An Artist Guide to overcoming procrastination
Procrastination is something we all experience, it festers in parts of our lives, impacting us on our careers or even stopping us from simple tasks like picking up a pencil and getting started. We all find that one thing we can't bring ourselves to do until the very last minute, if ever. We've all heard the "just get started", but we still don't do it, why? It can take hold, damage relationships around us and make us feel guilty, trying to climb what feels like a giant wall of impossible. However, procrastination is a very misunderstood process, and a lot of people who struggle with it also have to put up with being called lazy or disorganized, but it turns out this is not the case at all.
SO WHAT EXACTLY CAUSES PROCRASTINATION?
If we take a look at modern-day science, many journals written around the topic show that the most significant cause for procrastination is fear of physical or emotional discomfort that a particular task might bring. So to stop procrastinating, we need to understand what is causing this pain and relieve it. Some of the reasons for procrastination that stand out most of all for us artists is the fear of failure, judgment, and always wanting to create the perfect piece of art.
When Procrastination Never Seem To End
Sadly, these negative feelings can win us over and make us give up on the things we love, so we “take a short break” which can turn into months or even years of procrastination. I know first-hand how difficult it can be to start drawing again after a long break. Sometimes, it feels like the longer you go without creating art, the harder it becomes to start. You might feel rusty or like you've lost your touch. And even if you manage to pick up your pen or brush, you might find yourself staring at a blank page or canvas, unable to get started.
So how do you overcome procrastination and start creating again? It will require a bit of discipline and self compassion, but it's possible! So let’s dive in on how to do it.
HOW TO OVERCOME PROCRASTINATION?
When we are struggling to create art, chances are, subconsciously our brain has connected the creative process with negative emotions. It will grip onto anything which can distract you from feeling these negative feelings. But there are ways in which we can make a meaningful impact in beating the beast known as procrastination and taking back control of our lives.
STEP 1: FIND MEANING IN YOUR WORK
The first step to defeating procrastination is to change that feeling of "I should do it" into "I want to do it".
Whenever you come across the feeling of forcing yourself to make art, try to take a step back and analyse why. Chances are that there was a time in your life when you loved nothing more than drawing and being creative, so ask yourself:
What was different back then?
Why are you making art now?
One of the ways to overcome procrastination is by finding meaning in your work. As human beings, we desire to create value for our society and ourselves, it is essential to be reminded of all the reasons that got us excited about creating art in the first place. Creating art can be a slow process, in some cases taking months from an idea to completion. By momentarily taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture for our meaning to create art, it can help us get back on track, strengthening our resolve and love for the craft we chose to do.
Don't forget to celebrate small victories, it will not only motivate you to continue, but it'll also make it easier to concentrate and gives yourself peace of mind that step by step things are getting done.
STEP 2: BREAK BIG TASKS TO AVOID FEELING OVERWHELMED
Breakdown big tasks whenever possible, in fact, even if the project you are about to work on is small, sit back, grab a pen and paper and plan out each stage. By planning ahead, it helps you keep your creative workflow structured, reducing the stress of having to continually think to yourself "What's next?" and giving opportunities for procrastination to take hold. By splitting your work into sub-tasks or stages, you have the added advantage of freeing up a lot of energy; allowing you to put more into creativity for your project.
GIVE YOURSELF DEADLINES
It's necessary to implement reasonable deadlines for each stage of your project, giving yourself harsh ones will only add more stress and could negatively impact the quality of your work. However, giving yourself too much time will only allow the cycle of procrastination to put each task further back, and you will find yourself beginning to fail deadlines or rushing the process in creating beautiful art your proud of. It's often hard to respect the time you put into your work, and having someone who can hold you accountable, making sure you stick to the deadlines you've given yourself can be a blessing. If they also share your self-same goals, then it provides an excellent opportunity for you both to grow and feed off each other's achievements.
STEP 3: FREE YOUR ENVIRONMENT OF DISTRACTIONS
Making sure your environment is as stress-free and has as little distractions as possible is essential for your productivity and control over things to procrastinate with. Recent studies have shown that a simple act like checking your phone can lead up to over ten minutes of lost productivity and resets your brains flow. This is because the human brain needs time to change into the correct state for being creative, and it takes a significant period to start up and get fully emerged. What makes it worse, if these distractions are regular, we never allow ourselves to fully engage the creative process and find that at the end of the day, we haven't produced anything noteworthy or given ourselves the feeling of "I can do better".
All of these small distractions and changing of your minds flow makes it much easier for us to default to a state of procrastination. So to keep control of our lives and not let that happen, we need to keep our period of working distraction-free, and focused on doing what we love; creating art. You will find that your productivity and mood will improve, and it will be much easier to finish your art with better quality than you've been able to produce before.
WHAT IF YOU STILL CAN'T SHAKE OFF PROCRASTINATION?
Professor John Perry, the author of the book "The Art of Procrastination", explains that instead of letting procrastination ruin your work, you could actually implement it as a useful tool. How does one do this? Well, if you find yourself doing it too often, instead of using that time to do mindless things like browsing the web on your phone, use it to work on a different project. If you don't have a separate project, perhaps you can use this time to look up the work from other artists for inspiration, look up references for your current projects or do some drawing studies. By doing so, although you are still delaying your primary task, you are still being somewhat productive. Just keep in mind that this method is a double-edged sword, and although it can be fine to use every now and again on tough days, you should try to keep it as a last resort.
LET GO OF PERFECTIONISM
As artists, we strive to put the best work we can out into the world. However, it is important to let go of the idealism and unreachable goal of perfection. After all, great art does not have to be perfect. Most of the time, we aren't drawn to artwork because it's flawless, but because of the emotional value to the viewer. If you are struggling with finishing projects because of perfectionism, you should try to follow our previous steps of giving yourself deadlines and take on more small projects. By completing smaller pieces, you will adjust to the good feeling of actually completing them. Perfectionism prohibits you from experiencing this feeling and is a cycle that needs to broken, allowing you to enjoy the benefits of publishing your art instead of procrastinating over it.
BE KIND TO YOURSELF
You will have bad days, and that's okay. You shouldn't make yourself feel guilty for having days where your productivity is less than usual, or your struggling to stay on task. We all have those days, your heroes have those days, and that's why it's important to not compare yourself to others but understand that it's a journey we all have to take. It takes time to find the correct workflow for you, and you have the opportunity to choose to take those steps and find what works best for you. Procrastination is not something that will go overnight, but it will be a continuous battle as more things in this world are demanding our attention more than ever. So, be kind to yourself and let yourself grow to be who you've always wanted to be.
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