We all hear that voice at times. The voice that whispers in our ear things like “You’re not good enough” or “You call yourself an artist?” or “No one is going to buy your work”, or “You have no original ideas”, etc. etc. etc. This voice is the infamous Inner Critic who rears its ugly head right at the moment when we do not need to hear such negative comments.

Our first instinct is to tell the Inner Critic to just go away, or probably we use less polite phrasing. But basically we stuff it down. This is necessary as a means of self-preservation, but really what is essential is to face the Inner Critic and really figure out what that voice is saying and why. Inner Critic work is challenging because it means we have to face the ugly things we say to ourselves.

Get out your journal and try this exercise:
+ Give your inner critic a name
+ Make a drawing of him/her. A collage even.
+ Explore that critical voice- what is it saying?
where is it coming from?
how does it make you feel?
is there a theme?
+ Next time you start hearing the Inner Critic voice, write down exactly what it’s saying. Then respond to it. Have a dialogue with that voice. Ask it what are you trying to teach me?

And why do we need to do this? There are several reasons:
*the Inner Critic is negative energy. By understanding its role, you can shift the energy so it can work for you instead of against you
*understanding the Inner Critic allows you to know it and its dynamics, allowing you to sidestep the roadblocks
*once your can wrap your head around who the Inner Critic is, why it does what it does, you can release that energy. Forgive it and yourself and keep moving forward.

One thing to understand is that the Inner Critic was created to protect you at times. For example, “if I don’t try, I won’t get rejected”.

I did this exercise several years ago and it was extremely helpful. I highly recommend it.

self portrait, Teach Me To Fly, 2005

Some helpful links on the Inner Critic:

http://talentdevelop.com/articles/innercritic.html

http://www.creatingstrategies.com/articles/creativity_and_innovation/invite_the_inner_critic

http://www.kalimunro.com/article_inner_critic.html

http://creativeeveryday.com/creativeeveryday/2009/04/dialoguing-with-your-inner-critic.html

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Feeling a little stuck with your journaling? Maybe you feel like you need a little inspiration or motivation to get you going. There’s nothing like joining an informal group online to get you going sometimes. You don’t even have to join, just follow along!

Head on over to Dawn’s blog D’Blogala for daily journaling prompts for the month of November. NaNoJourno stands for National Nonstop Journaling Month. Dawn is posting a word a day at her blog to inspire your visual journal entry for that day.

I know that four days have already gone by for this month already, but don’t let that stop you.

For visual inspiration of someone who creates beautiful visual journal entries that aren’t fussy or overly complex, visit the blog of 365 Days of Being 30…an art journal. Erin’s visual journal pages were featured on this blog earlier this year and she is still at it! I find her journal pages very inspiring.

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My friend and talented artist Patricia Anders posted this exercise and questions on her blog. This is a great exercise for us creative types and I challenge you to open up your journals and attempt to answer her questions and really try to see your work with a stranger’s eyes. I did it myself and will share my answers in a few days over at my art blog. If you would like, post your thoughts on your own blog and share a link here. Or keep it private in your own written journal.

Look at the work you have currently hanging on your studio wall or work space or in progress on your easel or your work table and pretend that you are someone else. Someone who does not know you and imagine what they might think of the artist who created it. Write those things down and keep them for yourself, to help you determine whether what you are creating is tied in with who you are or what you want to say or express. Post your thoughts.

Do you find that the statement “You can tell a lot about a person by the art that they make” is true? Does this exercise give you some clarity or ability to see your creations differently? Do you know someone who’s art clearly reflects who they are? Is the work you did ten years ago different? have you matured artistically or just improved your skills? Is there a difference? Is the content or the media the same?

It is important to the exercise to look at your work with a stranger’s eyes first. And then move on to answering the questions.

Try it!

self portrait

Art is not so much talent as character.. it’s what you are, the qualities of the person. ::: John Olsen :::

Interesting quote….is this true? This quote may be tackling a whole other issue entirely, but thought it was an interesting one to ponder.

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With summer now in full swing, paintings to be made, journals to be bound, a toddler to chase outside, and blog posts to write I have been finding less time to do my own journaling. For these reasons I am going to be posting journaling tips every other Tuesday. I am working on one about journaling with your Inner Critic. Should be interesting…but just need to find the time!

But I didn’t want to post this week without a prompt at least. With the absence of my own journaling these past few weeks, I have asked myself- Why do I journal anyway? I have missed it. The absence of it is very real for me. I have kept a journal since I was a little girl in various ways and forms. But it was only really, the past 7 years that it became a conscious and consistent habit. But why?

…It is testimony, evidence of a life. My life. It is a learning tool. It is Me.

So here is your journal prompt: Why do you journal?

…writing a journal implies that one has ceased to think of the future and has decided to live in the present. It is an announcement to fate that you expect nothing more. It is assertion that you take each day as it comes and make no connection between to-day and other days. Writing a journal means facing your ocean you are afraid to swim across it, so you attempt to drink it drop by drop. It means that you count the last leaves of a tree whose trunk has lost its sap. ~ George Sand

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