Question of the Month: How do you deal with people who are not supportive of your artistic endeavors?

Whether you’re a creative person or not, we’ve all had to deal with someone who at one time or another, we considered to be unsupportive. Sometimes its through words and sometimes its through actions. Sometimes, it’s easy to deal with someone who doesn’t give us the support we need, other times it hurts to the very core.

When it hurts to the core, it can cause you to doubt yourself, feel uncreative and cause other problems. So how do you deal with it?

 

Well, it may differ depending on the person and actions, but in general I’ve found:

 

    • Keep busy! Keeping busy helps keep your mind occupied so you’re not dwelling on the negative things. Besides, just because someone has other ideas, why should that keep you from creating and doing what you like?

 

    • I don’t know about you, but if someone makes me feel like I can’t achieve something I’ve set out to do, it just makes me more determine and want to prove them wrong. In short, it makes me work harder.

 

    • Hum or think about the Frank Sinatra song, I Did It My Way. It may seem silly, but just keeping in mind that not everyone has the same path and sometimes you have to do things your way helps put things into perspective.

 

    • If someone is constantly unsupportive or constantly making you feel bad, sometimes you just have to cut them out of your life. It may be easier said than done, but remind yourself that you deserve better and to be treated with respect.

 

However, everyone deals with things differently. So I asked my fellow artist how they deal with non supportive people and here’s how they answered:

 

  • If someone is not supportive of my artistic endeavors, I simply stop sharing my happy art moments and milestones with them. If they aggressively poke at me with things like “So, are you still trying to be an artist?” hoping for an opportunity to undermine my self confidence, I stop associating with them on all things, not just my art. My time and my dreams are too valuable to spend on people who don’t believe in me as much as I believe in myself. The world needs more people supporting each other instead of trying to tear each other apart.

~ Vikki ~
theartofvikki

 

  • Engage with like minded people.Some family and friends can stifle your creative spirit,sometimes wanting to channel you into another direction especially during the teenage years.Find a mentor who will encourage your artistic endeavours.Believe in yourself and enjoy the creative journey.

Jillian

zazzle.com.au/orientcourt

How do you deal with unsupportive people?