Are you actually scare to improve your art?

We all fear trying new things, even when we want to. We try a little, face obstacles, and then retreat to what we already know or just procrastinate.

This is the biggest enemy of progress.

Taking action is terrifying, but not taking action is even worse.

Every time we try to create and learn something new, there is resistance.

And because of the Matthew Effect.

The longer you stay in your comfort zone, the harder it is to break out of it.

In the past three months, I’ve created an illustration every two weeks, experimenting with different styles and forms. Before this, my progress was slow. But I’ve realized some methods that can help.

In this Letter, We will discuss why resistance exist, why some artists can maintain their passion, and how to progress with the least amount of resistance.

Why resistance exist?

When we use familiar techniques and processes, there are no obstacles. But when we try to learn something new, it becomes incredibly difficult.

We might endlessly save tutorials on YouTube or buy some courses, get excited by its introduction, and then give up when we encounter something hard to understand, then to buy another course.

This doesn’t lead to progress.

The book Thinking, Fast and Slow explains this through two thinking systems.

System 1:

We don’t need to consciously think about our daily route home, how to turn the steering wheel, when to hit the gas, or when to brake. Often, we find ourselves back home without even realizing it.

When these activities become habitual, we require little effort to execute them.

The same applies to drawing. Using familiar processes for line art, shading, and listening to music, time seems to fly by.

You may have seen my composition video. If you hadn’t encountered composition before, trying to use this knowledge in your work would be challenging. This is normal.

But when we try a new method, we face enormous resistance.

This thinking process is System 2.

“System 2” requires a high degree of focus—it demands “self-control” which gets depleted over time.

Psychologist Roy Baumeister’s experiments show that this process is unpleasant and exhausting. Thinking, Fast and Slow refers to this as cognitive load.

When only “System 1” is active, we’re in our comfort zone.

The “comfort zone” has a certain addictive quality—the longer you stay in it, the harder it is to break free.

The tough part is, we have to admit that stepping out of our comfort zone is hard.

The good news is that it gets easier the more we push through. Once we gain momentum, everything becomes easier.

Use System 2 to learn until it becomes a System 1 process. Then use System 2 to learn something new again.

Consistently push ourselves because we want to get better.

So, we need to make a firm decision.

When we first start learning, we don’t need much determination because there aren’t many obstacles, and we don’t have high expectations of ourselves.

But as we gain some skills and experiences, and want to move beyond the beginner's trap to create work that looks decent, we need to spend several times more effort on a single piece.

We must refine the lines, rethink the elements and details, and figure out how to explain them. We should address the issues we previously ignored.

As long as the direction is correct, repeating this process with a few pieces will lead to significant improvement.

Determination is key.

If you truly decide to win the game, every problem will be solved.

If you want to become a professional artist, and your friends or family say it’s too risky, but you only have a “try it out” mentality, you’re likely to give up when you face resistance.

Some people see themselves as victims, thinking they suffer so much but don’t get the results.

Sacrificing something to do what you want is basic, nothing special. Everybody does that.

Nobody respects someone who decides to do something but quits after some resistance.

Respect yourself, and take action.

Sometimes, this resistance stems from childhood trauma.

Perhaps someone made you feel unworthy of good things as you grew up. Every time you try to become a better person, your past self pulls you back.

But in your journey, there must have been people who supported you, thinking you’re doing well. Yet, you don’t believe the good words; you only remember the hurtful ones.

This is normal—childhood has a massive impact on us. Give yourself another chance; you deserve better.

What if there are no results?

This is tough to endure and is why many people give up.

Before a video goes viral, I created over seventy videos, each taking about ten hours.

After a year, I only had 400 subscribers, and many videos didn’t even reach 100 views.

I wanted to quit countless times.

But there’s a mindset that helped me hold on.

The mindset that helps you persevere.

Treat yourself as an investment.

When stocks start to trend downward, some people panic and sell, while others hold long-term.

