One of the fascinating things that I’ve observed on my journey is that I would much rather put myself and my art out there with people I don’t know than with the people I do know. It’s such a weird thing, because as any great marketer or business consultant (putting on my other professional hat) would tell you, you are much more likely to sell your products or services to the people who already know, like and trust you than you are to total strangers.
So what do you do when you have zero expectation that the people who already know you will actually show up and support you? When you have zero confidence that the people who love you will care about what you are creating?
I love supporting people that I know or that I meet who are doing cool things. So of course it would stand to reason that there are people I know who would also want to support me and what I’m doing.
I’ve learned this comes from a core wound from early in life. From not being truly seen, heard or valued. For decades. To a point where you just stop expecting it to show up. I have a mentor who says that it is common for children to stop having needs or to stop expecting things, or even to stop dreaming altogether, because that is less painful than having your needs not be met over an extended period of time. And how do you overcome that? How do you “get over it” or move past it and let it go?
I love the things that I’ve created. There are a fair number of them that I can’t believe I actually created because I love them so much. They resonate with me so completely.
I guess the way you get through this is to just keep pushing yourself to put yourself and your creations out there. To everyone. The people you know and the people you don’t know. To trust that the people who resonate with your creations will find you in whatever way that happens. Your job as an artist (or any kind of professional) is to keep showing up. To keep creating. To keep doing what you can do. And to trust that the rest will take care of itself. The money will show up when you need for it to. The work will end up in the hands of the people it’s meant to. The people who resonate with what you are doing will find you and those who don’t will disappear and gravitate to the people doing the things that they resonate with.
It is all valid. It is all part of the process. It is all ok. And none of it has anything to do with your actual worthiness. You are worthy. You are valid. What you feel called to focus on matters. Do it anyway!