Create and release.
It sounds simple enough right?
Just put your head down, work hard, release your art. Don't care about what people think. Don't listen to that internal critical voice. Don't care results. Don't care about sales, opportunity, being understood as an artist or having your art valued.
Oh.
Yeah, it's not so simple. But the alternative might be worse. Trying to manipulate outcomes or predict events can lead to a high level of frustration. It can cause you to quit too early. It can make us feel like we're not in control. And the hard truth is, we're not.
So what do we do?
Create for today, serve people with your art. And for me, it involves my faith, trusting God is bigger than it all. Trust that when I'm creating art from an authentic place, it will find it's way to those who need it most. Trust that if nothing monetarily comes from a certain piece of art, perhaps it yields an invisible dividend of being an encouragement or help to someone who really needs it.
If we learn to create and release, we just might learn to create from a place of freedom. I suspect it takes practice. So, here's to practicing something that's worth it.
“I practice martial arts not to win over other people but to win over my own heart. ”