As we move forward through our experience, a lesson that continues to reveal itself is "The clay has no expectations". As artists, makers and creators, we are often our own worst critics. We take in rules and opinions about the craft and tie ourselves to them. These tethers often become the blockages that impede our creativity. I'm personally working to remember that art only requires our engagement, everything else is added by the observer. Paint will never make a judgement about color theory, It has no preferences about whether the final product will be impressionism or surrealism.
When I began to examine these ideas, I was confronted with my own insecurity, anxiety and feelings of unworthiness. I started to understand that the critic in my head was not my own honest assessment of myself. It was the voice of a learned behavior that I had accepted as my own. Every second of introspect and observation is helping to unlearn behaviors that have been present for as long as I can remember. We are removing things that no longer serve our highest good.
May we all work through our insecurities and anxiety, to find self love and an abundance of gratitude.