How to hush the creative critic

Creativity has a different rulebook, so sometimes the process of being creative can feel uncomfortable. This is why lots of people feel the urge to create, but don’t know where to start, or start and then become blocked. But we need to apply different rules to creativity, to help us along and encourage us to be brave enough to get going.

Firstly I will caveat making creativity a wholly comfortable experience with the words of David Bowie: 

“If you feel safe in the area you’re working in, you’re not working in the right area. Always go a little further into the water than you feel you’re capable of being in. Go a little bit out of your depth. And when you don’t feel that your feet are quite touching the bottom, you’re just about in the right place to do something exciting.”

And let me be clear, there’s a big difference between the feeling of being scared to even start vs flexing your creative muscles to reach that place that feels a bit scary. The latter is the place you want to be, and the former really needs to be banished as quickly as possible, as it can block you for years and get in the way of reaching your creative potential.

Creativity leads us to confront real truths and is a direct challenge to our ego, the part of us that wants us to keep safe, stay in the same routine, and not try anything new. Your ego will object whenever you try something new and unpredictable, and creativity are both these things.

So how do you stop your ego from talking you out of being creative and stifling your authentic self? The first thing you need to do is spot it when it shows up, which is more difficult than it sounds. 

Our ego will show up in the following guises: the inner critic, jealousy, nervousness, perfectionist, and the fear of getting it wrong. I’ll go through how to spot these ego guises and how best to hush them so you can get on with bringing your best creative self into the world. 

Inner critic

How to spot it 

This nasty voice tells you you’re not good enough, he or she sounds horrible and tells you awful things but they are very convincing. It’s the voice that’s been with us all our lives, so it can be difficult to spot as it often says the same things over and over again, words like you’re too old, not good enough, that’s silly, stop trying that, who do you think you are. It pops up when you’re trying something new it’s threatened by, and goes after your weak spots, playing on your limiting beliefs. It’s like a long-standing toxic friend, it’s been around so long saying the same thing it’s easy to think it’s just a part of us. 

How to hush the critic

It really helps to name your inner critic and give it a character. Mine is called Lisa, she works in admin and has hundreds of spreadsheets, and nothing is ever good enough for her. Talk to your inner critic nicely, acknowledge its reasons to be scared but then tell it to hush. When you notice the old familiar phrases it helps to pause and ask yourself really.. Am I too old to paint? I didn't know there was an age limit on this thing. Have some fun with it, to tease the critic into submission. And then tell it everything will be okay, but you need to take a back seat whilst I’m trying something new.

Jealousy

This one is easier to spot, and we’ve all felt that burning sensation of the green-eyed monster, it’s unnerving which makes us feel very insecure and ashamed. It’s often triggered by someone doing something you want to do but (for whatever reason) you’re not giving yourself permission. You may transfer your limiting beliefs onto the person that’s achieving the thing you want to do. For example, you might think 'I could do that if I had more time, more money, (insert excuse here), like X person'. It’s easier for us to rule out what’s possible in life, put up invisible walls and blame it on what we perceive we don’t have. The fear of trying and failing leads us to sit back and judge others instead of giving it a go. It's a much safer distance for our ego, even though it feels awful. 

How to deal with it:

Ask yourself what is this feeling telling me? Which part of this person’s actions is triggering me? Why? What excuses are you telling yourself at that moment? I could do this if… Why? What am I holding myself apart from? Is it really a lack of something external, like money, or am I keeping myself safe?

Remember:

Everyone creates differently, in art there is no such thing as bad or good, it’s all subjective. So when you see someone else succeed, it means there’s room for you too. It doesn’t threaten our ability to find success in this area too, it’s actually a sign there’s an activity or product people enjoy and will want more of, potentially from you. Our ego will tell us there are too many people occupying that space already or it’s been done already. Or another classic tale from the ego, you have nothing to add or don’t know enough yet, your ego comes from a place of scarcity and will tell you lots of nasty excuses that sound like the truth. There are nearly 8 billion people on this planet, so there’s room for your style of art or specific business too.

Once you’ve reminded yourself why you also have lots of wonderful opportunities ahead and uncovered what it is that’s triggering you, take action. Have a think about one small action you could take today to move you closer to what you really want. If you’re not sure where to start, have a read of Find your creative path through curiosity blog 

Nervousness

Art feels very vulnerable, it’s you on a page or in a sculpture, an expression of you. It’s vulnerable, new, raw, and it’s going to feel nerve-wracking to start, and in fact, that’s a good sign you’re making the right kind of artwork. Like having stage fright, it’s a dose of adrenaline to gear yourself up for something that requires you to get into your body, and into action.

How to deal with it:

Feeling nervous is the exact same physical feeling as the excitement you get before doing something you enjoy, raised heart rate, and a giddy feeling. So just tell your brain this is a positive feeling, I’m doing something new and exciting and this feels great.

Am I doing it wrong? 

Well the good news is in art there is no ‘wrong’ way, in fact doing something differently is celebrated in art. Your ego, though, is likely to tell you what you’re doing is rubbish. Art is like uncovering the mask, discovering the real you, so your ego feels very threatened by this, it wants you to stop, to do something predictable, safe and frankly boring instead. It’s like an overprotective mother that doesn’t want you to go to the skate park for fear you might fall over and graze your knee. But creativity requires a bit of risk to discover something electrifying, to discover something about yourself or how you view the world.

Just remind yourself this is new, and it’s ok to make mistakes. You’re learning and doing things differently is all part of the process. Try to enjoy the process of being a bit rebellious and creating room for imperfection.

Perfectionism

“A painting is never finished – it simply stops in interesting places” - Paul Gardner

This is true of all kinds of art. I never want to put the brush down, but experience has told me that trying to make the perfect piece of art is not possible, and a painting can so easily be ruined by overworking it. There will always be more to learn and skills to refine as an artist, and that should be celebrated. I’ll never be bored, and to the day I die, I have a skill that’s constantly evolving. The only way I can become a better artist is to move on to the next painting, and evolve through the process of making the art. When I look back in 5 years, no doubt I’ll cringe at the art I made but that was the best I could do at the time, and no one else looks at my paintings like this, again it’s my ego doing the judging.

Final thoughts

The only way an artist succeeds is by always moving forward. And it’s important to note when you start out, you’re not going to be perfect, or any good most likely. But keep trying, keep failing, keep learning and one day you'll create something half-decent that never existed in the world before. But enjoy practising too, you don't have to share your work until you feel ready, do it for the love of creativity, not the outcome. The results will always follow after lots of practice, the idea people are born with talent and you either have it or don't is one of the biggest myths in creativity and arts. The ones that succeed are the people who love it so much they just keep going. That is all you have to do, is to stick at it, and one day you'll have a breakthrough. 

Ruth Egon is passionate about encouraging everyone to create. She likes to build confidence in less experienced artists and break down elitist ideas about entering the world of art.

Ruth Egon leads an online art membership, The Art Hub Community! We are an inspirational, nurturing and fun art community. We gather creative souls who are curious about developing their interest in art, through live workshops, forums and inspiring content.

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