be the change

It was so interesting to read where Paige was yesterday… I've been feeling a tap on the shoulder from that visitor, Mister "self doubt".

It happens every now and then, sometimes taking me by surprise and other times I can see exactly where it's come from.

What can we do when we feel overwhelmed as artists by self doubt?.

Here are a few things I do -

• Talk it through with someone who will just listen, not judge. (They may even have been through this feeling before)

• If you don't have someone to talk it through with -  write it down - the power of putting it out there is sometimes remedy enough.

• Find a mantra or a quote - there is comfort in words… always remember... I am enough.

• Stand barefoot on the grass, connect with nature and feel in the moment. Breathe.

Tell me… tell others visiting here - let's gather an arsenal of weapons/actions to blast through self doubt. What do you do? What mantras do you hold close?…what do we need to come out beaming on the other side.

Comments

[alicia]

Thank you for this today.

[Jess]

I remind myself that this is my own unique journey.

[Hannah]

I wear the comforting or encouraging words on my wrist. And then believe them. http://www.mudlove.com/MudLOVE-Bands/be-the-change

[Gabriela]

Write down my own words...In believing in myself...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/gamaraca/7562387350/in/photostream

[Emily]

Thank you so much for this post. Beautiful words and image.

Meditation and prayer help me through times of self doubt.

[leaca]

well said.

[Marcie]

I often find myself asking the 'what if?' questions. What if the worst might happen? What if - I dared to try...???
http://www.marciescudderphotography.com/home/2012/9/6/what-if.html

[Becs]

Great post. My favourite quote is "Comparison is the thief of joy" T Roosevelt and I try to remind myself of this as much of my self doubt seems to stem from comparison.
I really love this one too http://pinterest.com/pin/5488830766300156/ ;)
Walking is something else I do...something about being outside that is very soothing.

[Anne Jutras]

Great post! When I have doubt I try to stay focus on my true-self, and compare myself with others. Everyone is unique and have the own style.

But if I feel discouraged, I will go outside and shoot, shoot and shoot again! Until the light radiating within me. ;)

http://annejutras.wordpress.com/2012/03/02/etre-a-lecoute/

[ZielonaMila]

Wonderful photograph, an interesting idea. I am greeting

[Meghan @ Life Refocused]

Synchronicity is so powerful. Just wrote about some mantras I'm reminding myself of today... http://www.meghandavidson.com/2012/09/07/breathe/

[damiec]

With more pictures being taken now than ever before, it's a challenging time to define yourself as a photographer. It seems every time I make a bit of progress - get a picture in a show or do a shoot for a client - I experience an initial high and feel full of possibility, and then, like clockwork, it's followed up with a wave of self doubt. I don't know why, but I have come to recognize the pattern, which I'm calling progress.
To work my way out of it I remind myself that everyone in the world can have the same tools, but still no two people are going to take the same picture - what my eyes see, what my brain finds interesting, and what makes my heart sing - that's my own personal, unreproducible algorithm. And then I take my eyes, my brain and my heart out with my camera and shoot - even if I don't feel motivated, and soon enough I am again.

[Diane M. Schuller]

what a meaningful post. Good advice.
I tend to get away from the computer and go into nature. At the very least, getting off the computer and embracing and interacting with life: call a friend or neighbour to join you for an outing. Walks are great and conversation is a great way to lift a person up.

[Foxglove Lane]

I have learned to just put one foot in front of the other and "do the work" Action is the key. I say to myself "just do one small thing, listen and watch one small thing, just for it's own sake". Other times I get into tough love! I say to myself "you have such a first world problem but you have a full enough belly to moan about this? Just get on and enjoy your freedom to create..... it is a luxury" I love talking to myself, sometimes I make so much sense!!

[Diane M. Schuller]

just wondering why my posts are not accepted. seems strange.

[mj]

Sometimes I have the courage to really listen to the self doubt, to just rest with it, ask it questions and try to befriend it, so I can learn the lessons I must need to learn. If it is panic/anxiety inducing self doubt then I just try to remember to breathe well, deeply, in and out, for at least a couple of minutes.

[leonie wise]

a couple of years ago i wrote a manifesto.. a reminder of some of the things i sometimes forget. i printed it out and hung it on the wall, and put it up on my blog for other people to download if they wanted. its my all-time most viewed blog post, so i guess we all need reminders from time to time :)

http://leoniewise.com/2010/06/manifesto

[Laura]

When I get out of the shower in the morning, I write loving messages to myself on the fogged-up mirror. Whatever I'm needing that day or thinking about, I write about! Sometimes I doodle fun pictures, too. :) It always helps ground me and always helps me feel better, even if just a little bit.