Hello everyone, how are you? 

This week I wanted to touch on why we shouldn’t give up when things feel hard and difficult. 

Life can be challenging, being an artist can be tough and making a career from your art can be even more challenging. It’s a huge mountain to climb. Have you ever said the following? 

“It’s hard, and nobody is listening, so why should I bother?”

“I feel lost and don’t know what direction to go in. I just don’t think I have the energy to keep going anymore.”

“I feel that people around me must think I am a failure as I have been working on my dream for so long, and I am not getting anywhere.”

We get to a point when we often think, is there any point of pursuing my dream? It’s taking too long to achieve. 

In this video, I share some top tips on what to do when you are feeling this way.

Growing pains

Now, let me tell you, these are usual growing pains. When we hit this wall, we usually try and avoid it, but we need to feel this pain. We need to struggle and overcome these challenges as this helps us grow. 

The term growing pain refers to so much more than just the body growing as a child.

How long should I struggle for? 

Then there is the notion of, how long should you endure the pain and struggle for?

It can seem continuous. At this point, we start to reflect, ask questions and make sure we are learning from the pain. We need to question ourselves continually; why does this feel difficult? What can I do differently? What do I need to learn?

 What do I need to: 

  •  be
  •  have
  •  do 
  •  learn
  •  think
Here are some examples from members: 

Laura: 

  •  BE – Who do I need to be? Call yourself an artist before you feel ready.
  •  DO – What do you need to do? Plan more time? Learn something new? 
  •  HAVE – What do you need to have to get doing? Do you need materials? A qualification? An award?

Questioning, all of the above, will help you grow and overcome the challenges, and remember, you can achieve your dreams; it is possible and never worry about what others think.