Not giving up my happy space

To be honest, I’ve been a little discouraged lately. The things I’ve been trying to make my art visible to new people and to boost my sales, haven’t been working the way I had hoped. I feel like I need to make some changes, but making decisions in a state of fear isn’t always the best idea.

The first thing my anxiety told me to do is to forget about making art. Find a different passion, something easier, something I might be better at. I know this isn’t the answer, and I can’t imagine a life without creating, so that’s not an option.

Next, my people-pleasing tendencies crept in. They have helped me through tough times earlier in life, so they always have ideas: make more art the people want to buy. That will boost the sales, and the self-confidence. Yep, it’s very convincing, that people-pleaser in my head.

Don’t worry. I’m not going to do that either. Been there, done that. It made me miserable, because mixing my life’s purpose and trying to be someone I’m not, is a big contradiction. My art studio is my happy place, and I’m not willing to give that up.

The way to react to my current dip lies in the complete opposite of what my fear is telling me to do: create what my heart tells me it wants to make. It doesn’t sound logical, and there’s voices in my head shouting to stop, but my heart knows this is the only way through.

So that’s what I will do.