Finding Self Discipline, Drawing Seahorses, Dragons, and More...

How is your week going? However its going, I hope its going good and is enjoyable.

Here are some snapshots of the things I have been working on this week: Dragon, Seahorses, more flowers, a cowboy, and a knight.

I'm trying to get back in the habit of drawing more regularly and consistently but I have to admit that contrary to popular belief, it takes some self discipline and self motivation, not just inspiration. As enjoyable as drawing is, I'm not always in "the mood" and this is what I struggle with the most. In hopes of improving my routine, I bought a book called Manage Your Day-to-Day: Build Your Routine, Find Your Focus, and Sharpen Your Creative Mind. 

This book was written for creative people that are looking to find advice on self discipline to get more meaningful work done. On most days I find myself getting way too distracted, wasting time online, by the end of the day I have very little to show and feel guilty for having an unproductive day.

This book is an easy, engaging read, with articles written by different people (creative directors, artists, writers, professors, motivational coaches, etc.) I read it in one weekend! And I'm not a person that likes reading much. Here are a few I found very useful:

"Inspiration is for amateurs, the rest of us just show up and get to work." -  Chuck Close 

"I don't wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work." - Pearl S. Buck

Some useful tips:

• Follow your body's natural energy levels and do creative work during those times, do admin, easy and "boring" tasks during your low energy times
• On average, most people can maintain focus in 90 minute intervals - then its time to break or move onto a new task
• Work everyday, even if its only for 10 minutes. Frequency makes starting easier and fosters productivity. "When you work regularly, inspiration strikes regularly."

And the one that hit home was:

"What I do everyday matters more than what I do once in a while."

This was a good book and I recommend it to anyone one that has difficulty focusing or feeling self motivated. And it was less than $8 on amazon.com! So what are you waiting for? Go buy it!

See you next time and thanks for reading.