When Neil Armstrong landed on the moon in 1969 it wasn’t the first time he had ever flown. Needless to say, he had actually flown thousands of times in many hundreds of aircrafts and spacecrafts but there was a time when he had never flown.

There was a time when Michelangelo didn’t know how to draw, when Barbara Streisand couldn’t sing and Eddie Van Halen couldn’t play the guitar. They worked and practiced for thousands of hours until they were the best they could be.

It’s no different for any profession including the world of creativity. Unfortunately there are some who don’t put in the work, don’t practice and don’t learn from the experts because they want to think their presumed natural ability alone gives them unique insights sufficient to carry them to new heights.

Hard work beats talent

When talent doesn’t

work hard.

Some get the feeling of exceptionality from temporal and superficial means such as the kind of car they drive, the clothes they wear, their hairstyle or copious amounts of tattoos and expect others to wonder at their creative individuality.

On the contrary, creativity is a deep-seated, enduring contribution and some of the most well-known and successful artists lived very plain lives.

Good talent

plus poor

attitude equals

bad talent

In the world of psychology there is a condition known as the Dunning-Krueger effect when people have an over inflated opinion of themselves.

It’s a natural tendency to think we’re smarter than everyone else, think ourselves better drivers, look better or are in better shape than others. This is prevalent in neophytes who, to put it succinctly, don’t know what they don’t know.

Conversely the Dunning-Krueger effect holds true for the experts. Those knowledgeable in a particular subject or skill tend to downplay their own abilities. Their reasoning behind it is that they think it’s something everyone should know. In the world of entrepreneurship there is a fallacious slogan:

Fake it till you make it

However, with creativity and drawing the “fake it till you make it” con doesn’t apply.

I’ve never generally been a fan of this philosophy in any setting because it’s deceptive, like a snake oil salesman. It’s the You Tube sensation who is leaning against a BMW which he doesn’t own, holding some cash and promising me I could be rich by signing up for his course. It’s the spokesman who promises the fulfillment of my wildest dreams if I attend his seminar. It’s the life coach who wants to be my professional mentor, but has zero qualifications to advise anyone.

When it comes down to a genuine skill like drawing no one can’t fake it. It takes learned talent that comes from continuous practice. If someone isn’t at a level of proficiency he wants or needs to be, he can’t think himself there. He can’t insist he’s great if he actually needs improvement. This is why self-affirmations can be so misleading.

I confess I hate talking on the phone but being a self -employed businessman, this presents a problem; answering the phone is an essential part of good business. So, I decided to convince myself I love talking on the phone. I told myself 500 times a day, Self-talk is paramount in anyone’s belief system, but it needs to be mature and credible. If I went around telling myself I’m happy and wealthy when I’m actually broke and miserable then those fake, quixotic reflections can be depressing because it functions as a reminder as to how broke and unhappy I actually am. It would serve me better if I honestly identified problem areas and address them frankly.

Happy people don’t have to remind themselves they’re happy; they just are.

One must accept that one has uncreative moments. The more honestly one can accept that, the quicker the moment will pass.

Etty Hillesum

During the Great Depression there was a hit song many were singing called, “Happy Days Are Here Again”. Franklin Roosevelt, in his inaugural address indirectly referred to that mentality by declaring,

“We can’t bally-hoo

oueselves back to prosperity”

He knew that no amount of positive thinking or affirmations will change anything unless we roll our sleeves up and get to work.

If I am not satisfied with the way I draw something, like hands for example, then I can’t stupidly befit the Dunning-Krueger example by telling myself how great I am at it. If I accept the reality that to draw better hands, it would behoove me to practice, then in reality I’ll get better. The self-honesty and frankness will actually improve my confidence instead of leading to discouraging embarrassment. The next section explains how I learned this the hard way.

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