In the past, I had to force myself to do things even when I’m not in the mood.
Now when possible, I’d put down everything on
hand and take a long coffee-break except for those tasks assigned by my boss
(otherwise no food & drinks for the day) ☹.
I realized very early that if your mood is not right, your outputs suffer, have no quality or just won’t look good. It’s the same for my artworks!
In the past, I’d hide my setbacks by avoiding people.
Now, it’s so easy. I just hide behind my computer
screen. To mask my sorrows, sufferings or
unhappiness, I’d divert attention to my ‘enriched’ life-style on social media: good
foods I had tasted, nice places I’d visited & the luxurious activities I’d experienced.
No content to post? No problem, just use AI to generate those pictures. My
coach taught me this tactic called “fake it till you make it!” 😊
In the past, when I encounter setbacks, I’d pull my hair in frustration and lose any mood for the whole day.
Now, I’d just put down all my tasks on hand, put away my painting brushes for a few days or weeks and do something else like doing DIY-crafts or taking long walks outdoor with cans of beer on hand. One small problem is I have to prepare to ‘face the music’ for being home late 😊
In the past, I’d accept any commissioned
project that pays.
Now, I try to be selective & state my terms
and conditions upfront before doing them: no reject, no refund, no return after
learning it via the hard way from an unpleasant encounter: One friend
commissioned me to create caricatures for him & his friends. After several
rounds of reject, it was clear that all he had wanted were portraits, not
caricatures! He could not tell apple is not the same as orange. The project
took thrice the amount of time to close. Kana-sai.
In the past, many ‘gurus’ advised me to re-tool, re-skill, re-learn, etc. The problem is none guarantees success. These ‘re’ activities just let ‘trainers, coaches, organizers provisions to make more money from believers. Anyone can say what they want but nobody can eliminate the bias against ageism. Now with threats from AI affecting many sectors, it’s better to stay original and be authentic. I guess.
