How to feel like a “real” artist
A lot of creative, wonderful people sabotage themselves in a very simple way…
They say things like, “I’m not a musician, I just play around on the guitar.” “I’m not an actor, I’ve got a day job.” “I’m not a real writer.”
Maybe if the Lady of the Lake threw me a sparkler, I’d feel real.
Words are powerful. If you’re not calling yourself a creator, you’re cutting yourself off at the knees. By negating your passion in that way, you’re stifling your power and setting yourself up to be less-than-average.
But it’s not as easy as waving a magic wand and suddenly feeling “real.” Feeling real, truly, in your heart of hearts, takes time (thank you, Velveteen Rabbit, for the lesson).
You need to call yourself an artist if you’re going to make the best art of your life. Yet, just saying the words can be empty without some kind of shift in yourself to back it up.
If you don’t feel ready to call yourself a real artist, here are three simple steps to getting there.
First, time to visualize!
Sit down with a pen and paper or sketchpad or whatever you like to write and take notes in.
Conjure up, in your mind, the image of a “real” artist, musician, writer, whatever it is you do.
For example, if you’re trying to be a comedian, take some time to imagine a “real” comedian.
Write down everything about that imaginary person that you can think of. Here are some questions to get you started:
What are they wearing?
Where do they work?
How do people respond to them?
What do they sound like?
Where do they live?
Imagine anything and everything about this imaginary “real” comedian, or whoever it is for you. Write it all down on paper.
Second, focus on one thing.
Take a look at all the traits your wrote down.
Chances are, one of those traits is most important to your image of a “real” artist.
Maybe, for your hypothetical comedian, you wrote some things like the following:
She works at night.
People laugh at her jokes when she’s onstage.
She has a pretty nice apartment in Los Angeles.
Taking a look at these, I would say that the most important for being a comedian is the second one: People laugh at her jokes when she’s onstage.
Look at your own list. Cross out the things that feel less important until you can pick one thing that really feels necessary for being a “real” artist.
Maybe you have a few traits that feel equally important.
That’s okay, just pick one. Flip a coin if you have to, but focus in on ONE.
Third, make a plan.
Now you know the trait that, once you’ve accomplished it, means you are a “real” artist.
Yes, this is arbitrary. Being a “real” artist doesn’t exist.
This is about how we help you feel more confident. And if this is the number one trait that you consider makes a true creator, then this is what you should go after.
Write down your Number One Most Important Trait at the top of a piece of paper.
Now, cut this up into the steps it takes to get there.
If you’re not sure how to get there, start by taking a class.
For instance, to become a “real” comedian, I said people would need to laugh at my jokes when I perform onstage.
If I’m not sure how to get to that point, I should start by signing up for a stand-up comedy class. This will help me improve my skills, and the teacher can likely give me guidance on how to start as a stand-up.
This applies whatever your passion. If you don’t know how to get to your Number One Most Important Trait, find a class about it, and ask the teacher.
The top of the mountain
You have to make a promise to yourself when you start this process: If you reach your Number One Most Important Trait, you will say, “I am a real artist” with confidence.
Once you’ve accomplished your clear-cut goal, celebrate!
Don’t downplay your goal once you hit it. If I start doing open mics every weekend, and people laugh at my jokes every time I perform onstage, I’ve hit my goal trait. I can say, with confidence, I am a comedian.
When you hit your goal, take time to celebrate, and say it out loud: “I’M A REAL ARTIST!”
Rinse and Repeat
The great thing about this process is you can use it again later if you feel your confidence lagging.
By setting a concrete goal based in your values, you can get out of the doldrums of imposter syndrome and “I’m just not good enough” and get on the path of actually improving and becoming more sure of yourself.
How I used this to become a writer
I’ve always been pretty okay at writing, at least for my age. But once you graduate college, being “good for your age” isn’t really enough anymore.
I knew I wanted to become a writer, but I didn’t really know what to do first, or when I could successfully say, “I’m a writer.”
I did this exercise and ended up with a rather mercenary but effective Number One Trait: I’m a writer if people will pay me to write things.
I started with the easiest writing gigs I could find: blogging mills and website copy.
After that, I hit my goal. People were paying me to write things! I could say with total sincerity, “I am a writer.” And it felt great!
But I wanted to keep going and growing, so I repeated the process. I wanted to be able to say, “I’m an author.”
For that, I felt like I needed to have someone pay me to publish my fiction.
So I wrote several short stories as samples and began to look for fiction writing jobs. When I got my first contract with ebook publisher Scribd, I checked this big goal off my list.
Now I can say, “I’m an author,” with total confidence, because I was clear with myself on what that meant to me.
Everyone’s meaning will be different, so run the exercise yourself and figure out what your Number One Trait is.
Then, pursue that until you’ve got it.
Need more help getting creative?
Not sure this is enough to build your confidence?
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