The stock might recover, or it might not. No one can know for sure.

I decided to become an artist, but can I at least make a living? Or will I never succeed?

How should we think about this situation?

The answer is that these concerns are irrelevant. They’re just noise.

We need our own strategy and code of conduct.

The investors who earn in the market long-term don’t time the market.

Long-term investing has a principle:

As long as you keep doing the right things logically, time and accumulation will inevitably lead to good results.

In the stock market, doing the right thing means having an investment portfolio with a built-in system of survival of the fittest.

For example, SPY, the S&P 500, invests in the best companies in the U.S. market. Despite short-term fluctuations, it’s bound to make money long-term.

This isn’t an investment Letter. Let’s get back to art.

What’s the logical choice in art?

Effective practice.

For example, I wanted to learn anatomy, so I copied a lot of references.

But I couldn’t apply it to my work.

This is ineffective.

At this point, I need enough knowledge to understand why I’m not progressing.

Because when copying, I was just tracing lines without understanding muscle structure.

What if you understand the muscle structure but still can’t draw well? The usual problem is perspective—when the angle changes, I can’t draw it.

Then it’s a perspective issue; first, I need to learn how to simplify the structure, then rotate it.

Solving practical problems is the correct approach.

In the short term, it might look like you’re drawing worse, but in the long term, you’ll improve.

Because it’s the logically correct thing to do.

I share my studies and illustration breakdowns on Patreon.

I’m not a professional artist yet, but I’m on this path and documenting the process of solving problems and experimenting.

It will be helpful to you.

Let’s back to the theme of the Letter: how to reduce resistance as much as possible.

The more you fight against it, the stronger the resistance gets, which can make drawing feel unenjoyable. 

That’s a sign that the approach is wrong.

The truth is, it’s very simple: return to your original intention and rediscover curiosity.

There was a time when I completely lost my passion for drawing.

Until I watched a video of two artists( Naoki Urasawa & Mai Yoneyama) who truly love art discussing their works.

What touched me the most was how they kept repeating something like:

“Drawing correctly from the lower angle brings great satisfaction.”

“Drawing correctly from an upper angle is great too.”

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgRO8SQHOSs

It’s that simple.

It’s all the noise that makes us forget why we started drawing in the first place.

That curious heart is still there.

Keep drawing.

We’ve understood why there’s resistance, made the decision to push forward, and rekindled our curiosity.

Now, it’s time to take action.

Action requires focus.

Many people mistakenly think they need to try hard to focus.

But in life, there are many things where the harder you try, the harder they become—focus is one of them.

In this case, we need a different approach.

If we reduce distractions, we naturally become more focused.

If we reduce the barriers to taking action, we become more motivated to act.

When I’m writing scripts for YouTube, I often find myself opening YouTube and mindlessly scrolling.

That’s a distraction.

Once I realized this, I stopped doing it. Sometimes, I catch myself opening YouTube out of habit, but as soon as I notice, I close it.

Of course, the biggest distraction is the phone.

So, when I start working, I put my phone on airplane mode and leave it in another room.

Next, let’s talk about reducing the barriers to action.

Imagine two scenarios:

In the first scenario, you turn on your computer, wait for it to load, open Clip Studio Paint, wait for it to load, and then start drawing.

In the second scenario, you turn on your iPad, open Procreate, and start drawing immediately.

It’s not that you have to use an iPad, but it’s about making it as easy and quick as possible to start doing the work.

I’m used to drawing on a tablet, so it’s not a barrier for me anymore. But when I travel, I bring my iPad.

In situations where there’s a lot of waiting, I can pull out my iPad and do some practice. I often end up drawing more than I do at home.

The key is to identify the behaviors that delay your start and optimize them.

Establish your routine, and your productivity will increase significantly.

Reducing the obstacles between thought and action is crucial.

Hope this is helpful.

See you in the next Letter.

-Foudo