive yourself for the mistakes you make along the way.
If you get disheartened by something particularly difficult, move on to something else and return to it with a fresh mind.
Define what you want
Building creative endurance is playing the long game. It’s not something that can be achieved overnight.
One of the best things you can do for your practice is to set goals. And don’t stop at, “I want to draw as well as _____.”
Define a clear path for yourself. Do you want to excel at watercolour landscapes or sketch portraits?
Once you know what your end goal is, break it down into smaller, easy-to-do tasks that you can fit into your schedule and the 10 minutes you’ve dedicated to your creative art projects.
Now that you have manageable parts to work on, set a realistic timeline for each.
Don’t be afraid to ask your partner or friend to help keep you on track. Having an accountability partner can be especially useful when you can’t bring yourself to practice on any given day.
Gradually expand your practice
As a beginner artist, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by how much there is to learn and demotivated by not seeing immediate results.
But learning how to celebrate small victories is key to sustaining your practice.
You will have good days and bad, just like every artist or creative, but that’s no reason to quit.
Focus on the overall progress you’re making and reward yourself for every small win – 10 minutes count more than you think!
Once you’re comfortable working on your art for those 10 minutes, challenge yourself to draw for 15 minutes, then 30…
Trust yourself and take small steps every day to grow your art practice.
I hope this will make you think of your creative practice differently.
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