Jan 21st 1-2-3: Intense Exposure To Strengthen Your Artist’s Resolve
1: Intense Exposure To Strengthen Your Artist’s Resolve ( 2 minute read )
As I study for Music, one aspect of my studies that I find particularly difficult is performance.
I practice, and practice all day only for all that acquired skill to be thrown out the window once I’m up on stage. I get up there and suddenly ‘forget’ everything I have learned thus far. My knees begin to shake, my hands start to freeze under the cold sensation of anxiety, and suddenly that foreign feeling you get the first time you held a guitar overtakes my hands.
I begin to feel the subtle beginnings of panic course through my body.
The thought to just walk of stage and seek comfort runs through my mind like a raging bull, but I know this is the worst move I can make in this situation.
The best move I can make is to endure the discomfort that comes from doing something you’re not used to; something you’re bad at. This is the approach that I find leads to the most crucial growth. I seek the things that cause this flurry of thoughts and emotions, then I force myself to become so exposed to it that I must grow experienced to it.
From this I become better than I was before, I learn new skills, and typically I learn more about myself in the process.
Even right now as I sit here a write this entry you are reading, I feel my breath being sucked out of my lungs by my anxiety.
I have two performances later today, and so I will prepare myself, do my best, and learn from my failures.
For any particular thing you may face as and artist, that causes this kind of discomfort.
Just know this: So long as you keep exposing yourself to this discomfort, you’ll only have a finite number of ‘worst’ tries before you begin to grow skilled in a weakness, and truly start to get good at it.
So go chase what part of your process causes the most discomfort, and expose yourself to it as much as possible to get all of your worst tries out of the way.
Now go make something uniquely YOU!
2: Creative Prompts From Us (ex. Write a short story, a poem, a song, or draw a quick illustration of these! Let your imagination run free.)
I. Make a list of what you believe are your biggest weaknesses as an artist.
II. With the list from above, organize that list starting from which weakness gives you the most intense reaction mentally and emotionally. Then make the decision to expose yourself to each one of those more, starting from the top.
3: Inspirational Quotes From Others
I. “I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it.”
-Pablo Picasso, Spanish Painter and Sculptor
II. “If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint,’ then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.”
-Vincent Van Gogh, Dutch Painter
III. “I get nervous when I don’t get nervous. If I’m nervous, I know I’m going to have a good show.”
-Beyoncé, American Singer-Songwriter and Business Woman
Thank you so much for reading!