Five Ways to Build Your Confidence as an Artist
As creatives and artists confidence can come and go. Sometimes we feel filled with it, and other times it feels so elusive. If you can relate, don’t feel bad - feel human! This is a completely normal part of being a creative in our world today.
Art is so personal, and putting a piece of you out into the world for all to see can be tough on your confidence. Even the most experienced artists struggle with confidence. Sometimes all it takes is one small comment to completely throw you off and send you spiraling into self-doubt. Putting your art into the world takes bravery, but it’s worth it!
And the good news is that confidence is something that you can build. It’s like a muscle - the more you practice building your confidence, the more it will grow! Confidence is an ever-evolving journey, but with the right tools, you will start to gain confidence and learn how to cope with the moments where you fall back into self-doubt. Trust me, you can be bold. All it takes is a little practice.
In this post, I’ll share five of my favorite ways to build your confidence. These are all lessons that I’ve learned as I’ve built my career as an artist. I still struggle with confidence, but these are the practices and realizations that I continue to come back to time after time when I need an extra confidence boost.
Know that your art is not for everyone
This one was huge for me. When you are sharing your work publicly (especially on the internet!) it opens up a whole world of critics. I know just how confidence-draining it can be to get negative feedback on your work. And I’m not talking about constructive feedback given by a helpful peer. I’m talking about that mean, internet troll kind of feedback.
Over the years I’ve learned that the best way to handle haters is to acknowledge that they are out there. There are people out there who hate my art. And I’ve learned to accept that. It’s actually been so freeing to acknowledge the fact that my art isn’t for everyone. It has allowed me to open up, be bold, and create vibrant art without worrying about what people will think of it. I don’t create art for the people who hate it. I create it for the joy it brings me and for the joy it brings the people who love it.
So celebrate the fact that your art isn’t for everyone. It’s important to take constructive criticism from people whose opinions you trust. But when it comes to other negative comments about your art, you can brush them off knowing that it’s not personal. Your art just doesn’t resonate with that particular person. And that is totally ok. It’s impossible to appeal to everyone, so keep doing you, boo!
Show your work
Now that we’ve gotten the fear of criticism out of the way, it’s time to put yourself out there! Showing your work is one of the keys to building your confidence. It will help you learn what people like and it will help normalize the act of sharing your work publicly.
It can feel scary to share your work, but it is the ultimate exercise in building your confidence as an artist. The more you share, the less scary it will feel. So get that painting off of the kitchen table and out into the world!
Believe in yourself
I know this sounds a little cheesy and oversimplistic, but belief in yourself is one of the most powerful ways to build your confidence.
Self-doubt naturally will creep in, but it’s your job to be aware of that and interrupt those doubtful thoughts with ones of confidence. For example, if a thought pops into your head like “Who am I to be sharing my work?! The market is too saturated!” You can reframe that thought to something like “There is room for me to share my unique creative voice.”
If you’re doubting your abilities or your creativity, create a mantra that you can repeat to yourself any time that doubt creeps in. Try a mantra like “I am an artist” or “My confidence is growing little by little with small successes.” The key is to make sure it’s something that you can get your belief behind.
Commit to trying to catch yourself when the self-doubt comes in, and reframe the thoughts to more confident ones. Over time this practice will actually change your brain and you’ll start to build a strong belief in yourself! Sounds a little woo-woo, but trust me on this one - it really works!
Another way to build up your confidence and self-belief is to journal about the confident version of yourself as if you’re already that person. What would confident-you be doing day to day? Where is their art being shown? How do they show up for themselves? Create a vivid picture of this version of you and journal about it as if you’re living that life. This will help show your brain what’s possible and help you build your belief in yourself.
Find a creative community
It’s important to build your belief in yourself, but it can also be extremely impactful to surround yourself with other creative people who will build you up and support you through all the ups and downs of your journey.
I’ve connected with some amazing fellow artists through masterminds, Facebook groups, Instagram, Skillshare, and my licensing agency! There are so many ways to find your creative community so start putting yourself out there. At the end of the day, we’re all looking for connection and community so don’t be afraid to reach out to people. You never know, they may become an integral part of your art community!
Take the leap
If you’re feeling like a lack of confidence is keeping you from chasing your creative dreams, my best advice is that you’re more ready than you think. I’ll let you in on a little secret - no one ever feels 100% ready. The biggest difference between aspiring creatives and the ones who have made it their career is that they took action even when they didn’t feel ready.
Taking the leap doesn’t have to be big! It could be as small as starting an Instagram account to share your art. You may feel like you need to wait to take action until your portfolio is ready or until you paint the perfect piece, but if you wait and wait until you feel ready, you may never start. All it takes is a few seconds of courage to hit send on the email to your dream client or list your first painting for sale, but it will be worth it.
Take the leap. It may be scary, but you’ll make it through. And your confidence will grow as a result!
I hope that these tips will help you build your confidence. It’s totally normal to doubt yourself and feel that confidence ebb and flow, but I want you to feel empowered knowing that you have the power to grow your confidence! You’ve got this!
xo, Jessi
P.S. Looking for some confidence-building exercises to help you along your art journey?
Check out my guided creative workbook, The Bright Book! The Bright Book takes you through creative exercises and journal prompts designed to help you build your confidence, feel inspired, and grow as an artist and as a person.
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