Facing Self Doubt to Finally Create a New Project
Do you ever put something off because you don’t feel qualified, think someone else will do it better, feel like you’re not quite ready, or procrastination turns up whenever it’s time to start?
I’m exactly the same, I haven’t created the Paper Collection I dreamt up two years ago because of all the reasons above. I’ve got ideas and have made designs for hand lettered and illustrated stationery and wall art but they’ve simply remained ideas for months.
I’ve got stacks of sketches. There’s a desk drawer in my office full of paint. Art GCSE was my favourite class. I have an A Level in Art. I took a Graphic Design class at night school last year. I think up design ideas for posters, cards and digital downloads all the time. I went to a calligraphy class in London and learnt to hand letter.
And still my Paper Collection remains in its first stages and there’s something blocking me from bringing it to life completely.
For a while I genuinely told myself and believed that this project hadn’t taken off because I didn’t have the time, knowledge, resources, marketing knowhow, connections with professional printers… and all the rest.
A few months ago, someone said to me, I’ve seen on your bio that you’re an Illustrator, what illustrations do you do? That’s when I realised that I had done every single thing to become an illustrator apart from put any finished designs out there.
It was time to make a change.
I’d suspended my illustration ideas in the air because I’d separated each element out so the whole plan couldn’t come into fruition. The materials, the sketches, the graphic design course, the etsy shop, the designs, the colour palettes, the calligraphy practise. These were all of the layers I’d built up but the final push, to bring all these parts together as finished cards and prints, was missing.
I knew deep down that the reason I hadn’t made The Paper Collections was self doubt.
Here are some of the self doubts that came up for me:
Illustration has nothing to do with floristry and nobody will get it
I won’t sell enough and it’ll be a waste of time
Artists go to Illustration College so I’m not qualified to make this collection
I don’ know how to make my work digital and learning will take up so much time
If a friend had told me these were her reasons for not doing something she’d been daydreaming about for years, I would have found a reason for each point and shown how they were all beliefs that weren’t valid and she had the skills and talent to go ahead with her dream.
So I decided to do this for myself. I’ve been working on battling these limiting beliefs. Facing self doubt is now a task I’ve taken on so I can finally create this new project.
Here are the resources and actions i’ve started to work through and my designs are slowly but surely coming to life now. I hope this list inspires you if you feel like you’d like to start a project that self doubt has held you back on.
Taking away comparison
Most of the time, when I got to search ‘Botanical Illustrations’ or ‘Floral handlettering’ I stop myself because it sends me down a spiral of seeing other people’s work which makes me feel like I can never be part of the same industry. Everyone has their own unique style and I want to stick to the way I draw and illustrate. There are hundreds of fizzy drinks out there, loads of trainers, thousands of hairdressers but every one has their own brand and style. So it can be the same for illustration too. If you’d like to look further into comparison, Lucy Sheridan’s instagram is a great place to start.
Tapping
I learnt about tapping from Sophie French on her retreat in France. It’s a really relaxing way to help me find clarity if my thoughts are slightly foggy. Sophie has loads of tapping videos that I follow over on her Instagram. Here’s the link if you’d like to take a look and learn more: Sophie French Tapping.
Playing Big, the book.
Tara Mohr’s book, Playing Big, is a great read for tackling fear and self doubt and understanding the reasons for holding back. I’m just at the beginning but I’ve already found that the online resources that come with the book, including audio guided visualisations, are amazing. If you want to explore further, take a look at Tara Mohr’s website here.
Meditation
I’ve recently discovered Amy Rushworth and she has a whole downloadable bundle including her Abundance Meditation. I’ve been listening to it in the mornings and at the end I always feel like her guided meditation has made me feel like I can achieve so much more.
Making tasks manageable
I’d originally written on my to do list ‘Create All Paper Goods Collection’. So of course this to do list line made its way to the next to-do list and then the next to-do list and never got ticked off. So I’ve taken this massive wishy washy statement and made it into tiny tasks so I can face the work and do one thing at a time. Breaking down the tasks has made me think about the bigger picture less and created a path of breadcrumbs to follow, so I stay in my lane.
So now I’ve told you all about my intentions for the Paper Collection, it really is time for me to get going on this project! I truly hope that this has helped you think about projects that you’ve not put forward into the world yet. I’m sure that whatever you’ve dreamt up to create or do will be amazing. If you’d like to get in touch, you can head over to my Instagram @WebbandFarrer. It’ll be amazing to hear about your ideas in the pipeline and if you’ve got any tips that you use to tackle your self doubt.
From wilting to wonderful,
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