My back to school resolution of painting every morning during my “extra” hour is going great! I don’t always get to paint for the entire hour, as I sometimes have things to do before I leave the house, but I sit down Monday through Friday (and sometimes on the weekends too). I remember the advice Charlie O’Shields, Creator of doodlewash.com gave me when I interviewed him. “If you want to form a daily art habit you have to decide how much time you can devote to it and protect that time with your life.” And I’ve done that, turning down a walking date with a friend, and not using the time for my running.
Benefits to working every day at a set time:
- No need for the internal struggle to motivate myself
- More progress on my paintings
- More progress on developing skills
- I mentally stay “in” a painting and often work at other times too
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I just went back and read your plan and I’m glad it’s working. Good for you! I am struggling to make time for painting right now (painting the walls in our new house is getting in the way) and your plan is inspiring. Thanks…keep it up!
Thanks Jean – so far so good. I’m sure there’s a lot to do with a new house! You’ll get back to it once you’re settled.
Let’s hope so…I’m feeling out of a good regular practice. Painting only about once a week or so…just not enough!
When you get back to it you’ll really appreciate the time and be so inspired! 🙂
That is good advice, thanks for sharing. I don’t usually stick to a set time, but I do have frequent deadlines and a blog to hold myself accountable. It seems to have worked well for me this year. I’m glad you found something that works for you.
That’s great – deadlines work well for me too. And my blog has been huge in the accountability department. But I sometimes fall into the trap of spending more time writing about creativity and working on my blog and less time actually creating. I’m always trying to find ways to bring myself back to “no pressure” creating time. I was just traveling for a few days and now I feel so far away from painting. I need to just sit down and get back into it. 😀