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You Can Do Everything Right...

and still get a bad result.

That's how I felt all weekend long.  It's that time in your creative journey and you stop and say, "Well, this sucks and I'll never make anything great".  I hear this happens to a lot of artists.  But here's what happened to me last weekend.

I'm trying to come up with a unique design.  So I'm sketching all sorts of things but I get Artist's Block. Then I realize I have to make a pair of silver hoop earrings.  Yay!  It get's me away from designing.  Making hoop earrings is pretty straight forward.  
  1. Cut four pieces of silver.
  2. Make a circle with each piece.
  3. Form circle. No gaps!
  4. Solder
  5. Pickle
  6. Reform circle
  7. Make sure ends are visible.
16 gauge sterling silver hoops.  Soon to be sexy earrings for that sexy someone.

Sounds simple enough, huh?  Except for two of the hoops popped  open while reforming. AND I could still see the two ends.  Ugh!   I got frustrated.  And thus began beating myself up.  My mind was saying...
  1. You're not good enough.
  2. You can't even make a pair of simple earrings.
  3. Why are you even doing this?
  4. You suck.
  5. You're not creative.
All these negative thoughts came pouring in.  I think it lasted until I went to bed. 

I have to admit that there was a faint voice in my head trying to say something but those negative thoughts were drowning it out.  I finally heard it right before I fell asleep.  It said,

"You have to be more patient with yourself".

Well ain't that the truth!
  
Remember...try not to beat yourself up.  But when it happens don't forget to be more patient with yourself.
  
Namaste
Kalaya

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