Self-Doubt

The Biggest Killer of Dreams

Self-doubt can be an artist’s biggest downfall. I like to think that artists of all sorts are, dare I say it? More human than most. Why? Well most of us are what many non-artists would call the sensitive type. We feel too much by most people’s standards. We shy away from big social events because the energy is too heightened for our tastes. Those sensitivities are turned off in most of the human population, but they are very much active and alive in artists. Among those feelings is usually a good dose of self-doubt.

Our work is never good enough and never will be. Nobody will want to buy my art. So-and-so’s work is so much better than mine.

The ego is usually quick to point out all the ways it thinks you’re not good enough. (Photo Credit: 123RF.com Copyright: ostill)

Thoughts like that come from the ego. The soul-crushing ego always feels the need the to put its two cents in. Experts say that the ego does this to protect you. Protect you?? Well, with friends like that, who needs enemies, right? It’s actually true. The ego does it to protect you from disappointment. You see, if it can keep you from even trying, you’ll never put anything out there to be rejected…or praised. But it’s mostly worried about the rejection part and so it will do its damnedest to keep you from trying. It will plague your waking thoughts and your dreams. It just loves to work overtime to make sure you don’t do something risky like show people your work.

So what’s an artist to do? How do you put a lid on your overactive ego? It’s not like you can tell it to just shut up, right? Actually, you can. What I’m about to suggest may sound silly, but it really does work. Speak to your ego as though it were a separate person. You can even name it if you want.

For example, let’s say I’ve named mine Mary. Whenever she pops up and tries to let me know that she doesn’t think I’m up to par for a job or commission, I tell her, “Now listen here, Mary…I appreciate that you’re looking out for me. I know you only have my best interest at heart, but you’re kind of in the way. You see, I have bigger and better things to accomplish. And yes, despite what you think, I am fully capable of doing them. I might make a mistake or two, but I’ll learn from them and be better for it.

So like mom always said, if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all…not even an I told you so. It’s not that I don’t want to hear from you ever again. You’ve gotten me out of a jam or two, after all. But instead of telling me what I can’t do, how about telling me how I can go about actually doing it successfully? And instead of shooting me down all the time, how about telling me by way of constructive criticism. You know…something we can both grow from?”

As ridiculous as that sounds, it does calm the overactive ego down enough for you to take a deep, calming breath and the self-doubt can start to dissipate. It’s important to acknowledge your ego. It wants to be recognized. It’s an ego, for crying out loud! And, like anyone else, it wants to be appreciated. So go ahead let it know that you do appreciate what it’s trying to do. And then, very firmly draw the line on what it can and cannot do. Set the house rules, if you will. Let it know what you are willing to hear and take into consideration and what you’re not. Like it or not, your ego has been running the show for far too long. It really is like a separate entity that just lives inside of you.

Once you can see clearly again, you can start to create more freely. I always say that the only way for anyone to fail at something is to give up. The only way for an artist to fail at being an artist, is to not create. As long as you’re creating, you’re an artist. It’s as simple as that. Give it a try and have a heart to heart chat with your ego about the self-doubt thing. Probably best not in public though.