Self-confidence

Get ready for it:  I'll be quoting Howard a lot.

One of the things we used to talk about was how when we start doubting ourselves we inevitably do more harm than good.  And then we'll find ourselves on a downhill roll, things will multiply into a giant storm if we don't put the brakes on and regroup.

The key is to catch it and label it before it grows out of control.

That happened recently when, a few weeks ago, I was doing a demo painting at the InsideOut Sautee Art Gallery.  It was a landscape painting, subject out the back window of the gallery.  All went well until, towards the end of the painting, some horses appeared in a distant pasture.   Well, of course, they had to be part of the scene, but as the first brushstroke went down, I began to feel unsure that it would look like a horse.  Instead of taking an analytical look--something I can do confidently--I charged ahead and created a deer, then a goat, then a cow, but never a horse.

And THAT'S when I started getting tired.  Not just tired, but totally wilted.  And not until I got home with the thing did it hit me squarely in the face:  for a brief moment, I had lost confidence.  Truth is it's been years since I've studied a horse, but doubting my hand to follow what my eye was seeing was at the heart of of the problem.

We live out these little metaphors daily. When we pay attention to them we can save ourselves a bundle of agony.

Have a fine Wednesday.
Dianne